Shuttle "Discovery": Pre-Flight Activities, Rarely Seen by the General Public
These photos deserve a wide viewing audience: the amount of thought and engineering that goes into every launch is immense; each successful take-off represents the Mankind's finest effort, and is a wonder to behold.
External tank arrives by barge from Louisiana: 
External tank approaches Vertical Assembly Building (VAB): 
Removing external tank: 
Preparing to lift the tank to vertical: 
Lifting the tank: 
Solid rockets are attached: 
Orbiter: External tank with Solid Rocket Boosters (SRB): 
Engines are attached to the shuttle in the Orbiter Processing Facility: 
Shuttle in sling ready for lift in VAB: 
Shuttle has been moved to VAB and will be attached to external tank: 
Shuttle is attached: 
Payload Preparation in Space Station Processing Facility: 
Multi-Purpose Logistics Module (MPLM): 
Payload carrier leaves Canister Rotation Facility: 
Payload being moved to Launch Pad: 
Lifting payload into position for insertion into "Discovery" when it arrives at the pad: 
Shuttle "Discovery" leaves VAB: 
Trip to launch: Length - 3 1/2 mi Time - 6-8 hours Arrow indicates the Launch Pad. 
Crawler Control 
"Discovery" arrives at Pad: 
Payload is also inside the Launch Pad: 
Ready for Launch: 
We Have Lift Off ! 
External tank approaches Vertical Assembly Building (VAB): Removing external tank: Preparing to lift the tank to vertical: Lifting the tank: Solid rockets are attached: Orbiter: External tank with Solid Rocket Boosters (SRB): Engines are attached to the shuttle in the Orbiter Processing Facility: Shuttle in sling ready for lift in VAB: Shuttle has been moved to VAB and will be attached to external tank: Shuttle is attached: Payload Preparation in Space Station Processing Facility: Multi-Purpose Logistics Module (MPLM): Payload carrier leaves Canister Rotation Facility: Payload being moved to Launch Pad: Lifting payload into position for insertion into "Discovery" when it arrives at the pad: Shuttle "Discovery" leaves VAB: Trip to launch: Length - 3 1/2 mi Time - 6-8 hours Arrow indicates the Launch Pad. Crawler Control "Discovery" arrives at Pad: Payload is also inside the Launch Pad: Ready for Launch: We Have Lift Off ! 
No comments:
Post a Comment