Kennedy Space Center
2010.04.27 - Tuesday
April 4th, 2010. I try to sleep in as much as possible. Staying at my Cousin's place in Jupiter, Florida for a week already, we've both settled into an "out late, up late" schedule. Still, knowing what's in front of us today, we figured it would be smart to get as much sleep as possible. The launch of Space Shuttle Discovery was originally scheduled for the afternoon of March 18th, but the unusually cold weather delayed rollout for a couple of weeks. The new launch date? April 5th, 6:21am. Updated information for NASA's causeway viewing area ticket holders made it clear that we had to arrive no later than 12:00am on the 5th. Ah, nothing like a good all-nighter!
We leave Jupiter in the afternoon bound for Stuart, roughly twenty five minutes away, and my Aunt and Uncle's place for Easter dinner. I've been keeping an eye on the weather for the last couple of days, but it's been beautiful almost all week and the forecast looks flawless. A small chance of fog is the only possible weather issue for Discovery less than 24 hours away from her launch. After dinner, and just before 9:00pm, we start the two hour drive North towards Orlando and the Kennedy Space Center.
It's about 10:30pm and we're still on the highway, keeping an eye out for our exit, which should be along almost any minute. Looking out the car window to the East I can see, far in the distance, the massive glow of lights from the Shuttle landing facility. Just beyond the huge runway I know Discovery is sitting on the pad, still more than seven hours away from launch. The road leading past Titusville and towards KSC is a tiny old highway which becomes the NASA causeway, bringing us across the water and onto the space center grounds. As we pass the KSC Visitor's Center on the right, I dig out the parking pass. We're quickly ushered through and park the car, arriving just before 11:00pm. After a quick check of the pockets to make sure I've got everything, we head into the Visitor's Center, which will remain open all night.
The buses which will take us to the causeway viewing area don't start to board until after 3:00am, and won't stop until nearly 5:30am, so we've got plenty of time to check out some of the exhibits that are on offer. The "Space Exploration" exhibit is pretty good, with lots of information and mockups of recently cancelled future spacecraft. Especially fun are the video game simulators where you can try your hand at landing on the Moon or docking at the ISS. Switching to "expert" mode, I failed miserably at both. Next was the "Shuttle Launch Experience", a somewhat campy but still enjoyable simulator of riding the Space Shuttle into orbit. Since it was so late, or so early, and the only people at the Visitor's Center were launch ticket holders, we had almost no waits for any of the attractions. I made sure to check out the full-size Space Shuttle replica, the "Robot Explorers" exhibit, the Astronaut Memorial at night, and the huge gift shop, where I bought an STS-131 mission logo blanket. People without causeway viewing tickets were already staking out their spots on the grass in front of one large video screen or another, especially in the Rocket Garden. A quick glance at the nearest screen told me they had begun tanking Discovery; fueling the massive external tank with supercooled liquid oxygen and hydrogen. All seemed to be on schedule and according to plan. Hourly launch status briefings were available in one building, but I didn't feel the need to sit through one of those.
Next on the agenda was a screening of the newest Imax space film, "Hubble 3D", not even released to regular theatres yet. Playing on both of the Visitor's Center screens, there was a show every thirty minutes, which basically meant going whenever we wanted and not having to wait. The film was fantastic, as most NASA Imax films are, and featured some amazing 3D visual effects flythroughs of the Orion nebula, distant galaxies, and the entire Universe. Once the film was finished, it was nearly 3:00am and people were beginning to board the buses to the causeway viewing area. The whole system was a bit messy in the beginning, mostly because it was the middle of the night and the signs which post different lines for different ticket holders aren't illuminated. Thankfully the staff was quite helpful and guided everywhere to where they needed to be.
The line snaked back and forth as all "theme park" lines do. While some of the staff suggested waiting until later to board a bus, I was fairly insistent on a "better safe than sorry" policy, having already changed an airline ticket and flown across the continent to be there. At the end of one line, our Launch Transportation Tickets are collected and considered used in full. Should the launch be aborted at any point from here on out, we'd have to use a special voucher to re-purchase them for the next attempt, whenever that might be. Staff members take our photo in front of a cheesy launch pad backdrop, presumably to sell to us later, before we're ushered into a second line up for bus boarding.
It's now about 4:00am and we finally board our bus, number 30, to the causeway. The drive isn't very long, perhaps 15 minutes, and takes us East through a checkpoint, across the KSC grounds and past many of the NASA facilities. The causeway we'll be viewing the launch from spans the Banana River and connects Kennedy Space Center with the Cape Canaveral Air Force station. It's a long bridge which NASA uses to accommodate perhaps 5000 launch spectators. Before nearing our destination, we drive across an overpass which gives us a fantastic view of the Vehicle Assembly Building, and in the distance, Space Shuttle Discovery, brilliantly flood lit and shinning white. As we begin to drive along the causeway, we can see what look like private vehicles parked to watch the launch, but we're informed that these are actually military personnel from Canaveral who are allowed to watch from the causeway. Moving nearly 5000 people requires a lot of buses, some of which belong to KSC and some of which are operated by private tour companies who's tickets are easier to obtain but cost more than twice as much.
The causeway is by no means crowded, but there are a fair number of people. We're free to walk up and down as far as we like to find a good viewing spot, but at first we don't stray too far from our assigned bus. The huge overhead lights are kind of annoying, but with no other lighting in the area they're understandably necessary. Plastic chairs are setup if one can find some, but a lot of people have brought their own collapsible beach chairs and blankets. There are several concessions and restroom facilities. After all, people are going to be here for a while. Serious photographers are setup everywhere, and a fairly good public address system broadcasts all of the communication between Mission Control in Houston, Launch Control at KSC, and the Astronauts, already on board Discovery. So far, there don't appear to be any issues. Looking out over the Banana River, everyone has a completely unobstructed view of Discovery on the pad. T-minus 20 minutes and holding.
Without a great lens and a tripod, there was no way I would be taking any fantastic photos, but it didn't matter. I wanted to make sure I experienced the launch through my own eyes as much as possible. While it may only appear as a blurry white shape now, I can remember seeing the shape of the Orbiter, the external fuel tank, and the two solid rocket boosters quite clearly. Finally, after moving once for a better view, we had our spot on the causeway, six miles from the launch pad and as close as any member of the public is allowed to get.
A local announcer comes over the PA system and suggests that everyone look West towards the horizon. The International Space Station will be passing directly overhead, and within a few seconds we've spotted it. With a 220 mile orbit, the ISS is large enough to appear as an extremely bright star in the night sky. It moves quickly from one horizon to the other, covering the sky in roughly three minutes, before disappearing from view exactly where the Shuttle will be headed. The huge, 3 day traffic merge has begun. Shortly afterwards, a NASA jet flies several circles around the launch area, and nearly over the causeway. They are providing first hand information on conditions around the launch pad. A few minutes later, we start to notice the first hints of sunlight just barely creeping over the Eastern horizon.
T-minus 9 minutes and holding, the last of the scheduled holds in the countdown. A technical issue has cropped up. A piece of downrange monitoring equipment isn't functioning, and neither is the backup system. The dreaded words come over the PA system: "At this time we're looking at a no-go situation." Horrible. It's about 5:45am and there's a real possibility that the last seven hours will have been a total waste. Knowing my Cousin has to work the rest of the week, I start making mental plans to rent a car to make sure I'm here for the next attempt if we are indeed facing an abort. With a week to go in my vacation it's almost a sure thing I'd get at least one more launch attempt in before having to go home. "Houston, Launch Control. Stream A on the downrange command and control box is still non-responsive, but we've got a good reading on stream B now and are currently go."
Fucking...eh! "T-minus 9 minutes and counting." A quiet cheer and applause swells from the causeway spectators, still obviously nervous about the near scrub, but for now, Launch Control is not working any issues. The Shuttle sits calmly on the pad, offering no hints of its impending journey to orbit. Aside from the continuing updates over the PA system, the crowd is fairly silent. I would have expected the countdown to seem to take forever, but I feel as though I'd just stepped off the bus five minutes ago. Time was streaking by and I'm in full excitement mode. "T-minus 1 minute. The electronic handoff has been completed. Discovery's computers now controlling the vehicle in preparation for launch." It's going to happen, it's going to happen, it's going to happen. STS-131 is a go! My heart is pounding.
"T-minus ten. Nine. Eight. Seven. Six. Main engine sequence start. Four. Three. Two. One..."
"Ignition...and liftoff of Space Shuttle Discovery!"
Yes, yes, YES! Oh WOW! That's all I'm thinking. It's incredibly bright. Much brighter than I expected and much brighter than it ever seems on video or in pictures, even when the pictures are blown out like mine. I hold my camera as steady as I can and keep shooting, but I'm not looking at it. My eyes are fixed forward as Discovery clears the tower and begins to roll, picking up speed at an amazing rate. It's nearly as bright as the Sun, it seems, and looking directly at the flame is difficult. The entire night sky seems to turn to day for a few silent seconds as the Shuttle climbs, the yellow and white light spilling over everything.
As Discovery gets higher and faster, we start to hear a low rumbling. After at least fifteen seconds, the sound is finally coming. First, the jet-like rumbling of the Orbiter's main engine start, then a sharper bump as the sound of SRB ignition finally reaches us. I'm not sure how loud it will be, having heard some insanely loud military jets in my time, but it keeps building. Soon, we can hear the trademark crackling of the solid boosters, building louder and louder as the Shuttle climbs and directs more of the noise directly towards us. Wow, wow, WOW! It's LOUD! The air is shattered as the sound becomes almost uncomfortable, passing through our bodies and causing everything inside and out to vibrate. It's not louder than an airshow, but the sound is consistent and unrelenting for at least fifteen or twenty more seconds. Finally, it starts to fade as Discovery nears the speed of sound and Max-Q. We start having to tilt our heads back to see her.
"Discovery, go at throttle up."
The Shuttle passes through Max-Q with no problem, and the Orbiter's main engines throttle back up to 104% power, burning half a ton of fuel per second from the external tank. The SRBs are burning 11,000 pounds of fuel per second. Millions of pounds of thrust are pushing Discovery higher and faster. After barely one minute of operation, the vehicle's weight has been reduced by half. She continues accelerating, now traveling thousands of miles per hour. I start to notice "sun" spots in my vision. Staring at Discovery's giant exhaust flame really is like looking at the Sun for a little bit too long. A few blinks and a quick rub of the eyes helps a bit, but I don't want to miss anything worrying about it. SRB separation is smooth and uneventful. By now, the Shuttle is high enough that the exhaust plume is being lit by the Sun, still hiding over the horizon. The flash of SRB separation is easily visible, and as Discovery pulls away, the exhaust gases from her three main engines are hit by sunlight, forming a massive wake behind her.
Discovery is officially in space, over 100 miles in altitude and hundreds of miles downrange. Traveling over 4000 miles per hour and continuing to accelerate, she's nothing but a bright white dot, racing for the horizon. In less than a minute the Shuttle is gone, and the launch, at least for us, is over. There's no rush back to the bus, and everyone seems to have had a great time. Sunrise is quickly approaching, and as it does, we're treated to an unexpected surprise.
The sunrise hits the leftover exhaust gases, now being carried by high altitude winds into a giant swirl. The colours are amazingly vivid and seem to intensify as the Sun finally spills over and it's day time again. It's close to 7:00am and everyone is back on the bus. The ride back seems longer, but at least there is more to see now that it's daylight. Still, after the high of the launch, everyone is starting to realize that they've been awake all night long. One re-scheduled airfare and about $250 worth of causeway viewing tickets is a small price to pay to see one of the last large rocket launches America will be doing for a while. It's a bucket list item for me, and I'm thrilled that everything went as planned and on schedule. The whole experience seemed to pass so quickly, I can imagine that it would take at least three or four launches to fully absorb the event. I'm happy to have managed one. There's still more of the Kennedy Space Center to see, and we head straight there to jump on a tour and check out everything we missed. First stop after driving past the enormous Vehicle Assembly Building and the Crawlers is the Apollo program exhibit featuring an actual Saturn V rocket. Next is the ISS exhibit, including the actual clean room where ISS modules are preped before being loaded into the Shuttles. Unfortunately, because post-launch work is well underway, launch pad tours aren't being done. Still, there's plenty to see everywhere else, including a few things back at the Visitor's Center. What an absolutely fantastic day!
NASA logo at the Visitor's Center.
Original Apollo era Launch Control room with a simulated launch show.
Five F-1 engines of a Saturn V rocket.
Space Shuttle launch pad.
The Vehicle Assembly Building.
Full-size Orbiter mockup.
Astronaut Memorial.
The Rocket Garden.
