STS-133 Shuttle Mission to the International Space Station Launches Thursday 21:50 GMT

Well I'm back in the hotel.


Oh.
My.
God.

Awesome experience! Heart in mouth whilst they entered the 5min hold trying to get the range computers working again but crowd erupted when they called go :D

The sight of discovery lifting off the pad was beautiful. The cameras don't capture what it looks like properly, probably because of the auto exposure they all have to have. The flame is a lot richer in colour. It lifts in silence and it's not until 20sec into the flight do you get the rumble which becomes a raw!

Amazing, so glad I went :)
 
Blinkz said:
Amazing, so glad I went :)
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I bet it was amazing to watch! Where was you viewing?

I have to say that I found the coverage was quite lame.

Previous launches I have watched via a live stream and they have been quite engaging but this just lacked something. The commentary I found to be quite terrible with so much dead space in-between talking during the final moments. Also what was with the stream video? Why the double image? I was thinking at some point it was for another camera angle to be shown at lift off... but no! Green bar smack in the middle all the way through... :confused:

It was good to see but I felt rather disconnected by the coverage on this one.
 
I missed this so thanks for linking a vid.
Its just looks amazing, I love anything to do with space and can remember the shuttle crash when I was a kid (columbia I think) and thats what made me start to get interested in the in and outs of space flight/missions etc.
Hope we get to mars while I'm still alive.
 
You guys should watch this 5 part documentary, there's some breathtaking footage and astounding facts about the shuttle, including construction, it's 35,000 individually shaped and numbered tiles, it's 3 million pieces which have to be checked in a 90 day turnaround, such as windows with cracks even as small as a human hair width. The rocket engines themselves are mind boggling to look at. At launch there are several million automated computations per second.

The documentary will automatically change to the next section at the end of each part. It's from 1999, but nothing much has changed.


http://www.youtube.com/user/MrPat1978#p/c/DB4B88E8F5B4FBED/0/fsNAy9I0bbY
 
The full launch sequence including tank separation:

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The post launch briefing:

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Today’s wakeup call will be at 11:50 GMT (06:50 EST)
 
Blinkz said:
probably because of the auto exposure they all have to have.
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It's not the auto exposure - it's the sheer contrast. You don't realise just how bright that flame is until you see it at night. There aren't many man-made things that can turn night into twilight from six miles away. :D

It lifts in silence and it's not until 20sec into the flight do you get the rumble which becomes a raw!
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20sec? I was too busy snapping to time it like I'd hoped to, but that's about right from the physics. Didn't really become a roar - but a very noticeable rumble, certainly.

Amazing, so glad I went :)
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Glad you enjoyed it! :)
 
discoverylaunch.jpg


The crew were woken at 11:54 GMT (06:45 EST) to the song “Through Heaven's Eyes” by Brian Stokes Mitchell. The plan for today is as follows:

Flight Day 2

• Discovery’s thermal protection system survey with shuttle robotic arm/orbiter boom sensor system (OBSS)
• Extravehicular mobility unit, or spacesuit, checkout
• Centerline camera installation
• Orbiter docking system ring extension
• Orbital maneuvering system pod survey
• Rendezvous tools checkout​
 
GJ02 said:
was touch n go hey sim man !
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Talk about cutting it fine and we nearly had the Air Force to blame for a scrub. I’d have loved to have been a fly on the wall in where they had that range system computer. “Hit the reset button, no just turn off and on”. :D

We’ve probably aged by a few months after that. Anyway, it’s good to see that it all went very well in the end and so far all is looking good for tomorrow’s docking. :)
 
The plan for today is as follows:

Flight Day 3

• Rendezvous with the International Space Station
• Rendezvous pitch maneuver photography of Discovery’s thermal protection system by Expedition 25 crew members Fyodor Yurchikhin and Shannon Walker
• Docking to Harmony/pressurized mating adapter 2
• Hatch opening and welcoming
• Canadarm2 grapple of Express Logistics Carrier 4 (ELC4) cargo pallet, handoff to shuttle robotic arm, and handoff back to Canadarm2 for installation on the starboard 3 lower inboard attachment system​

Docking will take place at 19:16 GMT (14:16 EST)
 
GJ02 said:
sim man
what holds the shuttle to the launch pad ? and at what point is it not supported ?
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4 explosive bolts on each of the SRBs are, I believe, all that hold the entire thing up when it launches.


Obviously it is held by that large protective cover for the large portion of its stay at the launch pad, not sure on the name of it though.
 
VaderDSL said:
4 explosive bolts on each of the SRBs are, I believe, all that hold the entire thing up when it launches.
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Eight attach posts, four on the aft skirt of each solid rocket booster (SRB), support and hold the Space Shuttle on the Mobile Launcher Platform. Immediately before SRB ignition, the nuts attached to the top of these bolts are detonated releasing the shuttle from the platform.

VaderDSL said:
Obviously it is held by that large protective cover for the large portion of its stay at the launch pad, not sure on the name of it though.
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It's called the rotating service structure (RSS).
 
Discovery is holding at 650 feet directly below the ISS. Watching on spaceflight now since it seems to be ahead of nasa tv. Currently doing rendezvous pitch manoeuvre.
 
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