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Author
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Topic: Atlantis Away! STS-115 launches!
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Robert Pearlman
Editor Posts: 42988
From: Houston, TX
Registered: Nov 1999
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posted 09-09-2006 11:33 AM
   
Space shuttle Atlantis lifted off Kennedy Space Center's Pad 39B today at 10:15 a.m. CDT marking a return to flight for orbiter #104 after a four year hiatus, and a return to assembly missions to the space station.
Click here for photographs from today's events.
Aboard Atlantis is the six member STS-115 crew, the station's new P3/P4 integrated truss and a second set of solar arrays. During the planned 11-day mission, space station power generation will be doubled and 17.5 tons will be added to the ISS. STS-115 astronauts Joseph Tanner, Daniel Burbank, Heidemarie Stefanyshyn-Piper and Steve MacLean of the Canadian Space Agency will exit the ISS for three spacewalks. Commanding STS-115 is Brent Jett and Chris Ferguson is pilot. This was OV-104's 27th liftoff. [Edited by Robert Pearlman (September 09, 2006).] |
HouseDadX4
unregistered
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posted 09-09-2006 11:34 AM
Fantastic launch..great way to start off a Saturday morning..Good luck and God Speed to the crew on a successful mission. Great to see construction of the ISS continue... |
lunarrv15
Member Posts: 1355
From: Cincinnati, Ohio, Hamilton
Registered: Mar 2001
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posted 09-09-2006 11:36 AM
today, a good day for a launch.safe here |
mjanovec
Member Posts: 3811
From: Midwest, USA
Registered: Jul 2005
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posted 09-09-2006 11:37 AM
Looked like a really clean launch...didn't see any debris on the external tank camera. There was quite a bit of condensation buildup around the orbiter as it reached the Mach 1. I'm assuming the humidity was pretty high at the time of launch. There also appeared to be a visible shockwave around the orbiter as it passed Mach 1...or maybe that's just my imagination.This launch shows that despite a hurricane, some fuel cell problems, and some tank level indicators problems that NASA was able to make their launch window. |
KSCartist
Member Posts: 2896
From: Titusville, FL USA
Registered: Feb 2005
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posted 09-09-2006 01:53 PM
I also noticed that the oxygen feedline was vibrating a bit during ascent. I understand that this may be due to the high Q acent profile. Can anyone explain this? I thought all ISS launches were the same, trajectory, orbital inclination, etc. Obviously there's a difference.Tim PS: BTW it WAS a beautiful launch. I love it when the atmospheric humidity allows my front picture window to vibrate. [Edited by KSCartist (September 09, 2006).] |
Steven Kaplan
Member Posts: 140
From: New Jersey
Registered: Jul 2001
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posted 09-09-2006 03:42 PM
A quick thank you to Robert for his usual steady stream of reports and photos on CollectSpace over the past few weeks. |
Robert Pearlman
Editor Posts: 42988
From: Houston, TX
Registered: Nov 1999
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posted 09-09-2006 04:05 PM
Its been my pleasure, Steven but I appreciate the words of support.Space Shuttle Program Manager Wayne Hale has reported that Atlantis appears to have come through the launch without debris damage. His preliminary analysis was based on imagery of the launch provided by cameras on the ground and mounted on-board the vehicle. "There's just nothing to look at," said Hale, explaining his lack of any visuals to show during the briefing. [Edited by Robert Pearlman (September 09, 2006).] |
Ben
Member Posts: 1896
From: Cape Canaveral, FL
Registered: May 2000
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posted 09-10-2006 10:29 AM
Tom, I think this was actually a low-q ascent due to the heavy payload (unlike last time). At the press conference Bill Harwood asked about it and I believe the answer was that it always shakes like that (so they say ;-) |
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