Discovery To Launch Wednesday

lady cop · Post by **lady cop** » Sun Jul 10, 2005 6:56 am

after a long hiatus NASA will launch a discovery mission on wednesday....i will be able to observe my 10th launch, it is always a powerfully moving experience. there is no way to adequately describe the way the earth moves, the sound, the fire, the swelling of one's heart. i visit the cape at every opportunity, it is a place of great inspiration and pride. to the astronauts i say GODSPEED! i will report here on the launch if anyone is interested. and of course if it's a 'go' CNN will cover it so you can watch. Ã¢â‚¬Â¢ Astronauts arrive early for launch

turbonium · Post by **turbonium** » Sun Jul 10, 2005 7:12 am

Here's to a safe successful launch and return!!

:yh_star :yh_shamrk

lady cop · Post by **lady cop** » Sun Jul 10, 2005 7:31 am

this is the astronaut memorial at the cape, it is situated so that the sun illuminates each name.and the flag reflected in lower corner. a reverent site. let there be no more names engraved upon it

nvalleyvee · Post by **nvalleyvee** » Sun Jul 10, 2005 7:58 am

I am soo jealous. I've always wanted to see a launch. I saw the shuttle land at White Sands one time and have been hooked ever since. More pictures LC!

lady cop · Post by **lady cop** » Sun Jul 10, 2005 8:13 am

OK NV! i will stay on top this for you! here is the external fuel tank for the shuttle. ..............

nvalleyvee · Post by **nvalleyvee** » Sun Jul 10, 2005 8:15 am

I had no idea of the actual size until I saw people standing around it. Very cool.

lady cop · Post by **lady cop** » Sun Jul 10, 2005 8:23 am

i hope one day you can see a launch, i took my son's little league baseball team to one and those kids never ever forgot it, they were amazed and thrilled.

nvalleyvee · Post by **nvalleyvee** » Sun Jul 10, 2005 8:28 am

How close can the public get to the launch site?

minks · Post by **minks** » Sun Jul 10, 2005 8:37 am

will the weather be settled by then? I sure hope so. I would like to see a launch one day too in my life. It amazes me that we have begun exploring space as we have. Really quite remarkable.

Adam Zapple · Post by **Adam Zapple** » Sun Jul 10, 2005 8:54 pm

I was able to watch the launch in 1983 that included Sally Ride. It was an awesome experience I will never forget. Have often heard the "sonic boom" of the shuttles re-entering the atmosphere. Unfortunately, I live in the vicinity of the Columbia disaster, and as a fire/ems dispatcher, received many first hand eyewitness accounts as it was happening. So I've experienced the best and the worst.

lady cop · Post by **lady cop** » Mon Jul 11, 2005 8:41 am

official countdown began today>>>>>here is a great site Ã¢â‚¬Â¢ NASA: Return to flight

lady cop · Post by **lady cop** » Mon Jul 11, 2005 7:32 pm

true heroes...

Discovering the men and women of Discovery

They are parents, as well as sons and daughters; triathletes, nature-lovers and rock 'n' rollers; pilots, scholars and engineers; seasoned space explorers and first-timers. The astronauts on the space shuttle Discovery are also groundbreakers -- the first to fly since the Columbia disaster in 2003. The crew is scheduled to lift off Wednesday.

lady cop · Post by **lady cop** » Tue Jul 12, 2005 11:03 am

I AM SO EXCITED! Lift-off at 3:51 Eastern tomorrow, the 13th of july. and i am going to watch it from nearby! WHOO HOO!! (sorry to keep bumping my own thread, but i just LOVE NASA and the astronauts) ........here is the official mission patch, each mission has one and my family has a patch from every mission ever flown....they are distinguished as the real thing by certain threads in the patch. the whole world will be watching>>>>>>>>>> Image above: This is the mission patch for STS-114. Credit: NASA>>>>>

lady cop · Post by **lady cop** » Tue Jul 12, 2005 11:09 am

the view from titusville............

nvalleyvee · Post by **nvalleyvee** » Tue Jul 12, 2005 3:26 pm

Cool pics LC - where did you get them? I'm computer stupid.

lady cop · Post by **lady cop** » Tue Jul 12, 2005 3:33 pm

i am no techo whiz myself....but i like NASA'a website, NASA: Return to flight

nvalleyvee · Post by **nvalleyvee** » Tue Jul 12, 2005 3:34 pm

Thanks

lady cop · Post by **lady cop** » Tue Jul 12, 2005 4:03 pm

i sure hope this doesn't cause a scrub..........CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. Ã¢â‚¬â€ With the countdown for Discovery in its final hours, NASA was dealt a setback Tuesday when a window cover fell off the shuttle and damaged thermal tiles near the tail. But the space agency said it probably could fix the problem in time for Wednesday's launch.

The mishap was an eerie reminder of the very thing that doomed Columbia Ã¢â‚¬â€ damage to the spaceship's fragile thermal shield.

The plastic-and-foam cover on one of Discovery's cockpit windows fell at the launch pad and struck a bulge in the fuselage that houses an orbital-maneuvering engine.

turbonium · Post by **turbonium** » Tue Jul 12, 2005 5:28 pm

lady cop wrote: i sure hope this doesn't cause a scrub..........CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. Ã¢â‚¬â€ With the countdown for Discovery in its final hours, NASA was dealt a setback Tuesday when a window cover fell off the shuttle and damaged thermal tiles near the tail. But the space agency said it probably could fix the problem in time for Wednesday's launch.

The mishap was an eerie reminder of the very thing that doomed Columbia Ã¢â‚¬â€ damage to the spaceship's fragile thermal shield.

The plastic-and-foam cover on one of Discovery's cockpit windows fell at the launch pad and struck a bulge in the fuselage that houses an orbital-maneuvering engine.
OMG! A window cover? It seems like something odd to have go wrong......I pray it's not an omen or harbinger of bad luck They better double & triple check everything. I'd rather have them delay it for a month then worry about the deadline and put anybody at risk!! :-3

lady cop · Post by **lady cop** » Tue Jul 12, 2005 6:12 pm

weather permitting, it's a go...............but the fact is those tiles are the only thing protecting the shuttle from the heat of re-entry. one bad tile and it incinerates. i am keeping faith that NASA has it all under control.--------------Despite new tile damage, Discovery to launch

NASA Public Affairs Officer Kyle Herring points to the windows on Discovery.

The launch of the space shuttle Discovery will go ahead as scheduled Wednesday after technicians fixed tiles damaged near the spacecraft's tail Tuesday, a NASA spokesman said. The tiles were damaged when a cover panel on the No. 7 cockpit window fell off as the orbiter sat on the launch pad, officials said.

chonsigirl · Post by **chonsigirl** » Tue Jul 12, 2005 6:40 pm

Go Discovery! It is time to go back out there, and I just love all the space missions.

Sonic booms on reentry are not much of hassle, we used to be warned in L.A. when they were landing at Edwards. Only in certain areas when the descent was fast and furious did you get the double booms, but we knew ahead of time so took breakables away from the windows just in case. Always cool knowing where that boom came from!

lady cop · Post by **lady cop** » Wed Jul 13, 2005 10:45 am

the launch has been scrubbed due to a fuel system problem. there are many thousands of people lining the roadways who have been camped there all night.......

NASA scrubs launch of space shuttle Discovery

BREAKING NEWS

A fault in the shuttle's fuel-tank sensor system forced NASA to call off today's launch of Discovery. The mission was scheduled to be the first shuttle flight since the Columbia disaster 2 1/2 years ago. The space agency did not immediately set a new launch date.

turbonium · Post by **turbonium** » Wed Jul 13, 2005 4:03 pm

All I can add is >>>>> :-5

Better safe than sorry, as always......

lady cop · Post by **lady cop** » Wed Jul 20, 2005 7:52 pm

whoo hoo! it's back on! i'll be there..... Launch Set for Tuesday

AP

Electrical grounding problem cited in Space Shuttle Discovery

NASA: Shuttle will try to blast off next week, possibly even if fuel gauge failure persists

lady cop · Post by **lady cop** » Sat Jul 23, 2005 10:50 am

countdown is on..gassing up my car, i just LOVE this!! riding to merritt island ...the island is a wildlife refuge, when you drive out there, there are alligators laying by the side of the road...they absolutely go crazy when the shuttles launch! LOL..NASA Countdown Begins

chonsigirl · Post by **chonsigirl** » Sat Jul 23, 2005 11:12 am

*wanting to hitch a ride with you*

Oh what joy to see ashuttle launch, I will be watching it on TV, go Discovery!

lady cop · Post by **lady cop** » Sat Jul 23, 2005 11:16 am

chonsigirl wrote: *wanting to hitch a ride with you*

Oh what joy to see ashuttle launch, I will be watching it on TV, go Discovery!well i wish i could take you and everyone with me! i will report back every detail...there is no feeling like feeling the earth move and the sky light up, it tugs at my heart.

Nomad · Post by **Nomad** » Mon Jul 25, 2005 3:14 pm

That is one good thing about Fl.I never got tired of watching that.

The night launches were spectacular !Ive even seen the shuttle orbiting Earth.

I wenr to Cape Canaveral once its pretty stunning to sit in the original Apollo control room.

And just the magnitude the sheer size of the shuttle blows your mind.

A very large Eagle nests there, how appropriate is that ?

I stood in my front yard watching the Challenger launch, then explode..............WOW ! What a day that was.

nvalleyvee · Post by **nvalleyvee** » Mon Jul 25, 2005 4:09 pm

I'm keeping my fingers crossed. I love the US space program and the international station. I thought 2 years was WAAAYYY too long. We have lost 16 fine astronauts in 20+ years. They all knew the risks. They flew for the love of it - I would too.

My thoughts - the US built this Earth to orbit glider and has brought many countries of the world into the orbiter's purpose. MIR came down and now we have the International Space Station - why? - Russia was MIRand gave much needed info to maintaining an orbital space station. Now we have how many countries training in astronaut programs? OH yeah - we need the money - BUT the impact on the world as a functioning unit comes clear in the space program.

lady cop · Post by **lady cop** » Thu Jul 28, 2005 3:12 pm

well i did witness the shuttle launch...it was all you would expect and more, and i will admit having my heart in my throat until i saw the second stage drop away and knew they were safely on their way. NASA has grounded the fleet since there was some foam (and one tile) debris. but NASA reports today that all indications are that they will return safely. click on Flip....cool pics there.

Shuttle Looks OK

Flip enables damage check

NASA to analyze inspection pics; future flights grounded after foam problem during Discovery liftoff

nvalleyvee · Post by **nvalleyvee** » Thu Jul 28, 2005 3:22 pm

Whoa - I haven't seen real pictures of the space station - it's bigger than I thought. I wanna go :-1