We did a day trip to the Kennedy Space Center, about 2 hours south of us in Florida. The launch we'd hoped to see went off without a glitch, right on time. It was spectacular, even from a few miles away. It took the sound 9 seconds to reach us! And I was amazed to see all those black dots in the sky and realize they were birds! Having binoculars with us was a help. In addition to the launch, we were able to see the Atlantis space shuttle and several other rockets that have been 'retired.' A fascinating place to spend the day (at least). We even road a flight simulator to learn what it feels like (I"m sure in a much milder version) in a capsule on lift off.
How awesome to see in person. I used to watch launches when I was a kid, always wanting to see one live. Now they are rarely televised on commercial tv.
Oh how utterly thrilling! You stirred warm memories of my friend Phil, who as a young physicist worked on the landing gear of the first moon landing and many consequent space missions. I have always loved hearing his stories.
Awesome action capture… can’t believe the birds. Makes me think fondly of my days as a NASA still photographer (Co-op program) at Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, AL. I’ve only been to one launch in Florida and it was so long ago I don’t remember too much about it.
