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krpalmerI declared some weeks back that I was going to try and go to Florida to see the launch of space shuttle Atlantis in person, but I suppose I kept wondering about how it would all work out, even as my brother and I flew down south, made our way through the state, found our way to Titusville just across the Indian River from the Kennedy Space Centre (which we toured the day before launch), and managed not only to locate a riverfront viewing spot in the morning but a parking space beforehand. When tuning in to a local radio station matched the mutters from the big crowd at the nine-minute hold that there was some technical problem, I was wondering about the hours of waiting turning into a "try again tomorrow" sort of thing.
Then, at 2:20 in the afternoon, the big white cloud billowed from behind the trees, and the column of smoke glowing at the end started climbing. The noise reached us a full minute later, and the smoke curved off into the sky until a speck of light broke free from it and vanished into the distance. We still had a tremendous traffic jam to work through most of the way back to Orlando (and we waited in Titusville for two hours before getting on the road), but we made it back. Unfortunately, I can't attach any pictures to this post because my camera isn't cooperating with my portable, but maybe words will be enough for now. In any case, the mission is under way.
Then, at 2:20 in the afternoon, the big white cloud billowed from behind the trees, and the column of smoke glowing at the end started climbing. The noise reached us a full minute later, and the smoke curved off into the sky until a speck of light broke free from it and vanished into the distance. We still had a tremendous traffic jam to work through most of the way back to Orlando (and we waited in Titusville for two hours before getting on the road), but we made it back. Unfortunately, I can't attach any pictures to this post because my camera isn't cooperating with my portable, but maybe words will be enough for now. In any case, the mission is under way.