This is actually a bit exciting! While eating lunch at home, I’m reading the live updates* on the space shuttle’s preparations for re-entry, since it is going to land in California. It actually might fly overhead while supersonic and we’ll get a sonic boom.
It is currently doing its series of rolls (times are in EDT):
3:25 p.m. – Atlantis is traveling at 16,500 miles per hour and will perform a series of roll maneuvers, banking first to the right and then to the left to help slow its speed as it descends toward landing. Early in this segment of reentry, the orbiter’s orientation is controlled by the aft steering jets.
3:23 p.m. – Atlantis is traveling 25 times the speed of sound.
3:18 p.m. – Atlantis is approaching entry interface, which usually takes place at an altitude of about 80 miles and more than 5,000 statute miles from the landing site. At this point in the landing phase, the orbiter begins to feel the first effects of the Earth’s atmosphere.
Sunita Williams is riding back to Earth lying on her back. She has lived in the weightless conditions aboard the International Space Station since December. It is common for astronauts returning from long-duration missions to recline during the return to Earth to ease the transition back to gravity.
Will update in a bit if I hear the boom. I’ve no idea whether I’m supposed to or not from Los Angeles…
Update:
3:49 p.m. – Touchdown! Atlantis has safely landed at Edwards Air Force Base in California.
Hmmmm…. did not hear a clear boom. Bit of an anti-climax… there was a bit of a rumble earlier, but that could have been anything, from a local craft to … my stomach (although latter is unlikely in view of earlier tasty sandwich consumption…)
Oh well. It was good to be involved in crossing fingers for luck for a safe landing…
-cvj
(*Via Bad Astronomy)
Hmmm…. I think my tea was made by then… I must have just missed it. I actually think that by that time I’d already assumed I’d missed it, so maybe stopped listening carefully, since it landed precisely at 12:49.
-cvj
The boom was very loud here in Pasadena. My completely unreliable memory tells me it was at 12:47 PDT.
Great! I went indoors for a cup of tea at one point (thinking I had time), and may have missed it then. Not sure what time… oh well.
-cvj
I’m in Orange County for the weekend, and I definitely heard the boom. It was a nice alert that it was time to turn on the TV to catch the landing.
Hi Clifford. While you are on the topic of spacey things, there exists an ongoing series of photos of the assembly of the rocket+Dawn spacecraft, to be ready for the July 7 Dawn launch. The latest photos show the most interesting photos, the assembly of the third stage, where the technicians attached the Dawn spacecraft. Previous photos showed loading the xenon ‘fuel’, a little damage to the solar panels (which didn’t delay the launch), the assembly of the second stage with the crane (which _did_ delay the launch one week when the crane broke), and how all of ths solid rocket boosters together form the first stage. I didn’t know all of these steps before, and even though I’m associated with the project, I can objectively say that it’s pretty cool. 🙂