Shuttle launch video
Mon, 07/24/2006 - 08:47 — kris
From the right-front rocket. Amazing.
Here's a commentary:
| 0:45 - water jets start streaming water into the Main Engine exhaust well in the launch pad(top-center of frame) 0:54 - Main Engine ignition. Violent, eh? The boosters haven't lit yet - and won't until the Shuttle's software says the main engines are running properly. 0:55 - entire "stack" rocks forward under the thrust of the main engines. The shuttle's massive girth is held to earth by only eight bolts - four on each booster. When these bolts are severed by explosives, the shuttle is free. 0:58 - stack rocks back - the boosters and launcher platform are flexible and springy under these forces. Once it gets back to nearly where it was at rest, you can see the flashes of the explosive bolts releasing the boosters followed by the terrible orange glow of the booster exhaust. 1:01 - the whole thing, heavy as it is, is already several feet off the ground 1:06 - the stack, having cleared the launch pad tower, rolls to its right for various aerodynamic and safety reasons. 1:09 - notice how the elevons on the orbiter's starboard wing have "drooped". This decreases the wing's lift, which isn't required. This lift on ascent would actually overstress the wings and rip them off later if it weren't canceled. 1:13 - the water tower responsible for most of the steam and water is visible in the top left corner. 1:17 - the shuttle actually rolls TOO FAR, and begins a more gentle corrective roll back. All this rolling is done by directing the exhaust of the SRBs. Imagine the force required to roll something that heavy. 1:28 - that's the Atlantic at the top of the frame. Locals will know that Playalinda beach is just off to the left. 1:41 - right around here the shuttle is breaking the sound barrier, and the atmosphere is still so thick that if the main engines and boosters didn't reduce their thrust, aerodynamic forces would rip the stack apart. The main engines can throttle back, and the solid propellant in the boosters is mixed and poured in such a way that their thrust is reduced for these few seconds. 1:53 - the ouboard elevon starts to move back to its neutral position. The inboard one stays drooped. The atmosphere is rapidly thinning now. 2:12 - the inboard elevon begins losing its droop. 2:20 - both elevons are back to their neutral positions. The shadow extending over the ocean is the pillar of smoke leading back to the launch pad. 2:52 - The thrust of the boosters is really erratic here as they have expended most of their fuel. Some insulation from the tank breaks away. 3:01 - SEPARATION! 3:12 - that bright spot is the rest of the shuttle continuing on, burning Hydrogen and Oxygen to make really, really, REALLY hot water. The horizon has a notable curve to it, but some of that may be exaggerated due to the lens used on the camera. 3:16 - staring at the sun, tumbling. They're still travelling upwards and Eastwards under inertia, and haven't reached their zenith yet.6:40 - I THINK the exposives may be the severing of the SRB engine nozzle, which takes place some time after the drogue parachutes have begun stabilizing the boosters' fall. 7:20 - or maybe that's what's happening here. 7:25 - hello, shadow! 7:33 - Splashdown!" |
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