diff --git a/rviz_rendering/include/rviz_rendering/objects/movable_text.hpp b/rviz_rendering/include/rviz_rendering/objects/movable_text.hpp
index 1d322ab3e..d4cd03c91 100644
--- a/rviz_rendering/include/rviz_rendering/objects/movable_text.hpp
+++ b/rviz_rendering/include/rviz_rendering/objects/movable_text.hpp
@@ -245,6 +245,9 @@ class MovableText : public Ogre::SimpleRenderable
   Ogre::Real char_height_;
   Ogre::Real line_spacing_;
   Ogre::Real space_width_;
+  // When false, a space takes the width of the preceding glyph; when true, the
+  // explicit space_width_ set via setSpaceWidth() is used instead.
+  bool space_width_set_;
 
   bool needs_update_;
   bool needs_color_update_;
diff --git a/rviz_rendering/src/rviz_rendering/objects/movable_text.cpp b/rviz_rendering/src/rviz_rendering/objects/movable_text.cpp
index 397a2cdce..e0ff37024 100644
--- a/rviz_rendering/src/rviz_rendering/objects/movable_text.cpp
+++ b/rviz_rendering/src/rviz_rendering/objects/movable_text.cpp
@@ -81,6 +81,7 @@ MovableText::MovableText(
   color_(color),
   line_spacing_(0.01f),
   space_width_(0),
+  space_width_set_(false),
   needs_color_update_(true),
   on_top_(false),
   global_translation_(0.0f),
@@ -178,8 +179,9 @@ void MovableText::setLineSpacing(Ogre::Real height)
 
 void MovableText::setSpaceWidth(Ogre::Real width)
 {
-  if (width != space_width_) {
+  if (width != space_width_ || !space_width_set_) {
     space_width_ = width;
+    space_width_set_ = true;
     needs_update_ = true;
   }
 }
@@ -231,7 +233,10 @@ struct TextBuffer
   explicit TextBuffer(float * buffer)
   : buffer_(buffer),
     min_(std::numeric_limits<float>::max()),
-    max_(std::numeric_limits<float>::min()),
+    // Use lowest() (= -FLT_MAX), not min() which is the smallest positive
+    // normal value. With min(), makeCeil would never lower the y/z components
+    // to actual vertex values like 0, leaving FLT_MIN garbage in the AABB.
+    max_(std::numeric_limits<float>::lowest()),
     max_squared_radius_(0),
     top_(0),
     left_(0)
@@ -387,15 +392,18 @@ MovableText::calculateTotalDimensionsForPositioning(float & total_height, float
   total_height = effective_char_height;
   total_width = 0.0f;
   float current_width = 0.0f;
+  float previous_glyph_width = space_width_;
   for (auto & character : caption_) {
     if (character == '\n') {
       total_height += effective_char_height + line_spacing_;
       total_width = current_width > total_width ? current_width : total_width;
       current_width = 0;
+      previous_glyph_width = space_width_;
     } else if (character == ' ') {
-      current_width += space_width_;
+      current_width += space_width_set_ ? space_width_ : previous_glyph_width;
     } else {
-      current_width += font_->getGlyphAspectRatio(character) * effective_char_height;
+      previous_glyph_width = font_->getGlyphAspectRatio(character) * effective_char_height;
+      current_width += previous_glyph_width;
     }
   }
   total_width = current_width > total_width ? current_width : total_width;
@@ -439,15 +447,17 @@ void MovableText::fillVertexBuffer(
   buffer.left_ = starting_left;
   buffer.top_ = top;
 
+  float previous_glyph_width = space_width_;
   for (auto & character : caption_) {
     if (character == '\n') {
       buffer.left_ = starting_left;
       buffer.top_ -= effective_char_height + line_spacing_;
+      previous_glyph_width = space_width_;
       continue;
     }
 
     if (character == ' ') {
-      buffer.left_ += space_width_;
+      buffer.left_ += space_width_set_ ? space_width_ : previous_glyph_width;
       continue;
     }
 
@@ -463,7 +473,8 @@ void MovableText::fillVertexBuffer(
     buffer.addBottomLeft(char_height_);
     buffer.addBottomRight(char_width, char_height_);
 
-    buffer.left_ += char_aspect_ratio * effective_char_height;
+    previous_glyph_width = char_aspect_ratio * effective_char_height;
+    buffer.left_ += previous_glyph_width;
   }
 
   position_and_texture_buffer->unlock();
diff --git a/rviz_rendering/test/rviz_rendering/objects/movable_text_test.cpp b/rviz_rendering/test/rviz_rendering/objects/movable_text_test.cpp
index 9a1f40e39..4308ff65c 100644
--- a/rviz_rendering/test/rviz_rendering/objects/movable_text_test.cpp
+++ b/rviz_rendering/test/rviz_rendering/objects/movable_text_test.cpp
@@ -53,6 +53,10 @@ class MovableTextTestFixture : public ::testing::Test
     testing_environment_->setUpOgreTestEnvironment();
   }
 
+  void TearDown() override
+  {
+    testing_environment_.reset();
+  }
   std::shared_ptr<rviz_rendering::OgreTestingEnvironment> testing_environment_;
 };
 
@@ -253,3 +257,36 @@ TEST_F(MovableTextTestFixture, EmptyCaptionDoesNotCrash) {
   movable_text->update();
   ASSERT_THAT(movable_text->getBoundingBox(), Eq(Ogre::AxisAlignedBox::BOX_NULL));
 }
+
+TEST_F(MovableTextTestFixture, bounding_box_max_components_are_not_FLT_MIN_garbage) {
+  auto movable_text = std::make_shared<rviz_rendering::MovableText>("A");
+
+  auto max = movable_text->getBoundingBox().getMaximum();
+  // Regression: TextBuffer's max_ must be initialized to lowest() (= -FLT_MAX),
+  // not min() (= smallest positive normal). With the old init, makeCeil left
+  // FLT_MIN in y/z whenever no vertex pushed those components above ~1.18e-38.
+  ASSERT_EQ(max.y, 0.0f);
+  ASSERT_EQ(max.z, 0.0f);
+}
+
+float calculateGlyphWidth(std::shared_ptr<rviz_rendering::MovableText> movable_text, char character)
+{
+  auto font = Ogre::FontManager::getSingleton().getByName("Liberation Sans", "rviz_rendering").get();
+  font->load();
+  return font->getGlyphAspectRatio(character) * movable_text->getCharacterHeight() * 2.0f;
+}
+
+TEST_F(MovableTextTestFixture, centerAlignmentWorksCorrectlyWithSpaces)
+{
+  auto movable_text = std::make_shared<rviz_rendering::MovableText>("G G");
+  movable_text->setTextAlignment(
+      rviz_rendering::MovableText::HorizontalAlignment::H_CENTER,
+      rviz_rendering::MovableText::VerticalAlignment::V_BELOW);
+  movable_text->update();
+  float char_width = calculateGlyphWidth(movable_text, 'G');
+  EXPECT_THAT(
+      movable_text->getBoundingBox(),
+      AllOf(
+          HasMinimum(Ogre::Vector3(-3 * char_width / 2, -2, 0)),
+          HasMaximum(Ogre::Vector3(3 * char_width / 2, 0, 0))));
+}