It took five years for Disney Imagineers, with the help of 25 experts from NASA, to design Mission: SPACE, the first ride ever to take people "straight up" in a simulated rocket launch. The story transports you and co-riders to the year 2036 and the International Space Training Center, where you are astronauts-in-training about to embark on your first launch. Before you board the four-person rocket capsule, you're assigned to a position: commander, navigator, pilot, or engineer. And at this point you're warned several times about the intensity of the ride and the risks for people with health concerns.

For those who can handle the intense spinning, the sensation of lift-off is truly amazing. You'll feel the capsule tilt skyward and, on a screen that simulates a windshield, you'll see the clouds and even a flock of birds pass over you. Then you launch, a turbulent and heart-pounding experience that flattens you against your seat. Once you break into outer space, you'll even feel weightless. After landing, you exit your capsule into the Training Lab, where you can rejoin your little ones playing space-related games. Note that many people come off this ride feeling nauseated and disoriented from the high-speed spinning of the vehicle, which is the technology that makes you feel as if you're rocketing into space. Keep in mind that these effects are cumulative. You may feel OK after your first ride but totally ill after your second or third ride in a row.

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