This transporter (crawler carrier ) was built by the Marion Power Shovel Company in Marion, Ohio.

 This company was actually purchased some years ago by the Bucyrus International Corporation which manufactures mining equipment. ( see 'Big Muskie' on my big digger page )

Marion PSC made the worlds largest tracked transporter primarily for transporting the Saturn range of space rockets to the launch pad. It is utilised at the Kennedy Space Center USA where it is now put to use transporting the Space Shuttle. Two of these monsters were actually built.

Designed specifically by NASA engineers, the first transporter made its initial unloaded run in 1965. 

The transporters are now used to carry space shuttle vehicles as opposed to the Saturn Rockets it was initially designed for. Huge steel adaptors are fitted to enable different vehicles to ride on its platform. These can be changed depending on the specification of the vehicle that it carries.

The space shuttle ' Atlantis ' depicted in the below picture below is on its 5 hour journey to the launch pad on the back of the Marion transporter. A tremendous amount of weight being moved so majestically. The engineering behind such a feat goes higher than the shuttle ever will !

The Marion Crawler has two operator control cabs, one at each end of the chassis, and they are used to control all crawler systems.

Equipped with 4 double tracked caterpillars each one is 10 ft high and 41 ft long.

 Each of the 8 tracks has 57 plates that weigh approximately one ton each. totaling approximately 450 tons, just for the weight of the tracks !.

16 motors are powered by four 1,000Kw generators driven by two 2,750hp diesel engines.

Two 750Kw generators powered by two 1,065hp diesel engines are used for steering, lighting and ventilation. Two auxiliary generators of 150Kw are also used for power.

Maximum speed is 1 mph loaded with space shuttle or 2 mph unloaded. This may sound very slow, but just as long as it gets to its destination with the Shuttle onboard, it doesn't really matter.

150 gallons of diesel are used per mile.

750 gallons of diesel used per trip. ( one way ) 1500 Gals there and back !

Leveling systems within the transporter keep the platform level while negotiating the 5% ramp leading up to the launch pad surface.

The transporter has to travel 5 miles from the VAB ( Vehicle Assembly Base ) to the launch pad. It travels  down a specially constructed road with a basic crew of eleven including drivers, technicians and observers who walk with the crawler to ensure that the steering is aligned perpendicular with the road on both sides as the tracks move independently of each other.