3-2-1 Blast off!

Well, we were finally able to see the space shuttle Endeavor launch yesterday (May 16) at 8:56AM.  17 days after we were supposed to see it originally (technically it was delayed 10 days before that even) the shuttle launched into outer space.  Unfortunately, the cloud cover was so low we were only able to see the first 9 seconds or so of it's flight.  It was still an AWESOME experience.  The shuttle was in the clouds long before we heard the roar of it's engines, and of course we could hear it for a long time after it went out of view.  The shear volume and resulting vibration was something like being at a rock concert sitting very close to the speakers.    It even looked to me like the waves (we were watching across the Indian River) even looked to get a little bigger.

What made this experience even more interesting, is that we had a rocket launch to compare it to.  You see, while we were staying at the campground waiting for the shuttle launch to happen, the military shot off a rocket just over the water from us and we were able to see and hear that as well.  It was a little farther away, but it was SO much quieter in comparison.

Oh, and did I mention... the campground we are staying at is booked for Memorial Day weekend so we're going to start a tour of the rest of the Southern portion of the state.  We do have this campground booked again for July 1 - 15.  And there is a early morning rocket launch scheduled for July 14.  And the final shuttle launch (Atlantis) is tentatively scheduled for July 12.  How cool would it be if we are here for both of those too?!?  :-)  The prayers have already begun I assure you.