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Hi Guys,

Here is a launch that was particularly good for camera ops. Enjoy/

I was about 3 miles from the pad which was the miniumum safe distance for personnel. The only people closer were the rescue crew who were in M113 armored cars about 1.5 miles from the pad.

1. SSME start



2. SRB start



3.She clears the tower. "Houston now controlling"



For full effect: you may want to check this picture in full size.

http://www.iloveplanets.com/sts%20129/4A6U9734wwnam.jpg



4.RCS carboard covers fly off. Roll program beginning.


5.Rolling onto her back to reduce dynamic stress.



6.Blasting through a low cloud layer.


7.Going uphill



8. SRB Sep approx. 30 miles up and 25 miles downrange. i.e. 39 miles away from me

Beautiful images.

I can only imagine what it sounded and felt like to be that close.


"For full effect: you may want to check this picture in full size."

Wow...nice...

Just happened that on Saturday astronaut Jose Hernandez gave a presentation at a Scouts meet and the information and video were very nice.

How loud is it at 3 miles away?

Suresh wrote:4.RCS carboard covers fly off.

Why are they covered?

Suresh wrote:5.Rolling onto her back to reduce dynamic stress.

Answers one question I didn't know I had. What would happen if she were not rolled over?

Stunning images; definitely worth checking out in full size as well

AndesSMF wrote:Wow...nice...

How loud is it at 3 miles away?

It takes a while to get there but it can be loud enough to rattle things loose. The top of the VAB starts i.e. the roof does a shimmy. I have never been through an earthquake but it reminds me of what i have seen on tv.

See this video. For this particular mission, i am the guy with the long lens in this guy's video (dont know who took it but a friend found it on Youtube and sent it to me.). You see my hands and then my left arm..you cant miss the len

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xsRuJ37kyZg

Suresh wrote:4.RCS carboard covers fly off.

AndesSMF wrote:Why are they covered?

The stack sits out at the pad for about a month before to launch and this is stop dirt,birds,rain going in to the nozzles..

Suresh wrote:5.Rolling onto her back to reduce dynamic stress.

AndesSMF wrote:Answers one question I didn't know I had. What would happen if she were not rolled over?

The orbiter will under go higher stress. Kinda of like a outside loop versus an inside loop.

Also, this gives the pilots the ability to watch the horizon and have a frame of reference if they have to do a RTO (back to KSC abort) or a transatlantic abort to North Africa or Spain or France. They would be orientated properly and would give more reaction time to respond i.e.to go down the checklist.

Suresh wrote:It takes a while to get there but it can be loud enough to rattle things loose.

Now I get the idea...

Suresh wrote:The orbiter will under go higher stress. Kinda of like a outside loop versus an inside loop.

Also, this gives the pilots the ability to watch the horizon and have a frame of reference if they have to do a RTO (back to KSC abort) or a transatlantic abort to North Africa or Spain or France. They would be orientated properly and would give more reaction time to respond i.e.to go down the checklist.

Thanks!

As an aside, I think I saw the Shuttle for longer during the flyover than you can during a launch.

AndesSMF wrote:What would happen if she were not rolled over?

Then you might be sleeping on the couch for awhile!

Sorry, couldn't resist.

Great photos Suresh! For the SRB Separation one, what was the focal length? How much did you have to crop in?

Thanks for posting them.

vikkyvik wrote:Great photos Suresh! For the SRB Separation one, what was the focal length? How much did you have to crop in?

you are looking at no crop i.e. 1:1. That is 1200mm at work with a Canon 1Ds MKIII. Typically what i used for a shuttle launch though sometimes i used 800mm or 600mm depending on the weather,lightning etc.

AndesSMF wrote:As an aside, I think I saw the Shuttle for longer during the flyover than you can during a launch.

yes. Clears the tower in about 9 seconds but then things speed up. SRB sep is around 2 min 15 seconds or so (it varies depending on the insertion orbit,payload weight etc) but it is good rule of thumb.

Night launches used to be the most fun. It would separate the men from boys when it came to the photography due to speed and light.