After the huge success of Walt Disney World’s Space Mountain, Disneyland opened their own Space Mountain on May 27, 1977. Back in 1964 plans were made to redesign Disneyland’s Tomorrowland and John Hench created a space port idea with a steel-track roller coaster. Walt Disney wanted the coaster to be inside so they could control the lighting effects and what guests see. A 1965 John Hench concept drawing had the cone shape that Space Mountain retains today. New Tomorrowland premiered in Disneyland in 1967, but the cost and technology to create Space Mountain was not ready yet. It did not open until a decade later, but it was something that Walt had wanted. At the grand opening ceremony original Project Mercury Astronauts were present to experience the attraction. The line stretched from Tomorrowland to Main Street’s flagpole. At a cost of about $20 million, it was the first attraction that cost more than building Disneyland itself in 1955.
Disneyland’s Space Mountain houses a single track coaster with 12-person rockets seating travelers side-by-side. Magic Kingdom’s version has two tracks with 6 person rockets seating single file. WED didn’t want the spires of Space Mountain to impose on Main Street so it was lowered 15 feet in the ground, unlike WDW’s which is above ground. The building is supported by 45 concrete pilings while 36 steel beams hold up the conical roof. It is 200 feet in diameter, while WDW’s is 300 feet. This enormous show building is 48,960-square-feet. Guests arrived on the second floor from the Observation Deck, and the original version had rockets with glow strips that zoomed past large windows. The track was 3,450 feet long, and had a section near the bottom where rockets could race side-by-side like on the Matterhorn. Nylon wheels and ball bearings were used for the first time. A computer weighed each rocket while special breaks along the track kept the vehicles separated. Because of the computerized system several rockets could operate at one time. Over 2,000 thrill seekers can ride in an hour. The rockets can zoom up to 35 miles per hour, while WDW’s go 27 MPH.
FedEx years. In 1995 Federal Express (FedEx) became the sponsor of Space Mountain. In the queue line, guests would watch Space Mountain TV (SMTV) like in WDW, featuring funny news reports and music videos about life in space. Around the late 1990s Disneyland and Magic Kingdom went through a Tomorrowland redesign that made them look more like Disneyland Paris, featuring a science-fiction, Jules Verne, antiquity view of the future. Disneyland’s new New Tomorrowland contained many shades of brown, and Space Mountain was given a greenish copper paint job to fit the theme. Much cooler than the paint scheme was the new sound system given to each rocket on the track. Every seat had speakers and travelers would listen to Dick Dale’s epic surf guitar rendition of Aquarium from Camille Saint-Saens’s “Le Carnaval des Animaux”. If you want to hear the classical music version of the song, it is played at the beginning of Impressions de France at Epcot. On July 28, 1999 the first Fastpass system was tested on Space Mountain.
2005 version. From 2003-2005 Space Mountain was closed for refurbishment, receiving a completely new track (same design) built by Dynamic Structures. This track was smoother than the old one (built by Arrow Dynamics). The glowing sides of the rockets were removed and the inside was much darker. The entry queue was redesigned, which is shown in my home video. The exterior cone outside went from copper back to white. It was coated with a building material “Space Mountain white” which doesn’t require painting. The Dick Dale surf soundtrack was replaced with music by Michael Giacchino (The Incredibles). The soft opening began in July, this video is from July 14, and July 15 was the grand reopening ceremony. I watched Neil Armstrong at the ceremony from Club Buzz, as I held my “IT’S BACK” guide map. It was stellar.
Rockin’ Space Mountain. With the 2005 redesign of Space Mountain, interchangeable lighting effects could be utilized. On Jan. 2, 2006 a three month overlay called Rockin’ Space Mountain had projections of dancers and Red Hot Chili Peppers music playing. Then Disneyland took this concept to “Higher Ground”.
Ghost Galaxy. In September 2009 the coaster got a spooky Halloween overlay which returned each season for nine years. This version had an eerie soundtrack and projections of ghosts, aliens, cracks, lightning, and explosions.
Hyperspace Mountain. In November 2016 a Star Wars overlay debuted playing John Williams Star Wars music. The projections displayed TIE fighters, X-wings, lasers, and other effects.
REFERENCES:
Secret Stories of Disneyland, Jim Korkis, 2017, Theme Park Press
The Disneyland Story, Sam Gennaway, 2014, Keen Communications
The Disneyland Encyclopedia Third Edition, Chris Strodder, 2017, Santa Monica Press
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never would have guess the standby wait was only 50 minutes judging by those queues outside. cool to see the night light effects. thanks for sharing ✨