Yesterday evening, at about 7:45 we saw the last night launch of the current space shuttle program. The remainder of the 10 launches will occur in daylight.
The sun was just above complete sunset, leaving the angle of the sun very low in the orange colored sky. As the launch rockets ignited, the sky glowed white, as Discovery lifted off the ground at the Kennedy Space Center.
Looking from our backyard, Discovery then came into view as it cleared some homes across the lake, looking like a bright light as it gained altitude. Under the shuttle was the customary smoke trail, called a plume.
What was different in this launch was the low angle of the sun illuminated the plume at right angles, resulting in a deep orange and pink color rather than the customary white trail.
As Discovery continued on its launch, an unexpected bonus occurred. About seven minutes into the launch, the two solid rocket boosters separate and fall away from the shuttle to be picked up for re-use in the ocean. Because the shuttle is downstream about a thousand miles away, this event is not usually seen from the ground at the Kennedy Space Center with the naked eye.
Last night was an exception, because of the crystal clear sky, the low angle of the sun and our position, we saw the rocket boosters separate and gracefully fall away as Discovery continued on its voyage to the International Space Station. The separation event took place over the New Jersey coast, and was seen by everyone on the ground in Titusville!
Even seasoned shuttle watchers were amazed!
The sun was just above complete sunset, leaving the angle of the sun very low in the orange colored sky. As the launch rockets ignited, the sky glowed white, as Discovery lifted off the ground at the Kennedy Space Center.
Looking from our backyard, Discovery then came into view as it cleared some homes across the lake, looking like a bright light as it gained altitude. Under the shuttle was the customary smoke trail, called a plume.
What was different in this launch was the low angle of the sun illuminated the plume at right angles, resulting in a deep orange and pink color rather than the customary white trail.
As Discovery continued on its launch, an unexpected bonus occurred. About seven minutes into the launch, the two solid rocket boosters separate and fall away from the shuttle to be picked up for re-use in the ocean. Because the shuttle is downstream about a thousand miles away, this event is not usually seen from the ground at the Kennedy Space Center with the naked eye.
Last night was an exception, because of the crystal clear sky, the low angle of the sun and our position, we saw the rocket boosters separate and gracefully fall away as Discovery continued on its voyage to the International Space Station. The separation event took place over the New Jersey coast, and was seen by everyone on the ground in Titusville!
Even seasoned shuttle watchers were amazed!
