In our last report, we noted that the majority of planets and the rocket ship vehicles had been removed from Astro Orbiter amid its months-long refurbishment. Additional pieces of the ride’s structure have now been removed.
The top portion of the ride’s structure is now missing. This includes the antenna-like spire and centered yellow planet which is typically caged in a metal structure (also missing). The spire has many loops from bottom to top which light up various colors in the evenings at Magic Kingdom along with other features on Astro Orbiter.
For reference, the ride in its complete form and an image from our last update are shown below:
Not much of the ride structure remains after these new removals which are in addition to the previous take-away of several metal framework pieces which house the planets, the planets themselves, mechanical arms, and ride vehicles.
The large white globes have also been removed from each of the four housings that branch off from the main ride mechanism. After nightfall these globes glow colorfully adding to the ambience of Tomorrowland.
In their place are smaller, green-wrapped inner-workings of which a metal bar runs through.
With the spire, colorful planets, ride vehicles, and much of the metal framework missing, we can get a better view of the hydraulics which lift guests in spacecraft rocket vehicles as they “blast-off” in their orbit through the galaxy.
As seen from the PeopleMover, construction equipment is still present behind the walls including a large crane , ladders, and safety cones along with cinderblocks and yellow scaffolding.
The construction walls extend out into the walkway between the PeopleMover and Buzz Lightyear’s Space Ranger Spin. However, The Lunching Pad dining location and seating area to the left of the wall is still operating during this time.
A sign just outside the elevators for Astro Orbiter reads “Attention Pilots. All flights have been delayed while we service your spacecraft. We’ll be blasting off again soon!”
The Astro Orbiter closed for refurbishment on January 13, 2025 and is set to reopen in the summer of 2025.
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