Lift Off

After getting settled into our new location Sunday afternoon, here in Fort Pierce, we watched the clock closely and had the news turned on. This evening at 7:43 the Space Shuttle was to try and lift off after its three previous attempts were scrubbed due to faulty equipment. A small crowd started to gather at the swimming pool which had an unobstructed view of the northern sky.

As the clock got closer people would shout out of their rig excitedly with the time remaining. It was almost like waiting for new years with the countdown. Then as the small crowds started the countdown in unison chills started up my spine. Is it true? Was I going to witness the 128th Space Shuttle launch?

Then, as a silent star shooting across the dusk sky we saw the rockets fury as it pushed the space vehicle upwards. Too far to hear or feel the power of those engines, left to only imagine it.

Slowly the Shuttle continued to ascend. Even though it was going straight up, with the earth spinning at close to 900 miles an hour, the Shuttle looked like it was going at an angle.We were slowly moving away from the shuttle as it continued its journey to weightlessness.

We could see the two rockets get ejected off the Space Shuttle and slowly separate from each other and start the decent back to earth to be recycled and used for another launch. All that remained was a small white glowing star that got smaller and smaller. Soon all that remained to show that something spectacular had happened was the smoke left lingering in the warm Florida night sky. As the last rays of the sun bounced off the smoke it cast beautiful colors. All this took place in a matter of a minute since the Shuttle is moving at close to 16,700 miles an hour to get out of earths gravitational pull. Once it reaches 150 miles above the earths surface it will begin to orbit around the earth like another satellite.