Second star to the right and straight on till morning

Malaysia is hoping to send an astronaut (or bolehnaut) to space in the next couple of years, so on Friday, June 8th I went to see a shuttle launch in Florida in case I am named to an adviser to the space program in Malaysia.

We went to Titusville, Florida and watched the launch from there because they close off some of the areas close to NASA and won't let you get really close to the launch site. The street was just lined with cars and people out with their families and their lawn chairs to watch the launch. It is a huge event that thousands of people turn out for. We found a place about 5 p.m. and sat down to wait for the 7:38 p.m. launch.

This osprey glided by several times during the two hour wait.

While we were waiting, a lady amused us by talking to her dogs. Personally, I think people have entered dangerous territory when they start calling their dogs "kids" and themselves as "mom" and "dad" to the dogs. Perhaps indicates a loss of perspective...but I digress.

When time for the launch came, I have to admit I was really excited. The shuttle program will be retired in 2010, so this is probably the only time I'll ever get to see a launch. When the ignition hit and the clouds of smoke plumed up from both sides of the launch tower, I got goose bumps. I mean, this thing is blasting off to visit the international space station and will orbit the earth for 11 days. Not a small feat!

This picture is just after lift off and is darker because I properly exposed the flame from the rockets.

We were a long distance from the launch site so I was thankful for my 400 mm zoom.

Long after the shuttle was in space this trail lingered in the air. Beautiful!