STS-129 Ascent Video Highlights 117
An anonymous reader sends in this link to a video of 12-1/2 minutes of Space Shuttle pr0n. The people at the Johnson Space Center put together this video of the ascent of STS-129 using multiple imagery assets — ground, air, booster, and the shuttle itself. The booster's-eye view of splashdown and immersion is something you don't see every day. As a bonus, another anonymous reader shared a beautiful photo of the shuttle flying over rugged terrain after it separated from the ISS last week.
Huge photo of "shuttle flying over rugged terrain" (Score:2, Interesting)
NASA's Space Shuttle Atlantis (STS-129) "flying over rugged terrain" in 4288 x 2846 pixels [chamorrobible.org] via the excellent photo gallery at http://chamorrobible.org/gpw/gpw-200911.htm [chamorrobible.org]
Re:Ahh, shuttle (Score:4, Interesting)
Even if I'm a bit skeptical towards the overall concept (especially given the limits of tech) and how it stands in comparison to what we could do with alternatives, I will almost certainly be always able to agree with that; I don't expect we'll see any launcher that impresses more in our lifetime.
Especially in such superb selection of shots, editing. Real life footage much more dynamic and/or breathtaking than BSG or BBC Space Odyssey: Voyage to the Planets (BTW, if you haven't seen it DO IT NOW), who would've known? ;)
Re:Wow (Score:4, Interesting)
Agree, absolutely incredible. Over the years there were lots of angles I'd wanted to see during a launch, this covered almost all of them (the remaining video would be of the tank actually burning up in the atmosphere).
I found it odd though that the now-regular footage from the camera mounted on the fuel tank was of much lower resolution than that from other cameras. I realize the tank-cam is live stream while other footage (e.g. on the SRBs) is retrieved later, but the tank-cam looks great on TV...
Re:Huge photo of "shuttle flying over rugged terra (Score:1, Interesting)
if we're into shuttle porn, why don't you post a link to a photo with a full load (in the cargo bay)?
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/c/cd/Atantis_Approaching_ISS_STS129.jpg [wikimedia.org]
Re:What happens to the external tank? (Score:4, Interesting)
The external tank reentry is about 80 minutes after launch. It takes 8.5 minutes to empty the tank; so reentry is ~71 minutes after separation.
You can find some images of the reentry with Google
http://www.google.com/search?q=shuttle+external+tank+reentry [google.com]
e.g.
http://www.eclipsetours.com/sat/shuttle.html [eclipsetours.com]
(scroll to bottom for image)