View allAll Photos Tagged spaceshuttle
First off, yes, I know that this is two people. But once you have been married for so long, you become one.
Anywho, this past Saturday my friend called me up at the last minute and asked if I wanted to drive to Titusville, which btw is like 3 hours from here, to see the last night space shuttle launch. I didn't have much of anything going on, so I said sure, why not. We left town about 10:30 that night and drove down there. Finally made it about 1:40 and just hung out in the car until 4am. The launch was supposed to happen at 4:30. We eventually made our way to the water and then just waited. NASA was debating whether or not it was goin to be a go. The space was kinda limited so we got really comfy with our neighbors,
Here's what I know:
They were from Minneapolis.
They flew down specifically for the shuttle launch.
Only came into town with the clothes on their back.
They were flying back out at 8am.
They had never seen a shuttle launch.
He owned a nice camera, a Nikon, if I remember right.
They really liked our weather.
But the really sad thing is that the shuttle launch got scrubbed that night. They had to fly back home without having seen it. Jen and I eventually made our way back to the car and made it back to Gville around 9am. No sleep was had, but totally worth it.
Pima Air and Space Museum
Space Shuttle Thermal Protection Tile
A sample thermal protection tile from the Space Shuttle's lower wing section. Each Space Shuttle was covered in more than 24,000 such tiles to protect the spacecraft from the extreme heat (up to 2,300 degrees Fahrenheit) created during re-entry into the Earth's atmosphere. These tiles were made of silica fibers fused together with various chemicals and covered with a black glass coating.
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- Flags on Launch Pad 39A at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida wave a final salute to space shuttle Atlantis as its engines ignite for liftoff. Atlantis began its final flight, the STS-135 mission to the International Space Station, at 11:29 a.m. EDT July 8. STS-135 will deliver the Raffaello multi-purpose logistics module packed with supplies and spare parts to the orbiting laboratory. Atlantis also is flying the Robotic Refueling Mission experiment that will investigate the potential for robotically refueling existing satellites in orbit. In addition, a failed ammonia pump module will be returned to Earth aboard Atlantis to help NASA better understand the failure mechanism and improve pump designs for future systems. STS-135 is the 33rd flight of Atlantis, the 37th shuttle mission to the space station, and the 135th and final mission of NASA's Space Shuttle Program. For more information, visit www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/shuttle/shuttlemissions/sts135.... Photo credit: NASA/Tony Gray and Tom Farrar
The space shuttle Endeavour flew over Houston and landed at Ellington Field on its final flight from Florida to California. Mom went to see it. The shuttle was bolted to a 747 for its flight.
Self-Portrait (top image)
Astronaut Steve Robinson turns the camera on himself during his historic repair job "underneath" Discovery on August 3. The Shuttle's heat shield, where Robinson removed a pair of protruding gap fillers, is reflected in his visor.
Unprecedented Vista (bottom image)
Discovery's underside floats over the Earth in this first-of-its-kind view, taken during astronaut Steve Robinson's dramatic August 3 spacewalk. Riding the International Space Station's robot arm, Robinson ventured under the Shuttle to remove a pair of gap fillers sticking out between tiles on the orbiter's heat shield.
image credit: NASA
Endeavour flying over The Little Mermaid ride in Disneyland California Adventures. (Rosa Trieu/Neon Tommy)
Pima Air and Space Museum
Thermal Micrometeoroid Garment Assembly (TMG)
The TMG is part of the extravehicular spacesuit worn by astronauts during spacewalks. It protects the wearer against solar radiation, extreme temperatures, micrometeoroids, and other orbital debris. Small flecks of paint or millimeter-sized micrometeoroids traveling at thousands of miles per hour can depressurize a suit or vehicle, potentially killing an astronaut.
7.) Vest
The vest component of the TMG fits over the Hard Upper Torso unit of the extravehicular spacesuit.
Visitors wait in the open space between Disneyland and California Adventures for Endeavour to pass by. (Rosa Trieu/Neon Tommy)
Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum
Welcome to a preview of a new exhibition about human spaceflight since the 1970s-people traveling to space, living and working there, and seeking to move beyond Earth.
Like spaceflight itself, this exhibition is a work in progress. When completed in late 2011, it will highlight the Space Shuttle and International Space Station, and look beyond to possible futures in space.
For now, you can view some spaceflight icons and try some hands-on activities to test your space knowledge, explore your interests in space work, and exercise your decision-making skills.
We will keep adding objects and displays, so visit again and watch things change.
Come in and see... Are you ready for spaceflight?