Endeavor GO for deorbit burn

[jimlup]

Source: NASA TV

Houston: "Endeavor - good news! You are go for the de-orbit burn!"

Endeavor: "... You are a steely eyed hero!"

Read more: http://www.nasa.gov/multimedia/nasatv/index.html

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Weather looks good - they'll be down at Kennedy at 10:48AM EDT ... Runway 15

[Dr.Phool]

1. I guess I'd better brace for a sonic boom at about 10:35

[jimlup]

3. Yep!

[jimlup]

2. Deorbit burn successful

Endeavor is 30 minutes from atmosphere interface.

[Ryano42]

4. Here we go...

Godspeed Endeavor.

:patriot:

[jimlup]

5. Atmosphere interface!

Here's where we hold our breaths!

[The Traveler]

6. And cross our fingers

and all that stuff. Always a little nerve jangling ...

[Buzz Clik]

7. The Space Station with shuttle docked passed over our house multiple times this past week.

It's big. And bright. And moves quickly.

[jimlup]

9. Cool!

I saw both the station and shuttle pass over while they were station keeping several kilometers apart a couple years ago. It was really cool!

[Buzz Clik]

10. One has to accept the curious looks from neighbors and passers by...

... as you stand outside pointing and peering through binoculars.

[jimlup]

11. Yeah our modern society is curiously ignorant about stuff in the sky

I taught astronomy at the college level for several years and I had inner city students who honestly had never seen the stars!!!????

[jimlup]

8. Blackout has ended!

Shweeh! I've been very nervous about atmosphere entry since Columbia 2003!

[jimlup]

12. Sonic booms at landing site! Shuttle in view - all looks good

[JayMusgrove]

15. This is always good news.... questions for astronomers or engineers...

Where and how much sonic booms are expected in normal landing? I understand that it is reasonable to expect the vehicle to be going a bit more than Mock 1 or 2, but how far out and how fast does it slow to under Mock 1?

[jimlup]

18. I don't know

I'd suggest searching NASA's site for this info. It is fairly close because they drop really fast from 10,000'

The capcom said they dropped 20 times faster than a commercial airliner and 7 times steeper. At 10,000 feet altitude I believe she said they were traveling at ~400 mph which is roughly 4/7 of the speed of sound.

I've never completely understood why the shuttle gives 2 sonic booms. Somehow it out runs the first one and then makes another one. Or is it one from the leading edge and one from the trailing edge? Anyone know?

[JayMusgrove]

19. Thanks, I will look around, see what I can find. n/t

[Buzz Clik]

13. Home again, safe and sound.

I never tire of watching.

:D

[jimlup]

14. Touchdown!

Wheel stop.

Welcome Home Endeavor!

[Canuckistanian]

16. The expression is, "Steely-eyed missile man"

http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/Transwiki:Steely-eyed_missile_man

[jimlup]

17. Right but that isn't what the pilot of Endeavor said today.

When given the "GO" for landing he said "... you are a steely eyed hero."

[Canuckistanian]

20. Kids these days.

Honestly.