Night Time Shuttle Launch

FSTargetDrone · Post by **FSTargetDrone** » 2008-03-11 02:22am

In case anyone is interested, you can watch Endeavour launch in about 8 minutes from now, as I post. It's a rare night time launch, so check it out.

FSTargetDrone · Post by **FSTargetDrone** » 2008-03-11 02:23am

Whoops, CNN has tuned into the feed now, so that may be a better place to watch.

CNN said there have been only 30 night time launches.

Winston Blake · Post by **Winston Blake** » 2008-03-11 02:35am

I just caught it; first live shuttle launch I've seen. I'm in Australia so CNN isn't an option, even if I was near a TV.

Thanks.

FSTargetDrone · Post by **FSTargetDrone** » 2008-03-11 02:39am

Winston Blake wrote:I just caught it; first live shuttle launch I've seen. I'm in Australia so CNN isn't an option, even if I was near a TV.

Thanks.

You saw everything worth seeing! I had the web feed and TV on. That light show was really impressive.

The main tank just separated, and there was this really amazing glow from gases and the flash cameras mounted on the tank. It was really unreal looking, so say the least.

CaptJodan · Post by **CaptJodan** » 2008-03-11 10:47am

One of the joys of living so close to the cape (and one of the things I remember when people give shit about Florida on this board) is the thrill of seeing the shuttle go up from my house. It's rare, but if the weather is just right, you can even just hear the roar of the engines. Pretty impressive for being about 70 miles away. There's nothing wrong with day launches, but night launches are certainly more spectacular.

There was actually a dusk launch about a year or so ago that was one of the best I've seen in a long while. In addition to said weather being perfect to actually hear it go up, the winds were calm and the clouds non-existent. The course they took on that launch allowed me to see the the three main engines a lot longer than I'd ever seen them go before. It almost dipped over the horizon before I lost contact. Seriously cool.

Equally enjoyable (sometimes) is the twin sonic booms. Doesn't always happen, it depends on what direction they come in at, but it can have a tendency to scare the shit out of you if you're sleeping and aren't prepared for it.

squidman001 · Post by **squidman001** » 2008-03-11 07:42pm

Whats even cooler is being able to take a short drive up and getting as close as possible to the cape to see the shuttle go up. The sonic booms though can be a drawback though, I've just been sitting in the house (or worse, sleeping) when everything shakes for a moment, making me wonder if the house was built over a hidden fault line