posted 04-12-2006 12:09 AM               

At 02:00 a.m. on Sunday, April 12, 1981, I reported to the KSC press site, where a large crowd was gathering. We boarded a bus, which delivered us to the Operations and Checkout Building to watch Young and Crippen enter the Astrovan. It was a bit disappointing that the PAO-people kept us some distance away from the entrance, but it was exciting nevertheless. The crowd cheered as Young and Crippen emerged from the building and walked the short distance to the waiting van, led by George Abbey. After the convoy had left the KSC industrial area we returned to the press site, slowly making our way through the traffic jams that were by now clogging the roads into KSC. Then began the long wait, while we followed the progress of the countdown on NASA-TV. Columbia could be seen in the distance, caught in the glare of the searchlights: a beautiful sight. Wandering around the press site I watched artist Robert McCall as he painted a picture in the grandstand overlooking the countdown clock.

Tension was rising as a magnificent dawn came over KSC, but in a way we were "veterans" now. Two days earlier the countdown had stopped at T-minus-9-minutes, but this time everything went well and a cheer went up when we passed T-minus-1-minute. PAO Hugh Harris counted down the final seconds and then the moment was there: "Main engine start. We have liftoff of America's first Space Shuttle and the Shuttle has cleared the tower!" It was an unbelievable sight to watch Columbia rise above the launch tower and start its climb into space. The crowd was yelling hysterically as the first reusable spaceship rose higher and higher. As the sound came rolling over the press site it drowned out the cheers. It was a loud crackling roar that you could feel in your stomach. I had the impression I could even feel the shockwaves. The emotions where overwhelming. After the anticipation and tension of the past few days, it was finally happening! This is what I had travelled thousands of miles for.

When it was all over I had tears in my eyes. I guess it was the combination of the sheer power of the event and the realization that I was having a front-row seat while history was being made as I watched.

This B&W photo was the first that KSC released, in the evening of April 12. Color photos were not ready until the following day. They were handed out just in time for me, because I had to catch a flight to California where Columbia would land on April 14. I remember that during the flight to the westcoast the other airline passengers were impressed by the stack of color photos I kept watching. Although this B&W photo was quickly surpassed by the color photos, it is still special for me because it was the first that was released.

posted 04-12-2006 07:14 AM               

I don't know who took these but there are some more nice personal photos from that day here:
http://ctein.com/thmnail7.htm

posted 04-12-2006 02:21 PM               

quote:

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Originally posted by Ben:
Ed, if you have any more of your press site pics, I'd love to see.

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The problem is that all the shots I took during the month I was in the US are 35mm slides. I really need to have some prints made of these, as scanning them myself doesn't produce very good results. But I realized too late that this anniversary was coming up...

posted 04-12-2006 06:24 PM              

I was with a large group of refinery engineers at a meeting regarding a major expanison at Petrosar in Sarnia,Ontrio when STS-1 landed.

Our wobnderful Canadian hosts provide a big screen TV for us to watch landing. We broke from our meetings and all watched. Major internatonal cheers when it landed. It was a good intenatonal bonding moment. We had Americans, Brits, Texans, Canadians, Indians, and several other National and Ethnic groups.

posted 04-12-2006 10:57 PM               

I remember nervously sitting by the TV in my pajamas waiting for the big moment. I had been disappointed by the scrub two days earlier, so that only added to the tension I felt. While I didn't really understand how risky that first Shuttle flight was, I still felt apprehension for the crew...somehow knowing that spaceflight is a dangerous business.