The passageway into the planned Spaceport America terminal, shown here, will have museum-like displays of New Mexico's place in the history of space exploration, dating back to Robert Goddard's rocket experiments in Roswell in the 1920s.

The developers of the spaceport hope to create a major tourist destination on a desolate pocket of land 45 miles (72 kilometers) northeast of Las Cruces that will draw architecture buffs as well as space enthusiasts. (See a New Mexico map.)

"It is an interesting enough design that it may become a destination for people just to see," said Spaceport America spokesman David Wilson.

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