Space Shuttle Launches Viewing Tips? Etc?

[ruttie]

Did anyone else score tickets today to see Endeavours launch from the causeway on March 11/08?
I picked up 2 tickets for my ds and I to go It'll be a late one but so worth it!
Can't pass up such an opportunity to see one of the last remaining launches!

For anyone else who has seen a night launch from the causeway before - do have any suggestions for us? Time to arrive, what to bring etc.

Thanks in advance,
CDN Prince Charming

Your post is puzzleing what casueway are you talking about all the casueways around here are free... Only place you have to pay for tickets is at space center.... a lottery is held at the space center for all the workers who work out there and they get a few tickets if they win the lottery I would hope that they are not sellign them.........Plus they would not be any good unless you had the person wioth you that has a security bage????

 

[ruttie]

we went to the launch of atlantis last week.

we had kennedy tickets at the visitor's center. we had to arrive by 8AM.

it was a VERY VERY VERY long day for the kids (7 and 4). there are things to do, but waiting two hours for the IMAX movie was frustrating. we didn't wait. if you are an early arrival you get a great parking spot and can get into the bus tour to the apollo center. it is cool sitting where the vip's will be sitting in a few short hours.

so just go into knowing that there are crowds and the payoff if very cool. lines for attractions, lines for food...lines...lines...lines.

during the agonizing three hour drive back to orlando you do question if it was worth it....

but once you have calmed down from the drive....you decide...YES it was worth it.....ONCE.

next time it is titusville for us.

your post is too funny I know it musthave seemed like a long day and that drive was probobly aganozzing esoecially if you are like me and don't want them sleeping becasue once they sleep you know they will be up for hours... But the ride even in lots of traffic is no morw than and hour hour and a half tops....

 

[BPCooper]

What the ticket are for is the NASA causeway, the closest public viewing site. It is located on property and today (since 911) the public us bused there from the visitors complex. Tickets cost $51. The other space center viewing tickets are for viewing from the visitors complex itself.

Before 911 the NASA causeway was accessible through the famous car passes NASA used to hand out to everyone (thousands per launch) and you would just drive out there. Now you must have have tickets.

 

[Old School Pooh Fan]

Hi there!
I'm so glad I found this site.
We were lucky enough to watch a shuttle launch from the ocean on the Disney Cruise Dec '06. It was a rescheduled launch and the cruise line treaded water for all of us to see it. A M A Z I N G.
We are going on another cruise this Nov. and would like to arrive for the Nov. 6th launch. Knowing the launches get rescheduled all the time, I don't want to buy tickets for any viewing because we most likely will be gone. However, I WOULD like to stay in a hotel near or in Titusville that we can watch the launch from. Does anyone know of hotels there? I would MOST appreciate it!
Thanks so much!!

 

[ruttie]

thanks for the clarification Ben,
As long as they are sold from the vosotors center and bised then I knew about those,.... i was worried someone was trying a scam.. her i Merritt Island you can park before or after the bridge onthe casueways but justbefor e the laucnh all the casueway are"closed" while the shuttle is actually launched (this occried after 922 as a precaution to terriorism...have a great day...I have is a great popwerpoint from this launch.... but i don't know how to insert it if anyone wants it email me and i will send it to you my email is..... r-r-rutenberg-@-cfl.-rr.-com take out the -'s

 

[dw1]

Look up!

 

[penguins1]

This thread reminds me of a couple trips back when we decided we were going over to the Cape to watch the launch. There had been issues as always with the countdown but they were passed the built in hold around 2 hours somewhere so we decided to drive over. We were listening on the radio the whole time and not until we drove over one of the bridges right near Cocoa Beach did they decide to scrub the launch.

However, DD did get to see the ocean for the first time.

The worst part of the whole thing was that we were just going to watch it from the parks the next day... we went and sat for a quick lunch in the MK and when we walked out we heard a bunch of people talking about seeing it, etc. We totally forgot about it. I was bummed - but was still in the MK so it really wasn't soooo bad!

 

[Promomx2]

FYI, I just saw on the webpage for Kennedy Space Center, that they have tickets available for the March 11th shuttle launch.

 

[BPCooper]

NASA Gives "Go" for Space Shuttle Launch on March 11

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - NASA senior managers completed a review Friday of space shuttle Endeavour's readiness for flight and selected March 11 as the official launch date for the STS-123 mission. Commander Dominic Gorie and his six crewmates are scheduled to lift off to the International Space Station at 2:28 a.m. EDT.

 

[golden]

Any advice for a middle of the night launch? Can you see anything but a the fire of the rockets?
I would imagine the crowds would be significantly left. I wonder if KSC is selling tickets even as what the heck would people do between closing the the launch?

 

[BPCooper]

Any advice for a middle of the night launch? Can you see anything but a the fire of the rockets?
I would imagine the crowds would be significantly left. I wonder if KSC is selling tickets even as what the heck would people do between closing the the launch?

Night launches are spectacular, lighting up the entire sky in the area. They are much brighter than you think.

Yes, KSC is selling tickets. They do not close on launch day, and there will be several thousand people there. Viewing from the best and closest spot, the causeway, is long sold out. Viewing from the visitors complex is still available but my recommendation is Titusville because of the clear view and the water which will add to the drama of a night launch. Again, there will be many many people there. Yes, launches that are in the summer on a Friday night like a couple we had over the past two years are going to attract even more, but no launch is without crowds.

So I highly recommend going to Titusville at this point. Space View park is a nice choice.

 

[golden]

Thanks Ben for your replies and your link.


So if we went to titusville, is this just a highway along the water that people just pull over and park?


I'm just anxious about this as when we are in Disney beginning tomorrow, we will have no internet to keep track or the status or weather there, etc.

Last question, if we decide to do this, are there cheap hotels out there that we could get at the last minute? Like dinner time the night of?

 

[BPCooper]

So if we went to titusville, is this just a highway along the water that people just pull over and park?

I'm just anxious about this as when we are in Disney beginning tomorrow, we will have no internet to keep track or the status or weather there, etc.

Last question, if we decide to do this, are there cheap hotels out there that we could get at the last minute? Like dinner time the night of?

There are a few parks on the river, like Space View Park, that people view from. But some people do just park and find a spot that is not a "park" so to speak. There are a couple of piers (one in SVP) in Titusville as well.

If you won't have internet access, try the local news such as 13. If there is a delay they will report on it. And they all have live coverage on launch day.

As far as hotels I have a feeling they are going to be booked with launch goers, at least in Titusville. But it doesn't hurt to try.

 

[BPCooper]

The official launch weather forecast was issued today and is calling for excellent conditions with greater than 90% chance of acceptable weather. The countdown begins Saturday morning and all is on scheduled for liftoff at 2:28:12am EDT Tuesday morning.

http://www.spaceflightnow.com/shuttle/sts123/080307status/

 

[CDNmouse]

The official launch weather forecast was issued today and is calling for excellent conditions with greater than 90% chance of acceptable weather. The countdown begins Saturday morning and all is on scheduled for liftoff at 2:28:12am EDT Tuesday morning.

http://www.spaceflightnow.com/shuttle/sts123/080307status/

Thanks for the update Ben,

Looking forward to seeing a night time launch.

Gary

 

[golden]

OMG! We made it there!
We even got free VIP passes onto the Causeway via a bus that my DH was able to get at the last minute through work. We arrived at 10ish or so, camped out, kids fell asleep for a few hours. It was such a beautiful night.

I was totally blown away at full light up of the sky! I am trying hard to ignore the fact that it disappeared just seconds after lift off into the unbelievably low cloud ceiling! It was such a chance of lifetime and was so thrilled to be able to be there!

 

[Sheribo]

We saw it! It was all over very quickly and the drive back to Orlando was brutal (3 hours) but it was definitely worth it. I was shocked at the crowds but even so, we had no trouble finding a place to park along the coast.The only thing that would have made it better was a scanner to hear the countdown. Our original plan was to go to Spaceview Park but we arrived too late and it was full. Apparently, they pipe in the countdown over loudspeakers there.

 

[bubba73]

I have not been at WDW during a launch but have read many times were people actually turned around while at EPCOT and saw the launch going over Mission Space. That would have been awesome.

But, I have done a launch from the Causeway at KSC. I have never experienced anything like that in my life. I was less than 6 miles away from the Shuttle with nothing inbetween us but water. It took 45 seconds after the launch for the sound to get to where we were and it overtook the crowd like a train on the tracks. It was incredible. (By the way, did I mention that I am a total Space Nut! I love it!!!) With all of that being said, I recommend to take that day off from the parks and go to KSC. It will be more than worth it.

 

[LoveMickey]

Are there any other good places to see the launch from WDW. There is one scheduled for the week we are going.

But we won't be able to make it over to the Cape.

Has anyone viewed it from the Contemporary or WL? We'll be staying at the Lodge. What about the train station at MK.

I'm having a hard time trying to figure out which direction to look. Any help is appreciated.

 

[Disneyland_emily]

If you are at the MK you will want to look over above the Tomorrowland area.

Does that help?