You and your traveling buddies or family are standing in front of Epcot’s Mission: SPACE getting psyched up to go on the ride. But, you’re faced with a dilemma – do you go with the Orange Team or the Green Team? We’ll help you make that decision.
Mission: SPACE opened in 2003. Since then, the ride has undergone a few changes, but the overall story is that you are at the International Space Training Center and are going to complete a training mission that will take you to either Mars or Earth.
If you select the Orange Team your mission will be to Mars; Green Team members will orbit the Earth. Both missions start and end at the International Space Training Center. You’ll experience a take-off, flight, and landing.
So, what’s the difference besides the mission destinations? The experience is very different.
Without giving TOO much away — after all a lot of the fun is trying something new and unknown — here are some basics on the experiences.
Mission: SPACE Orange Team Experience
Are you a healthy thrill-seeker? This may be the version for you.
If you select the Orange Team mission to Mars you’ll be going on a very intense, experiential ride and will feel G-Forces of up to 2.5G.
This amount of G Forces gives Mission: SPACE the “honor” of being the first attraction to ever install easily-accessible motion sickness bags for riders. The G Forces are said to be very realistic as you take off and slingshot around the moon on your way to Mars.
You may not experience true weightlessness, but according to some astronauts who have ridden Mission: SPACE, you come pretty close to the real feeling of weightlessness while on the ride.
Your ride capsule holds four people, and you’re each assigned a role: navigator, pilot, commander, or engineer. You’ll be responsible for pushing buttons when you are instructed (don’t worry, if you don’t hit the button at the right time, Disney will do it for you – nothing will go wrong!).
Your capsule will physically tilt and spin… and spin, and spin (hence the motion-sickness bags). Some riders have reported their equilibrium is a little off after the ride. Others have reported headaches for the remainder of the day or a feeling of wooziness.
Mission: Space Green Team Experience
Are you interested in the ride experience, but don’t want to reach for a motion-sickness bag? This may be the version for you.
The Green Team’s mission is to orbit the Earth. You’ll take off from and land at the International Space Training Center.
Your ride capsule is identical to the Orange Team capsule, except it does not spin. This greatly reduces the odds that you’ll experience motion sickness.
While the effects are toned down, it is still a very immersive ride experience. The assigned roles mentioned above are still a part of this ride, and you might be able to enjoy them more without the spinning. Riders have reported enjoying this version of the ride as much as riders of the Orange Team version.
For both versions of the ride, the capsule you are in is very dark and tight. If you have any claustrophobia or fear of the dark this ride may not be for you.
Guests with health considerations are strongly advised AGAINST riding the orange version — in fact there are many warning signs posted at many locations before you enter and all along the queue. Warning signs read: “For safety you should be in good health, and free from high blood pressure, heart, back or neck problems, motion sickness or other conditions that can be aggravated by this adventure.”
You’re even given a card when you enter the attraction queue, just to ensure you’re making the right choice!
We also advise NOT riding this after a meal – remember the motion sickness bags? We don’t want you reaching for one of those!
Have you ridden Mission: SPACE? Which version did you ride? Which version do you recommend? Let us know in the comments below!
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We are from the UK and we’ve been twice, 3rd time starting from tomorrow 😀 and I didn’t realise there were 2 versions. I felt disoriented the first time I’ve went on and not at all the second thinking I got used to it. Probably went on Orange first then Green.
Terrific ride, but the previous iteration of the journey with Gary Sinese was much better.
Hey, I want some advice. My sister is 12, and she has had motion sickness before, but it seems to have gone away. She can go on rocknrollercoaster, tower of terror, gotg cosmic rewind, and other thrill rides, and has been fine. I think she’d do fine on green team, but she wants to do orange team. Will she need the motion sickness bag? I’m not sure.
It’s possible, Julie. The last time I rode Mission Space: Orange, someone in my party who doesn’t ever get motion sickness was nauseous for about three hours after and it put a damper on their day. They thought they were going to be sick several times.
I rode Mission Space: Green with my dad, uncle, and brother. I hate rides but this was so much fun! I did feel a bit disoriented, I will admit. But Green was so much fun! Because of my back problems and other family health reasons, we did not go on Orange
I loved it!!! But I was commander and had control. Otherwise I probably would have thrown up. My daughter who was 5 at the time passed out or just closed her eyes during the ride and I had to take control over her two controls at the same time as I was landing the aircraft. It was awesome!!! The other mom and son loved it too. We landed safely. My daughter had to take a mental break after exiting and we had to sit outside for about an hour before she could walk again. I am a terrible mother….but that was so much fun. Daughter just got her first experience! 🙂
This ride is a nightmare, we opted for the “green” version and it was my husband, me and our two young kids….thank goodness we were 4 “not strangers” in the capsule. It awakens a primal fear when the doors shut. If you want to experience a realistic plane crash near death experience this is for you!
On the up side, WDW has come up with a way for bulimic super models to have fun while they purge.
I rode “Mission” right after it was open, before there was the green/orange option. I was lucky to make it off the ride without getting sick. When the two options were offered, I gave the “green” one a try. Nope, that didn’t mix well with my stomach either. So now, I go somewhere else while the family rides.
Even the Green ride makes me sick, and Dramamine does not help!
When will Disney finally give up on the “blender” rides. These things make more people sicker than any roller coaster ever has. Come on great imagineers, let’s get with it and come up with a new and better idea.
Also, these rides are one example of how Disney has abandoned the philosophy of Walt Disney. Walt wanted a place where the young and the old could share the experiences together. That’s why all of the original rides were gentle enough for your 75 year old grandpa to join you on.
I’m 75 , a female and I always ride Mission Space, the wild side. The trick to having fun on it is , don’t listen to the voice before the ride telling you that you might get sick. And always follow the directions on the ride and keep your eyes on the screen, do not look off to the side and you won’t get disoriented.
Epcot has always been more geared towards older people. People without kids need to enjoy Disney. If you want family oriented rides, stick to magic kingdom. Between the 4 parks there is something for everyone. I think Walt would approve.
We have ridden Mission Space many times. I personally cannot be a part of the Orange Team. The last time I went with the Orange Team, I was nauseous and out of commission for two hours. Just a note, I do not normally get motion sickness. I am okay with the Green Team.