Space Mountain (Tomorrowland)
| Space Mountain | |
|---|---|
| Park | Tokyo Disneyland |
| Land / area | Tomorrowland |
| Type | Steel roller coaster in the dark |
| Opened | April 15, 1983 |
| Closed | July 31, 2024 |
| Designer | Walt Disney Imagineering |
| Height req. | 102 cm (40 in) minimum |
| Status | Closed; replacement under construction |
Space Mountain was an indoor steel roller coaster in Tomorrowland at Tokyo Disneyland in Urayasu, Chiba, Japan. Housed inside a white conical mountain, it sent trains through a darkened space voyage of climbs, banked turns and sudden drops, using darkness and lighting effects to make modest speeds feel much faster. It opened with the park on April 15, 1983, was refreshed in a second version that opened on April 28, 2007, and closed permanently on July 31, 2024, ahead of a completely new Space Mountain announced for 2027.[1][2]
Tokyo's was the first Space Mountain built outside the United States, following the originals at Magic Kingdom in 1975 and Disneyland in California in 1977, and its layout was a close cousin of the California ride.[2]
History
The original 1983 version ran largely unchanged for more than two decades. It closed in October 2006 for a thorough refurbishment, and the second version opened on April 28, 2007.[1] The track layout was kept, but the show around it was given a more strongly science-fiction treatment, including a spaceship docked in the loading area and a hyperspeed tunnel effect near the end of the ride.[1][2]
In April 2022 the Oriental Land Company announced a far bigger change: this second version would close on July 31, 2024, and Space Mountain would be rebuilt entirely, as the centrepiece of a renewed Tomorrowland with a new surrounding plaza, opening in 2027.[1] The old mountain was demolished after closure, rather than refurbished in place, ending a run of more than forty years from the park's opening day.[2]
Experience
The coaster ran about 3,450 feet (1,052 m) of track inside a building about 118 feet (36 m) tall, reaching a top speed of about 30 mph (48 km/h), with no inversions and a largest drop of only about 17 feet (5.2 m).[1][2] A ride lasted roughly two minutes and forty-five seconds, and riders had to be at least 102 cm (40 in) tall.[1]
Those figures explain the ride's character. Space Mountain was never fast or tall by roller-coaster standards; its effect came from riding in near-darkness, where stars, planets and streaking light were the only reference points, so every banked turn and short drop arrived without warning. The 2007 version leaned into that effect with its docked-spaceship station and its final hyperspeed sequence, updating the visuals while leaving the underlying circuit — and its surprises — intact.[2]
For many Tokyo guests it was Tomorrowland's defining ride for four decades, and its closure in 2024, like the earlier closure of the neighbouring Buzz Lightyear Astro Blasters, marks the end of the land's original line-up ahead of the 2027 rebuild.