SPACEX | NASA | Space Exploration | Other Space Ventures

tolmie's hairdoo said:
Looking forward to the launch tonight, I was there this time last year visiting Kennedy with the kids and the whole scale of the site took our breath away, would recommend it to anyone.

I don't know why, but got a bad feeling about the launch tonight, the weather is dodgy but America wants these two astronauts up ASAP for a good American news story.

As soon as I heard Trump had contacted them to say they could still pull out, I'm left cynically fearing the worst...

Good luck to them - batshit crazy strapping themselves to these huge bombs.
Click to expand...

I was fortunate enough to see the space shuttle go up in July 4 2006. Bit long winded but fuck it you’ve not got anywhere else to be at the minute

We was on holiday and a plane flew over carrying a banner say launch tomorrow, this was on July 1 so we set off to Kennedy on the 2nd and got stuck in the most horrendous traffic probably because it was a weekend and couldn’t get close to the place but figured we’d probably still get a glimpse so not so bad. Anyways they said on radio it launch was canned due to bad weather forecast and would go up tomorrow (sky looked clear enough to me) so we went down got to Kennedy on the 3rd and paid our admissions and I managed to buy tickets to go to the official public launch bit across the banana river - now the rules with these tickets is once you’ve been bussed to the launch site you can’t reuse them and have to buy more (hence why I could buy them) - but the weather was biblical that day so no sooner had I paid and the launch was called off again and rescheduled for the 4th. But as I hadn’t used my launch tickets they were still valid for the next day.

Anyway 4th comes and off we trot, an amazing view over the river you can see the launch site but it’s still a good 5 or 6 miles way I’d estimate. They have loudspeakers set up to pipe the chatter between ground and crew so it’s all done proper. So launch time comes and the ground/crew chatter is going on, this thing must be already a few miles high before you hear it but the noise just vibrates through you. Nothing like I’ve ever experienced before or since. About a minute or so into the flight ground are telling the shuttle that they emergency runway is in Spain (Bilbao IIRC)! I’m standing in Florida and a minute or 2 ago this thing was on the ground and now their emergency runway is 3000 miles away!! One word phenomenal. And it can’t have been much more than 20-30 seconds before ground are telling them they are now committed to orbit and they have no emergency plan.

It’s one of those experiences that I experienced by pure luck and fortune but will never leave me. If you ever get the chance to see a launch (obviously not the shuttle anymore) don’t pass it up
 
Loving Spacex work, however not keen on it ruining ground based astronomy for people, yet Starlink is providing internet for remote areas. Catch 22. Definitely on the bucket list to fly out and watch a launch. Til then, back to KSP.

The Falcon Heavy landing is still one of the best things I think I've watched live on TV.

SpaceX Falcon Heavy Landing + Sonic Boom! - YouTube
 
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ultimateharold said:
Loving Spacex work, however not keen on it ruining ground based astronomy for people, yet Starlink is providing internet for remote areas. Catch 22. Definitely on the bucket list to fly out and watch a launch. Til then, back to KSP.

The Falcon Heavy landing is still one of the best things I think I've watched live on TV.

SpaceX Falcon Heavy Landing + Sonic Boom! - YouTube
Click to expand...

SpaceX have said they are going to start ( I assume when they have permission ) to coat them in an antireflective layer to help stop the issue.
 
metalblue said:
I was fortunate enough to see the space shuttle go up in July 4 2006. Bit long winded but fuck it you’ve not got anywhere else to be at the minute

We was on holiday and a plane flew over carrying a banner say launch tomorrow, this was on July 1 so we set off to Kennedy on the 2nd and got stuck in the most horrendous traffic probably because it was a weekend and couldn’t get close to the place but figured we’d probably still get a glimpse so not so bad. Anyways they said on radio it launch was canned due to bad weather forecast and would go up tomorrow (sky looked clear enough to me) so we went down got to Kennedy on the 3rd and paid our admissions and I managed to buy tickets to go to the official public launch bit across the banana river - now the rules with these tickets is once you’ve been bussed to the launch site you can’t reuse them and have to buy more (hence why I could buy them) - but the weather was biblical that day so no sooner had I paid and the launch was called off again and rescheduled for the 4th. But as I hadn’t used my launch tickets they were still valid for the next day.

Anyway 4th comes and off we trot, an amazing view over the river you can see the launch site but it’s still a good 5 or 6 miles way I’d estimate. They have loudspeakers set up to pipe the chatter between ground and crew so it’s all done proper. So launch time comes and the ground/crew chatter is going on, this thing must be already a few miles high before you hear it but the noise just vibrates through you. Nothing like I’ve ever experienced before or since. About a minute or so into the flight ground are telling the shuttle that they emergency runway is in Spain (Bilbao IIRC)! I’m standing in Florida and a minute or 2 ago this thing was on the ground and now their emergency runway is 3000 miles away!! One word phenomenal. And it can’t have been much more than 20-30 seconds before ground are telling them they are now committed to orbit and they have no emergency plan.

It’s one of those experiences that I experienced by pure luck and fortune but will never leave me. If you ever get the chance to see a launch (obviously not the shuttle anymore) don’t pass it up
Click to expand...
I watched one from the top of a bridge, nasa parkway I think, was fucking brilliant, a state trooper did the count down on a megaphone.
 
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