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Shuttle Launch

N

NH09

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Joined
Sep 11, 2010
Messages
153
Location
New Hampshire
Taking the family to Orlando next week and was wondering if any Floridians on the site had some tips on the best place to watch the Shuttle Launch. All the viewing tickets are sold out and since this is the last launch I'm guessing there will be a lot of people driving in to see it - any advice would be greatly appreciated:p
 
Depending on which pad they use? I have watched the shuttle land from the state Hwy 402 AKA Max Brewer Memorial Parkway it went right overhead. You could take 402 to Playlinda beach road and watch it from the oceanside you won't be able to see the actual lift off but once it is about 100 feet up you see the rest as it heads out over the ocean. A once in a lifetime experience.
 
Space View Park in Titusville, FL.

Short of being on the causeway itself, you can't get a better view.

After that, any beach access you can find up and down the coast....

Expect crowds in the millions...
 
If you've never seen one, watching it from Orlando will be amazing.

As you get closer, it gets better of course and weather plays less of a role. I've seen them from St. Petersburg, Gainesville, Orlando, New Symerna, HWY 50, HWY 520, Cocoa Beach, Titusville and once with a ticket from the cape.

Bring lots of sunscreen, and be flexible in your plans - scheduled doesn't mean it's going to happen that day - there's no such thing as making an appointment to watch a launch. Delays can be seconds, minutes, hours, days and weeks.

In summary:

1. So long as you see it, you'll be amazed.

2. Timing is more important than location, you'll spend all day getting in and out of the "perfect viewing location" whether it launches or scrubs.

3. The best viewing locations require a ticket - but you still can't plan a vacation around a launch unless you're retired.
 
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too bad they scrubbed the launch.. hopefully NASA is paying attention to the weather.

Nothing like being at Kennedy space center for a launch! I got tickets once from a (morton) thiokol employee (who had the unfortunate responsibility of being their flight engineer for the last Challenger launch - he said don't do it.. it's too cold, but was of course, over ruled).. a chartered bus, breakfast, meeting astronauts and the families.. the whole nine yards.. it was great! Of course, the solid rocket boosters release the equivalent of acid rain, so it was back in the bus right after launch.

It's loud, but you can see the shuttle go up from Miami (which is where I was the Challenger day); you just won't get the entire experience. Although that day, we watched the launch from the roof of our office building and said 'something is wrong' and we were right.

I'd like to add that my friend at Thiokol never got over the guilt of Challenger. He worked 24/7 during the recovery of the debris. We served in the Army Reserve together.
 
Lights up the night sky, that's for sure.. I could stand on my front porch 40 miles south and see the fire before I could see the orbiter.. and I'd watch it become a star.

Let's hope for a safe launch, mission and return.
 
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