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#460
by
floron
on 11 May, 2009 04:35
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...and one more. now i'm off to bed...early start to get to the causeway for the launch. ^_^
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#461
by
jacqmans
on 11 May, 2009 11:28
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one from yesterday
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#462
by
bkellysky
on 11 May, 2009 11:41
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I'll also be in the Congressional area on the causeway with my sister and her husband. I'll be the first time I've seen anything bigger than an Estes model rocket launch live !
I'm flying into Orlando Sunday morning.
bob
Hi Bob! How did you get your passes? You will enjoy the launch, something you'll never forget as long as you live. See you there!
Mike
Hi, Mike,
I sent an email to my Congresswoman asking if I could be her guest at an upcoming shuttle launch. I specifically asked for STS-125, but it was too late for the original launch date. NASA typically fills Congressional requests about a month or so in advance. So they said they'd try to get me on the next launch date. When 125 was delayed, I guess lots of people bailed to the next available mission, so when 125 came back there were spaces available, so I got the mission I orginally wanted.
In my request, I told the Congresswoman about my interest in the Shuttle, especially the Hubble mission, since I love observing the sky and my work in aerospace education for Civil Air Patrol and the general public. I don't know if that made any difference.
I followed with with emails to the contact they gave me at the Congresswoman's office to make sure they kept checking with NASA and so they wouldn't forget me.
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#463
by
bkellysky
on 11 May, 2009 11:47
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Thanks for the photos!
I have a 3x Canon A40, so the Shuttle is very small from the observation site on our KSC tour yesterday! But it was a thrill to see the two crafts on the pads and the "Time to next launch 1 days" signs all over KSC.
We are leaving for the staging area for our bus to the Causeway soon!
Godspeed Atlantis !
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#464
by
Lawntonlookirs
on 11 May, 2009 13:26
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Those of us that were unable to make it to KSC for the launch, we envy you that did. Try to take a lot of pictures and share with the rest of your NSF friends. Enjoy the launch.
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#465
by
Jim
on 11 May, 2009 13:31
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Going to watch from Astrotech or home today. Want to avoid the traffic.
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#466
by
jacqmans
on 11 May, 2009 21:40
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Launch photos
Taken from Titusville
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#467
by
jacqmans
on 11 May, 2009 21:41
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#468
by
jacqmans
on 11 May, 2009 21:43
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#469
by
jacqmans
on 11 May, 2009 21:45
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#470
by
jacqmans
on 11 May, 2009 21:49
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#471
by
bkellysky
on 12 May, 2009 01:23
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Saw the launch today from the Causeway (6.5 miles out). It was all over so fast, it was hard to take it all in. The shuttle looked so tiny on the pad. I could cover it with my little finger at arms length very easily. I watched the launch through my 8x25 Canon IS binoculars, which helped alot. No sign of the preparations readying Atlantis for launch until the arms starting retracting in the last minute.
Couldn't hear the count, so it was nerve-wracking waiting to see engine start. It was so bright, so intensely bright, and so orange once the SRBs ignited.
Followed in binoculars past SRB sep for at least a minute or so. The main engines appeared as one very bright point, star-like, super bright, after SRB sep. Cirrus made SRB sep hard to see, but after a few seconds the SRBs were easy in the binoculars trailing exhaust and falling away.
People with different lenses were calling out what they saw and that helped to pick out the details. Big cheer when we agreed we could tell that the SRBs had cleared from the shuttle.
We were left with an Atlantis cumulus cloud almost like a towering twisted funnel from the ground to the sky.
The sound was a loud popping/crackling well after launch, which did not hit us hard but the delay impressed everyone since it was so loud for something so far away.
Loved to have been closer, thrilled to have seen what we saw! Even from where we watched it was electrifying - a barely controlled continuing explosion. I had to wonder how we have managed to use this intense fury to get people and materials into space.
I got an AVI movie at 3x zoom with my Canon A40 from about T-6 to +22 or so. I couldn't see the LCD screen in the sunlight, so I didn't know if it was working. On replay, it gives a good indication of what we could see. I'll see if I can post it when I get home later this week.
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#472
by
Andrewwski
on 12 May, 2009 01:50
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I'm sure it looked much bigger there than it does in Titusville (~12 miles). That's where I watched my only launch from (STS-118). I also watched through binoculars - Canon 10x image stabilizing ones - they gave a great view. Could easily see all parts of the vehicle after it cleared the pad.
It was a clear evening for that launch, and SRB sep was very easy to see with the naked eye. With binoculars, you could actually track the SRB's down quite a ways - for a good two minutes or so.
The sound was really delayed there - about a full minute - but impressive nonetheless. Surpassed any jet noise, and it was 12 miles away!
We were able to track that launch with binoculars all the way until it disappeared over the horizon. That was impressive, I thought, for a daytime launch.
One of the cars around us did have an AM radio on, which was helpful, as you could hear the countdown. There was a station that broadcast unmodified NASA TV audio. I believe George Diller was PAO for that launch as well - it fit perfect with being there in person.
We also had a laptop with NSF - made it much easier to sit there for four hours before launch when you got the NSF coverage and L2 info. Once you start talking about the countdown, people keep asking you for the latest updates. Or, seeing that you actually know what's going on, they ask you which pad it's launching from...
I'm hoping to be on the Causeway for STS-128. I'll probably bring a pocket AM radio, binoculars, and an HD camcorder.
Glad you enjoyed the launch - I will agree - it's like a roller coaster ride - it's over too fast. I bet the guys in the shuttle feel the same way.
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#473
by
Paul Adams
on 12 May, 2009 02:28
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Hi Jacques,
Hope you dont mind, I altered the contrast of one of your photos a little.
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#474
by
collectSPACE
on 12 May, 2009 03:45
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A couple of videos taken on launch day:
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#475
by
psloss
on 12 May, 2009 14:14
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#476
by
LMSenus
on 12 May, 2009 14:47
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Leo and I watched the launch from the Causeway yesterday. It was our first launch, and all I can say is television does not do it justice by a long shot. The thing that surprised me the most was just how fast she was moving -- you lose the sense of speed when a camera follows the vehicle. The steam, the smoke, the noise, the speed -- amazing. And it was surprisingly emotional for me, maybe because (thanks to NSF and L2) I felt a little more personally connected to the mission.
And to anybody who says the general public isn't interested in the space program, I say bull! There were probably several thousand people out on the causeway, at the visitor center, over in Titusville, etc. who came from all over the world to watch.
Leo's working on his photos now... We'll post anything worthwhile.
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#477
by
airspace1
on 12 May, 2009 18:30
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Hi. Is there any prediction when the SRB's will make it back? Have they already?
Thanks!
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#478
by
MKremer
on 12 May, 2009 19:52
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Hi. Is there any prediction when the SRB's will make it back? Have they already?
Thanks!
Arrival at the dock sometime tomorrow.
If you're looking for the SRB videos, those probably won't be released until Friday at the earliest, or (more likely) later this weekend.
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#479
by
jacqmans
on 13 May, 2009 02:23
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Here a photo of the NSF diner we had tonight
