The landmark rocket just across the state line in Ardmore is getting a major makeover.

For months, the U.S. Space & Rocket Center has worked to restore it — a process that includes repairing the rocket’s base, or boat tail, and an overall new paint job, said Director of Communications Pat Ammons.

“Over the years, some of those panels at the boat tail had gotten damaged or developed problems over time,” she said, explaining pigeons had made their way inside the rocket. “It physically didn’t look very good.”

Repair people have been fixing the exterior panels and cleaning the rocket’s interior, a phase of the project that should be complete at the end of the week, Ammons said.

“We replaced the panels with an aluminum mesh so nothing can get inside the rocket again,” she said.

The Space & Rocket Center will soon begin taking bids from engineering companies to inspect the rocket so restorers can move on to the painting phase.

“We’re hiring a professional company to come in and inspect it to make sure there’s nothing else we need to do,” she said. “That’s important for us to do to make sure everything is ready for the next stage.”

The time between inspection and painting depends on the engineering company’s time frame, but a thorough inspection is essential because it will ensure the rocket is completely fixed and doesn’t need repairs anywhere else.

“It takes a couple of months to leave the bid open and analyze the bid, but we hope to have the award by early summer,” she said. “We hope to release an award for the contract and get a (timeline estimate) for the inspection.”

One challenge the Space & Rocket Center has run into during the rocket restoration is finding funds and equipment for the project.

“We cannot clean and paint until we have the equipment to be able to do so, and the equipment will either be a crane to help lift people to clean or paint,” she said. “We’re asking for help from the community to provide those services because it’s going to be an extremely expensive process. We’re moving forward and want to get it done as soon as possible,” she said. “Look at the cost of paint alone — the rocket is more than 200 feet tall — this isn’t like painting your house by any means.”

It isn’t just the cost of labor that is so expensive, it’s the material costs, too.

“We’re hoping to work with a partner getting some durable paint to last the Alabama weather,” she said. “The exterior exhibits here take quite a beating. When we do it, we want want to do it right.”

The completion date, though undetermined, appears to be several months out, Ammons said.

The rocket is located by the state line to show out-of-state visitors the NASA culture in Huntsville and the Tennessee Valley, Ammons said.

“I think it always surprises people to see a large rocket there,” she said. “I think it’s certainly in a resting view when people pull in, and I think it’s a great lesson to give people visiting our state. A lot of people think of NASA in Houston or the Kennedy Space Center, when in fact it’s very much here.”

Monetary or service donations can be made at Rocketcenter.com/donate.