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Author
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Topic: Photo of the week 104 (October 28)
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heng44
Member Posts: 3387
From: Netherlands
Registered: Nov 2001
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posted 10-28-2006 04:29 AM
   
 The launch of STS-115 on September 9, 2006, as seen from a high-flying WB-57 chase plane. Ed Hengeveld |
mjanovec
Member Posts: 3811
From: Midwest, USA
Registered: Jul 2005
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posted 10-28-2006 04:59 AM
Another great pic! Anyone know at what altitude the chase plane flies at? |
heng44
Member Posts: 3387
From: Netherlands
Registered: Nov 2001
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posted 10-28-2006 05:26 AM
http://www.nasa.gov/returntoflight/launch/wb57_chasejets.html Ed |
Robert Pearlman
Editor Posts: 42988
From: Houston, TX
Registered: Nov 1999
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posted 10-28-2006 06:20 AM
This photo and another one from the same series has been making its away across the net these past few weeks labeled as being taken from the International Space Station (example).Of course, that is false and these were indeed taken by NASA's WB-57 pilots during the STS-115 launch. Note that the version Ed posted has been digitally altered. The original version had a date stamp superimposed by the camera and you can see where it has been "stamped" out in the lower right-hand corner. This image and others were first released publicly by NASASpaceFlight.com, though they were circulating via private e-mails before then. [Edited by Robert Pearlman (October 28, 2006).] |
rjurek349
Member Posts: 1190
From: Northwest Indiana
Registered: Jan 2002
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posted 10-28-2006 08:33 AM
Ed,A fantastic pic...thanks for posting, as always. Keep it up! And thanks for the education on WB-57 chase planes. Boy would it be cool to go up in one of those someday, and see the curve of the earth like that. Breathtaking. Rich |
randy
Member Posts: 2176
From: West Jordan, Utah USA
Registered: Dec 1999
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posted 10-28-2006 08:51 AM
COOL! |
rjurek349
Member Posts: 1190
From: Northwest Indiana
Registered: Jan 2002
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posted 10-28-2006 09:07 AM
And as far as altitutde is concerned, if you check out this link of an actual WB-57 flight: http://flightaware.com/live/flight/NASA928 And you click on the track log, you will see it reach an altitutde of 50,000. I don't know if that is its ceiling or not, but I'd venture a guess that the shuttle launch picture is at between a 50K-80K range. Rich
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MarkRP
Member Posts: 174
From: Michigan, USA
Registered: Nov 2002
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posted 10-28-2006 09:46 AM
Where can I get high-res images of these photos? I looked for them but I'm having a hard time finding them.Mark |
Larry McGlynn
Member Posts: 1255
From: Boston, MA
Registered: Jul 2003
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posted 10-28-2006 09:50 AM
The WB-57 has a stated ceiling of 65,000 feet or more in their informational page at NASA.gov.The ISS was at it's northern most point of orbit between Greenland and Iceland at the time of launch and so well out of visual range of the Cape. It is wonderful photograph, no matter how it was labeled. Larry |
kyra
Member Posts: 583
From: Louisville CO US
Registered: Aug 2003
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posted 10-29-2006 06:01 AM
On a brand new airliner (767?) when I was growing up I swore they must have taken it near the ceiling and the sky outside got very deep blue. (Not as intense as the pic, but it was really neat). There were only about 5 other passengers which was the other odd thing about that flight. It was so new plastic was on everything...Any pilots out there that know about that. Perhaps a high altitude check/shakedown of some sort ? |
gliderpilotuk
Member Posts: 3398
From: London, UK
Registered: Feb 2002
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posted 10-29-2006 10:48 AM
Great photo. And the WB-57 is of course a derivative of the English Electric Canberra which has only just been retired by the RAF. Not bad for an aircraft designed in the late 40's!Paul Bramley |
paulushumungus
Member Posts: 466
From: Burton, Derbyshire, England
Registered: Oct 2005
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posted 10-29-2006 01:39 PM
These photo's of the week are fantastic - Thankyou & please keep them coming. |
Rodina
Member Posts: 836
From: Lafayette, CA
Registered: Oct 2001
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posted 10-29-2006 02:29 PM
quote:
Originally posted by gliderpilotuk:
Great photo. And the WB-57 is of course a derivative of the English Electric Canberra which has only just been retired by the RAF. Not bad for an aircraft designed in the late 40's!Paul Bramley
I had no idea that NASA still had a B-57 in service. That picture looks like it was just taken out the cockpit window, though, rather than with any of the fancy-pants telephoto stuff. All the cooler, for my book. |
gliderpilotuk
Member Posts: 3398
From: London, UK
Registered: Feb 2002
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posted 10-31-2006 02:00 PM
Here ya go Rodina:
http://jsc-aircraft-ops.jsc.nasa.gov/wb57/ GREAT looking aircraft. Paul |
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