The Last Space Shuttle

My friend Jim wants to retire to Florida. I totally disagree, but some people like Florida and I can’t really argue with what he wants. He went down a few months ago, found a house he likes, and wants to buy, but before he buys, he wants to see Florida in the summer time.

I have expressed the wish to see a space launch, and the last space shuttle launch is in June. He has proposed that we get one of those $75 flights, rent a car, and check out the launch. He can then go on to look at his house in the high heat and humidity, and see if it is something he wants to do.

It doesn’t sound too expensive – Jim will pay for the car. I have to take a week off in June, so I think I am going to go.

The space shuttle launches are always delayed, but we might be able to pull it all together and watch it take off. Jim is going to Venice where he wants to buy a house, and then drive to St. Augustine. I may fly back earlier, as this sounds like several days of living out of motels and it might get pricey.

The houses that Jim was looking at cost $200,000, are huge, have swimming pools, low taxes, and are a short walk to the water. It sounds like he would be crazy not to buy one.

2 Comments

  1. steve davidson wrote:

    Do it – but select your viewing area carefully.

    I’m a veteran of numerous shuttle launches (watching them – the clarification is unfortunate).

    St. Augustine is about 100 miles north of Canaveral. I lived in Flagler beach – maybe 20 miles south of augustine. I watched numerous launches from the beach in Flagler (and from my backyard about 17 miles inland from there), as well as a few from Canaveral.

    I’d put the Canaveral viewing at about a 3. The ones from Flagler ranged from a 4 to a 10 (a night launch, with moon AND meteors, and the main engine on the shuttle visible for ten or more minutes); a thor launch at twilight that displayed the burst upon the separation of stages (visible with the naked eye from my backyard) was also spectacular.

    At the Cape you get the “feel”; a rumble that literally makes your bones shake as the boosters lite up; you get the sound, that low-throated crackle/thunder. But you honestly don’t get that much visual, and what visual you do lasts about a minute at best.

    From up the coast you sometimes can hear the rumble of the engines (yes, from about 100 miles away), you don’t get the feel, but the visual lasts for minutes and minutes.

    I think the worst possible viewing is at the cape, on the side of the road, or in the parking lot of one of the businesses. (Not the grandstands but off the grounds locally).

    Personal opinion, so you get what you pay for.

    And it hardly matters because any kind of space launch watching is better than no space launch watching!

    PS: the beach at Flagler Beach is public with a boardwalk; plenty of locals gather for launches. Parking is free and there are (or used to be) some nice restaurants in town.

    Friday, February 11, 2011 at 6:58 am | Permalink
  2. Jim wrote:

    The average home here in Canada is about $250-300k and that’s not a new home but prices vary. I recall my father complaining back in 1960 about the high costs of new homes when we moved into ours in Coquitlam. I can’t recall the exact figure but I think he said something like $40K.

    Sunday, February 13, 2011 at 6:44 pm | Permalink