Marshall Space Flight Center previous Spacelab missions were operated. The advent of the Space Shuttle made possible several major space programs in which MSFC had significant responsibilities. These were the International Space Station, the Hubble Space Telescope, the Chandra X-Ray Observatory, and the Compton Gamma-Ray Observatory. The latter three are part of NASA's series of Great Observatories; this series also includes the Spitzer Space Telescope, but this was not launched by a Space Shuttle and MSFC had no significant role in its development. A manned space station had long been in the plans of visionaries. Wernhar von Braun, in his widely read "Collier's Magazine"
Space Shuttle Independence display cases with shuttle program artifacts. On August 14, 2014, a heavy lift was completed to place "Independence" on top of NASA 905, which had been moved to Space Center Houston from Ellington Field on April 30, 2014. The combined exhibit, named "Independence Plaza", opened to the public on January 23, 2016, at an estimated cost of . Space Shuttle Independence Space Shuttle "Independence, formerly known as Explorer", is a full-scale, high-fidelity replica of the Space Shuttle. It was built by Guard-Lee in Apopka, Florida, installed at Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex in 1993, and moved to Space Center Houston