The launch was scheduled for 2:01 PM. My parents were busy until shortly after 11 AM. I drove my Dad's truck over to meet them, then I hopped in my Mom's car with them and we set out for Titusville, FL. As I described during my last visit to Florida, the Kennedy Space Center sits in a wildlife preserve. In addition, this tract of land is marshy and riddled with waterways. It sits somewhat like an island, slightly disconnected from mainland Florida. There are only a few causeways over the separating water. NASA will gladly sell you a ticket to observe a shuttle launch from the one causeway it controls, but those tickets are outrageously priced. Steeper than that, you can also buy a ticket into the Kennedy Space Center. Titusville is where you go when you can't afford NASA's prices.
Titusville sits directly across the water from Cape Canaveral and the launch site. It is roughly 12 miles away, but those 12 miles are unobstructed. US 1 runs right along the shoreline, and people find parking spots along this road and then sit facing the water. Because we were later than most, we had to drive awhile along US 1 before finding a place to park and observe the launch. In fact, we parked a couple blocks off the big road, in a residential neighborhood. We walked over with about 10 minutes to spare. (Fortunately, there really isn't a pre-show for a shuttle launch!)
Even from so far away, you can easily pick out that large iconic building, as well as a few other large objects. The shuttle, however, cannot be seen— unless, perhaps, the air is extraordinarily clear and/or one has binoculars and knows where to look. So, without knowing where the shuttle is, you basically have the entire horizon to scan. In one area there were a couple visible flashing lights, and a rumor circulated through the crowd that the shuttle was among those lights. (Which may have been true. I didn't look for those lights once the launch initiated.)
We stood there in the crowd, listening to a radio newsman talk everyone through the last few minutes pre-launch. Then, suddenly, without a countdown of the last few seconds, people started shouting "There it is!"
And there it was. It was magnificent. The air today was hazy at ground level and cloudy overhead. But there was no mistaking the shuttle. Huge volumes of clouds starting roiling outward at ground level, much like the clouds in Close Encounters of the Third Kind. Then the flame was visible, climbing into the air. From my picture you'll be able to see why our viewing position was a bad one— there were palm trees in our way. After fifteen or twenty seconds of rapid ascent, the shuttle disappeared behind the top of one of the trees. It took another fifteen or twenty seconds to emerge above the tree. By then it was close to the cloud layer, and we shortly afterwards saw the shuttle disappear into those clouds. But, just as the shuttle was disappearing, after sixty seconds of flight, the rumble of the engines hit us. This rumble built up into a roar that vibrated your bones and lasted about twenty to thirty seconds before fading.
When the roar faded, the shuttle was long lost to sight. And that was the cue for thousands of people to get in their cars and go back home. We drove just over two hours for a 90 second show. On the way out, my father asked me if it was worth the drive, and I replied, honestly, "For me it was!"
Here are my pictures:
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