Photos: Space Shuttles Discovery and Atlantis Meet One Last Time

[NYCA News]

NYCAviation:

Photos: Space Shuttles Discovery and Atlantis Meet One Last Time

Sister space shuttles Discovery and Atlantis crossed paths for the last time last week before they are mummified and shipped off to museums.
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[PhilDernerJr]

Am I the only one that gets emotional looking at this stuff? :(

[megatop412]

No Phil, I feel wierd seeing this also. The first shuttle liftoff took place on April 12, 1981, my 8th birthday. What a joy it was to watch it live from the TV in my classroom. Seeing the final landing brought a tear to my eye, the passage of a quarter-century of missions and the two disasters makes you realize that you've witnessed an incredible feat of humanity within the span of your own lifetime.

If I'm lucky enough to catch Enterprise mated to the SCA next month with all of you, that will be one of the highlights of my life. Seeing the same orbiter I had a plastic model of in the late '70's will be fantastic. Hope I didn't just jinx myself there.

[Speedbagel_001]

Yeah, me too. I also recall the very first launch. And I remember the constant delays that affected the countdowns in those early days. As a kid, I found the shuttle to be a fascinating wonder. To get to see it launch into space was a thrill. Never saw an Apollo mission live, and I still think the Saturn V is the coolest rocket ever built by man. But the shuttle was what I grew up with. I watched the launches whenever I could. In recent years, with the NASA channel and live feeds on the internet, it was pretty easy to see the launches and landings. I'm glad they were able to add newer camera angles as the perspective was astounding. Even though I knew the end was coming, it was still sad when they announced the final "wheel stop".

Whenever I get the chance to see a shuttle on display, I'll be able to tell my kids that I saw it fly and what a sight it was. Kind of like with Concorde. The fact that it is no longer flying is sad to me. I was spoiled in that I was able to see it fly on a somewhat regular basis - sometimes multiple times a day. At least I still have my 1/144 scale Orbiter WITH 747 carrier (minus a few pieces lost through the years).

And as awesome as these machines were, nothing has come along to take their place. Despite their flaws, it seems as if nobody has yet figured out how to design and build anything better. With all the fancy technology advancements of today, it's surprising to me that it hasn't happened - and may never.

P.S. Had to watch some old YouTubes of Concorde take offs and landings. NEVER gets old for me!

[Derf]

FAO SpeedBagel....



I'm Just Saying....

[Perriwen]

Am I the only one that gets emotional looking at this stuff? :(

I grew up in Slidell, Louisiana. On one side of town, they built the orange external fuel tank, on the other side of town, they tested the engines before every launch.

Then in 2005, I ended up in Houston.

This is like a part of me and my life being ripped away. Many times I don't want to imagine life without the shuttle. It was always...there and a big part of the community.

[Speedbagel_001]

Fred, that's pretty funny. Ironically enough, I have a Northwest B747-400 in the same scale, but with the new(er) livery (which I thought was a rather clever design, I might add - you know with the N and the W with the arrow pointing NW...).

Anyway, I tend to favor whole wheat bagels over "plain" these days. However, I'm not a Jelly on Bagel fan. But if I were, it would be Red Raspberry.

[megatop412]

Had to watch some old YouTubes of Concorde take offs and landings. NEVER gets old for me!

Speedbagel, say hello to my leetle frend


shot this in the late 90's

[Speedbagel_001]

Awesome! Thanks for posting!