NASA's Shuttle and Rocket Launch
Bairdstravel would like to thank Leigh for sharing her Launch day
experience . Leigh was on a well earned holiday in Orlando Florida
when she decided to head east to the coast to watch the rocket launch. Here are her photographs from the event. | May 14, 2010 | Atlantis | Last planned Atlantis flight; |
The Space Shuttle, part of the Space Transportation System (STS), is an American spacecraft operated by NASA for orbital human spaceflight missions. The first of four test flights occurred in 1981, which were followed by operational flights beginning in 1982. The system is scheduled to be retired from service in 2010 after 134 launches. Major missions have included launching numerous satellites and interplanetary probes, conducting space science experiments, and servicing and construction of space stations.
All Space Shuttle missions are launched from Kennedy Space Center (KSC). The weather criteria used for launch include, but are not limited to: no precipitation allowed at the launch pad or along the flight path; no temperatures above 99 °F (37 °C) nor below 35 °F (2 °C); any cloud cover must allow direct visual observation of the shuttle through 8,000 feet elevation; and there must not be a 20% or greater chance of lightning within 5 nautical miles (9 km).
The shuttle will not be launched under conditions where it could be struck by lightning.
The Space Shuttle is the first orbital spacecraft designed for reuse. It carries different payloads to Low Earth Orbit, provides crew rotation for the International Space Station (ISS), and performs servicing missions. The orbiter can also recover satellites and other payloads from orbit and return them to Earth. Each Shuttle was designed for a projected lifespan of 100 launches or ten years of operational life, although this was later extended. The person in charge of designing the STS was Maxime Faget, who had also overseen the Mercury, Gemini, and Apollo spacecraft designs.
Thank you Leigh for sharing your superb photographs.
Thank