Merritt Island Wildlife Refuge

Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge spans roughly 140 000 acres between the Atlantic and the Indian River Lagoon. NASA set the land aside as a buffer for Kennedy Space Center in 1963, and the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service turned the unused expanse into a sanctuary. Wetlands, pine flatwoods, oak […]

Area History

Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge began with the development of the US Space Program. In 1962, NASA acquired 140,000 acres of land adjacent to the existing USAF launch facility on Cape Canaveral and established the John F. Kennedy Space Center. NASA built a launch complex and support facilities, but most […]