The following is the Unofficial Space Shuttle Launch Guide. This file contains information on how to get a launch or landing pass, and if you can't get one, where to view the shuttle for launch or landing. This file also contains the distances to the pads from the various viewing sites, Shuttle frequencies, HAM frequencies for listening to and watching NASA select, hints on photographing launches, where to watch SSME test firings, how to get accredited as a Press Personage, internet sites to get additional NASA information, how to get the latest two line element sets, and information for teachers on how to access NASA information.
Please send changes, updates, or information you think should be in this to:
Steven S. Pietrobon
Satellite Communications Research Centre
University of South Australia,
The Levels SA 5095, Australia.
fax +61 8 8302 3873
steven@spri.levels.unisa.edu.au
http://www.itr.unisa.edu.au/~steven
The official space shuttle press kit is available via anonymous ftp to ftp.hq.nasa.gov in directory /pub/pao/presskit and is usually available about a week before launch.
For the latest and greatest information call the following:
1 800 572 4636 - Visitor Information Center information and next launch.
1 800 KSC INFO Florida 1 800 number. Florida only information thanks to
Richard F. Jones (rfj@alpha.sunquest.com)
(407) 867 4636 - Space shuttle mission information.
(407) 867 2314 - Recorded launch status during countdown.
(407) 867 2525 - Space shuttle launch preparations.
(407) 867 3900 - Space shuttle status line. Technical, lots of TLA's. Just
remember, we warned you.
You can also:
You can view shuttle launches right from the base at the NASA Causeway Site which is about 10 km from the launch pad. This is the BEST and closest view for the general public.
The KSC visitor center offers bus rides from the visitor's center to the Causeway Site. The cost is $7 for adults, $3 for children. For information and reservations you will need to call (407) 452 2121, Ext. 260 or (407) 449 4400. This number (Group Sales) does not start accepting reservations until 7 days before launch. The bus tickets must be picked up prior to launch day.
You can also obtain a free Causeway Site Pass for your vehicle by sending a postcard with your name and address to
Kennedy Space Center Guest Activities Office
NASA PA-Pass
Kennedy Space Center, Florida 32899-0001
ph. (407) 867 6000
Car passes are reserved as the requests are received based on their remaining availability. Your car pass will be mailed to you approximately 30 days before the mission's launch. If you will be leaving your residence before the pass will reach you, give the address in Florida where you will be staying. Requests for more than one pass can not be accommodated.
Each vehicle launch pass allows the entry of a vehicle. If you have a van, please request a vehicle pass for an oversized vehicle. One per address. In general, if you know the launch that you wish, ask for that launch. The launch pass is good for that launch no matter how many times it is postponed. If you know a general time frame, then ask for that time frame. You can also obtain NASA Causeway passes by writing to any NASA centre.
For information on a pass if you have requested one, call KSC public affairs at (407) 867 2622. For information 24 hours before the launch on how the launch is progressing, call (407) 867 2468.
If you can't get a launch pass I suggest you come to Titusville. Go east on State Road 50 from I-95, to US-1. Go north on US-1 to the "Miracle City Mall" at Harrison. Park somewhere north of this spot. Anywhere north along highway 1, or east (as far as you can) along highway 406 (402) is good (specifically Sand Point Park), just as long as you can see the VAB and don't have trees blocking the view. Also you can try Jetty Park at Port Canaveral (you will be south of the launch looking north).
Regardless of where you are going to see it, arrive early (at least 2 hours before launch). Be prepared to get into some real heavy traffic, it will also take some time to get out of the area. Bring along some food and drink, umbrellas, sun glasses, sun screen, portable TV/radio, binoculars, VCR, whatever.
When watching a launch, listen to FM Station 91.5 (it is a local religious station) or AM 580 out of Orlando (Thanks to Matthew DeLuca). NASA Select Television is carried on Spacenet 2, transponder 5, channel 9, 69 degrees West, transponder frequency is 3880 MHz, audio subcarrier is 6.8 MHz, polarization is horizontal.
TV: Local stations such as channels 56, 2, 6 & 9 sometimes have live coverage. They usually just interrupt the program that is in progress for the final 2 minutes of prelaunch, and then a couple of minutes after launch. Same for landing.
Radio: Some local radio stations to listen to are 91.5 FM, 99.3 FM, 101.1 FM, 1350 AM and 580 AM.
This section offers hints and advice for those attending a shuttle launch for the first time. Included are tips on
For the first time shuttle launch viewer, I'd say that you should choose your launch wisely. For instance, if you are travelling half way around the country (or world), don't plan too heavily on seeing a launch that has just a 6 minute launch window. Instead, pick one that has a long 2.5 hour window if possible. That increases the odds that you'll actually see it go up. Secondly, if you are viewing the launch from the NASA Causeway, wait for a launch from Pad A. It is significantly closer than Pad B is. Thirdly, your odds at seeing a launch may be better for early morning (e.g., near sunrise) launches than for launches at other times of the day or night. There are several reasons for this: at sunrise at KSC, the TAL sites are still in daylight; the winds are usually lighter in the morning; and the sea breeze, which can bring clouds and rain showers over the space center, has not yet had time to begin.
Regardless of where you are viewing the launch from, secure your launch pass as early as possible. Most, if not all, of the various types of passes are definitely a finite resource, and are given out on (more or less) a first come, first served basis. You should begin acquiring your launch pass or passes two to three months before the launch date. Elsewhere in this guide you will find information on the different types of launch viewing passes. Many people choose to view a launch from the shore in Titusville, but there is really no reason not to get a closer view. The NASA Causeway viewing site is the most easily accessable site for the general public (although you still need a special vehicle pass) and it offers a great view of both launch pads.
When going to view the launch, arrive on-site as early as possible. The center opens for viewing site traffic about 4 hours prior to a launch, and with good reason. The traffic can be quite heavy in the hours leading up to a launch, and the last thing you want to do is to get to the viewing site late (or not at all). Additionally, the KSC gates will close about one hour prior to launch to clear the roads for emergency traffic, so if you're late, you may be out of luck. Also, do not arrive at a KSC gate before they are open for viewing site traffic. Although other traffic is allowed through, you will be turned away by the KSC police even if you're a minute early.
Another bit of advice for a first time launch viewer is to not focus too heavily on taking lots of photographs. The event happens so quickly that before you know it it's over and you may realize that you viewed the whole thing with one eye closed and the other stuck in your viewfinder. I've attended some launches where my primary goal was to take pictures or video, and others where I just stood there and watched it go up without worrying about pictures. I have to say that I enjoyed the latter much more, but the tradeoff is that I had fewer pictures to take home.
On the question of where to stay while you're in the KSC area, if your goal is to be as close to the space center as possible, then I'd recommend staying in Titusville. The Ramada Inn KSC is nice, as are the Holiday Inn and Best Western hotels. If your goal is to have as nice a room as possible, then definitely stay in Cape Canaveral. My personal favorite is the Radisson Resort at the Port on A1A. There are many other very nice hotels in Kennedy Space Center area:
Cocoa Beach -------------- Best Western Cocoa Inn 407 632 1065 Cape Colony Resort 407 783 2252 Cocoa Beach Oceanside Inn 407 784 3126 Crossways Condominium 407 784 5331 Crossways Inn Resort 407 783 2221 Days Inn Oceanfront 407 783 7621 Discovery Beach 407 784 2550 Hilton 407 799 0003 & 1 800 526 2609 Holiday Inn 407 783 2271 & 1 800 HOLIDAY Howard Johnsons 407 783 9481 & 1 800 654 2000 Motel 6 407 783 3103 Ocean Landing 407 783 9430 Ocean Suite Hotel 407 784 4343 Wakulla Motel 407 783 2230 Merritt Island ---------------- Holiday Inn Merritt Island 407 452 7711 Cape Canaveral ---------------- Radisson Resort at the Port 407 784 0000 Canaveral Towers 407 784 1130 Royal Mansions Resort 407 784 8484 Titusville ---------------- Best Western Space Shuttle 407 269 9100 Days Inn 407 269 9310 Holiday Inn (riverfront) 407 269 2121 Howard Johnson (waterside) 407 267 7900 Quality Inn 407 269 4480 Ramada Inn 407 269 5510Reserve your room well in advance--at least 5 or 6 weeks prior to the launch date. Hotel rooms have been known to fill up quite rapidly.
viewing site Pad A (km) Pad B (km) Press Site 4.9 5.5 Barge Turn Basin 4.9 5.5 VIP/Family Site 6.2 5.3 Static Test Road 8.1 10.1 NASA Causeway (west end) 9.8 11.7 NASA Causeway (mid point) 10.6 12.6 NASA Causeway (east end) 11.4 13.6 Spaceport USA 12.1 13.0 closest point in Titusville 19.2 18.1
Any visitors to KSC that would like to have Internet access to get their mail, stay in touch, are welcome to stop by our Network Control Center in Cocoa, Fl. and get online free! If you have a computer with you we will give you a FREE guest account for 24 hours, menu based (text) account with full Internet access. We are a commercial provider here in Cocoa, but offer this service to our visitors as a FREE service and encourage you to use it!
FLORIDA ONLINE, 3815 N US 1, #59, Cocoa FL 32926, (407) 635 8888 voice, 635 8833 DOS BBS, 633 4710 FLORIDA ONLINE, 635 9050 fax.
The frequencies in use are: 296.800 MHz : Air-to-ground, or Orbiter to suit 259.700 MHz : Air-to-ground, or suit to Orbiter 279.000 MHz : Suit-to-Orbiter, or suit-to-suit 243.000 MHz : Standard military aircraft emergency frequencyThe S-Band system is one of the primary Orbiter downlink bands. The voice channels are digital slope delta modulated and are multiplexed in with the rest of the Orbiter telemetry and is very difficult to copy. Much of the downlink TV is on S-Band also, but is wideband FM and should be easy to copy. The frequencies are:
2287.500 MHz - Primary digital downlink
2250.000 MHz - Wideband FM with either main engine analog telemetry during
launch, or TV during orbit operations.
The Ku-Band system is used in conjunction with the tracking and data relay satellites
and is used much more heavily in Spacelab flights than in others. The data rate
is very high (50 Mbit/s). These transmissions are directed to TDRS satellites
in geostationary orbit on a frequency of 15.003 GHz.
(Information via WA3NAN, and WA4SIR)
Ed Sileo (edsileo@qnet.com) says that Shuttle audio can be heard on 169.4 MHz at Edwards Air Force Base (EAFB). The transmitter site is on Lehman Ridge on the east side of Edwards near the Astronautics Lab. This can be heard during all flights since you never know when the shuttle may land at EAFB.
Retransmission of Shuttle air-to-ground audio from the GARC (WA3NAN) may be heard on the following frequencies:
Frequency Mode Antennas
(MHz)
3.860 SSB LSB N-S/E-W Dipoles
7.185 SSB LSB N-S/E-W Dipoles
14.295 SSB USB 3-element Yagi
21.395 SSB USB 5-element Yagi
28.650 SSB USB 4-element Yagi
147.45 FM Simplex Phased vertical
Where SSB is Single-Side-Band and LSB, USB indicate either Lower and Upper Side
Band. A short-wave receiver possessing a Beat Frequency Oscillator (BFO) is
needed to receive these transmissions.
GARC maintains a Bulletin Board System (BBS) which is accessible by way of the Internet, modem and packet radio. The BBS contains areas with information on the club, mail distributed by the Amateur Satellite Corporation BB (AMSAT-BB) listserver, SAREX bulletins and Space Shuttle mission information. During Shuttle missions, users can also access Keplerian Orbital Elements (Keps) which are generated by the club based on information generated by NASCOM at GSFC (these orbital elements are read over-the-air by our volunteer operators). The BBS is accessible by the following means:
GARC also maintains a WWW Server containing a wide variety of information about the club, its activities, as well as links to other Amateur Radio resources. The URL address is: http://garc.gsfc.nasa.gov/www/garc-home-page.html
Excerpt from rec.radio.amateur.misc FAQ Part 3 (modified):
Shuttle audio is re-tranmitted by the following Amature Radio stations. Station Centre VHF 10m 15m 20m 40m 80m ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ K6MF ARC 145.585 7.165 3.840 W1AW ARRL 147.555 28.0675 21.0675 18.0975 14.0475 7.0475 3.5815 1.818 WA3NAN GSFC 147.450 28.650 21.395 14.295 7.185 3.860 W6VIO JPL 224.080 21.280 14.282 7.165 W5RRR JSC 146.640 28.495 21.350 14.280 7.227 3.850 AK8Y LERC 145.670 or 147.195 (alternate) WB4FUR SSC 146.700 KA9SZX 146.880 (Video at 426.250) K4GCC 146.940 WA4VME 145.170 You might also try 20192 LSB which is NASA. All frequencies are in MHz. Use FM on VHF, USB on 10-20m, LSB on 40-80m. W1AW - ARRL, Newington, CT (news bulletins, 9:45 PM and 12:45 AM EST) K6MF - NASA Ames Research Center (ARC), Moffett Field, CA WA3NAN - NASA Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC), Greenbelt, MD W6VIO - NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), Pasadena, CA W5RRR - NASA Johnson Space Center (JSC), Houston, TX AK8Y - NASA Lewis Research Center (LERC), Cleveland, OH WB4FUR - NASA Stennis Space Center (SSC), Hancock County, MS KA9SZX - Champaign-Urbana, IL K4GCC - John Anderson, Titusville, FL (near or at Kennedy Space Center) WA4VME - Melbourne, FL (near or at Kennedy Space Center) You can also telnet spacelink.msfc.nasa.gov and follow the menus to a listing of repeaters in the USA that offer this service. Retransmissions of Shuttle audio on amature radio frequencies State City Date Reported Frequencies (MHz) ----- ---------------- ------------- ------------------------- AL Birmingham 10/10/89 145.150 145.380 AL Huntsville 12/31/92 147.100 173.025 AR Russellville 3/24/92 439.250 AZ Phoenix 12/9/91 421.250 449.000 CA Los Angeles 1/7/90 52.640 224.940 CA Los Angeles 12/21/89 1241.250 CA Los Angeles 12/4/91 145.320 145.460 445.400 CA Los Angeles 12/4/91 445.425 446.575 447.000 CA Los Angeles 12/4/91 447.025 447.400 447.475 CA Los Angeles 12/4/91 448.375 448.500 CA Monterey Bay 7/1/91 145.585 443.300 CA Mount Wilson 10/18/95 224.940 CA Northern 3/19/90 145.530 CA Redondo Beach 9/23/93 145.32 W6TRW CA Sacramento 4/10/91 147.195 CA San Diego 3/23/92 449.450 1277.25 CA San Francisco 4/29/91 427.250 444.775 CA San Joaquin Vly 5/6/89 52.22 CA Santa Barbara 4/21/90 1277.000 CO Boulder 1/5/96 145.460 (NASA select audio) CO Colorado Springs 1/5/96 145.160 (NASA select audio) CO Denver 1/5/96 147.225 224.980 (NASA select audio) DC Washington 11/28/83 147.450 (Greenbelt, MD) FL Cape Canaveral 10/11/89 146.940 FL Clearwater Beach 4/10/95 442.075 FL Daytona Beach 1/25/92 147.150 FL Fort Lauderdale 12/03/93 442.650 FL Gainesville 3/30/92 146.900 FL Jacksonville 4/25/90 147.12 FL Lakeland 7/18/92 147.375 FL Largo 4/24/95 51.84 FL Largo 11/4/94 145.23 FL Largo 4/10/95 421.25 (video & audio) FL Orlando 5/8/92 147.150 FL Port Richey 1/2/96 443.950 FL St. Petersburg 1/2/96 147.285 443.625 FL Vero Beach 4/19/90 145.130 Fl North Lauderdale 12/03/93 145.750 GA Ashburn 5/5/89 147.285 GA Atlanta 12/4/91 146.655 147.345 427.250 GA Forsyth 6/7/90 147.915 IA Cedar Rapids 10/18/89 146.400 444.300 IL Champaign-Urbana 11/30/93 146.880 IL Chicago 4/19/90 145.350 IL Downers Grove 9/23/93 145.350 IL Morton Grove 12/7/93 145.350 IL Rolling Meadows 2/12/92 145.350 IN Indianapolis 3/15/92 426.250 ME Portland 12/16/89 146.925 ME York 12/16/89 224.840 MN Central 2/19/90 149.200 MN Twin Cities 3/11/89 145.150 147.120 MN Waseca 1/2/90 147.450 427.250 MO Gladstone 12/7/93 224.660 MO Kansas City 3/25/92 145.430 426.250 MO St. Louis 1/25/92 442.000 NJ Central 7/5/92 443.400 (PL 141.3) NJ Northern 12/12/93 146.610 NY Albany 9/6/91 146.820 NY Long Island 3/30/92 448.425 OH Dayton 5/4/89 145.110 OH Greenville 3/11/90 146.790 OK Tulsa 2/6/92 144.340 146.940 421.250 PA Pittsburgh 6/25/92 145.470 PA Pittsburgh 9/23/93 145.650 SC Orangeburg 12/3/93 146.805 SD Watertown 1/14/92 145.550 TX Dallas 7/18/90 145.310 448.750 TX Dallas 9/13/91 146.600 TX Houston 6/27/92 146.640 WI Wausau 9/5/91 146.820 147.060 421.250 VA Norfolk Feb 1993 144.340 431.750 FM audio, 427.250 videoThanks to Dana Rodakis (dgra@qmgate.eci-esyst.com) and Gary Grahn (WA1TSS, GGrahn@aol.com)
I belong to a local ham radio club called the Launch Information Service and Amateur Television System (LISATS for short). We operate, in the Cocoa Florida area, an Amateur TV Repeater where we, during shuttle missions, re-broadcast NASA Select (from a satellite receiver located at the repeater site). We also have a computerized bulletin board (VIDEO) at the repeater site which cycles through screens of interest to hams, one being a projected launch schedule (shuttle and expendable). The LISATS repeater can be viewed by anyone with an outside antenna and a cable ready TV in the launch area. Please checkout: http://ddi.digital.net/
and follow the links to the local amateur radio clubs. The two primary points of contact for LISATS are myself (ham radio callsign N4KCI) or Ernie Baldini (ebaldini@ddi.digital.net, K4RBD) who is the prefered Amateur TV expert.
Get the longest lens available (e.g. rent one at Helix). I used a 300mm shooting from Titusville and was still too far away to clearly see the shuttle. However I could take beautiful shots of the engine's firetrail and the smoke.
Put your camera into continuous shooting mode (unless you have a VERY high speed camera like a Nikon), as the whole spectacle will be over within no time. I shot about 1 roll of film (36 pictures) until the shuttle was gone for good while almost constantly pressing the button.
Use a LOW speed film (ASA 50) as the light is so bright (Remember: NASA launches only under good weather conditions), that even with a long tele lens you still have enough light left for short exposure times (I had 1/1000 with F 5.6 and a Kodachrome 64). That way making detail enlargements is also easier, meaning less grainy.
Try to AVOID a tripod, as the shuttle moves "upwards to the right" (at least from Titusville with the standard 28 degree inclination). You are more flexible if you use a onepod or even better one of those professional harnesses, that you wear like a jacket and that support your long lens (like a tripod attached to your upper body).
During the night before the launch you can see (at least sometimes) a search light illuminating the launch pad. With a tripod and a very long exposure time (> 20 sec's on Kodachrome 64) you'll get nice pictures as well. Make several shots with different times according to general night time photography rules.
A final hint for the early-birds: I was lucky enough to see the big and red glowing sun rising exactly behind the VAB (from the US1 in Titusville). An incredible view, that didn't even require a tripod.
Jim Blackwell (hrsblackwell@stars.gsfc.nasa.gov) has these hints:
I can also say something about photographing night launches. Basically, for STS-61 and STS-67 I used 1000 ASA film and shot at 1/1000 th of a second at F/8. For STS-61 I was at the VIP site at 5.15 km and used a 70-210 mm zoom at the 210mm setting. For STS-67, I was at the NASA Causeway (about 10 km I think) using a 500 mm f/8 lens. Got great shots in both instances. I used Kodak Royal Gold (used to be Ektar) 1000 ASA film which is fine grained. I would also advise anyone to remove any filters they may have on their lenses as they can get nasty internal reflections and that a triapod is a must, especially with the 500 mm. I also used a cable release and a motor winder on the camera.
If you do happen to try and view the landing at KSC, do not despair when you realize actually how far away US 1 is from the runway. Even a moderately powered set of field glasses will provide good views of the Orbiter as is decelerates into the KSC area. That twin sonic boom is very unique and, for me, was well worth the drive by itself. You will actually be able to see the Orbiter as it comes into the KSC area and turns on the heading alignment circle better than during the final approach.
Don Diego (don.diego@nosurf.com) and Peter Armstrong (psstech@infocom.net) also suggest:
The best viewing site for the Shuttle landings is the Shuttle Landing Facility (SLF). There are bleachers available about 140-180 metres from the runway. What a great spot. Not only is it the best possible viewing site, you get to hob knob with astronauts and VIP's. VIP invitations now sent out by NASA headquarters are for launches and landings (see following section on VIP passes). Other passes from NASA may also invite you to the landing if you are a shuttle worker or involved with the payload. Unless you have very good connections, the general public cannot have access to the SLF.
As with the launch facilities NASA Select audio is provided on site as are restroom facilities and vending areas run by NASA.
For a realistic spot there's really only one choice. On US1 in Titusville across the Indian River from KSC. Hope it's not early in the morning, otherwise, you're going to be facing directly into the sunrise. I've tried on several occasions to try to catch a glimpse of the orbiter coming in as I was in Cocoa Beach or the city of Cape Canaveral but you're just too far away.
Whether you get lucky enough to get on KSC or have to settle for the US1 site you're in for a real treat. A landing is every bit as exciting as a launch. During a launch it's Boom, Zoom and in two minutes it's gone. But with a landing you have time to soak it all in. The key is picking it up visually as soon as possible. The thing to remember is at 15,000 metres (50,000 feet) the orbiter can be seen directly over the landing sight. Look straight up and watch for the puffs of smoke coming from the Reaction Control System (RCS) jets. Once you pick those up you should have no difficulty following it around the HAC and all the way down. Contrary to popular belief the thing doesn't land silently. When you've got an object that big and bulky cutting through the air at that velocity you get a wind rushing noise that has to be unique.
US1 in Titusville can be accessed from SR50 from Orlando or I-95 from the North or South. Local radio stations that have the best NASA coverage for any NASA related event are WMMB AM 1240 or 99.3 FM. Prior to any operation events can be followed locally on TV channels 2, 6 or 9. Or pick up a copy of the local newspaper The Florida Today. Some hotels in the area also carry NASA Select.
For a landing pass at Edwards, Mary Shafer (shafer@skipper.dfrf.nasa.gov) says: (Steve Handler (cityfarm@aol.com) advises us: The Public Affairs Office at Dryden Flight Research Center says that there are no landings scheduled in 1995 for Edwards and thus they are not giving out any landing passes at this time. They also indicated that the ability to see landings at Edwards is via the courtesy of the Air Force.)
There are three ways to see the Shuttle landing at Edwards AFB, listed in order of restrictiveness of access and availability.
1. The East Shore area on the lakebed. Take Hwy. 14 to Avenue F and follow the signs or take Hwy. 58 to 20 Mule Team Road and follow those signs. This area is opened about 2 days before the scheduled touchdown. The viewing area is an unimproved area so don't expect many amenities. I think that there are sanitary facilities and that food and drinks can be purchased. It's suggested that you bring food and water. Nothing is required for access to this area. If any viewing is allowed this site will be open. The only times they don't open it is for the DoD's classified missions.
Burns Fisher (fisher@skylab.enet.dec.com) says the view you get depends on exactly what course the shuttle comes in on. If the shuttle lands on the ascending node of its orbit you only see the shuttle coming straight in and landing in front of you...but not too close. For a descending node landing the view is much more spectacular as you see the shuttle turning and passing right above you (described by Burns as "a *gorgeous* sight!").
2. The hillside viewing area. This is on the hillside, just above Ames-Dryden, and requires a special pass. This pass is good for one vehicle, with any number of passengers. You can't enter the Ames-Dryden complex but you can walk down the hill to the cafeteria and the gift shop, etc. More amenities, including radio transmissions from the Shuttle and JSC. Some of us believe that this area has the BEST view of the landing. I believe that the Hillside, like the East Shore, is open for all unclassified missions. These passes can be obtained by writing, as detailed below. Ames-Dryden employees can also obtain them.
3. Official guest. Access to the Ames-Dryden complex. You get to watch the landing from the ramp, which is right on the lakebed. (The Shuttle lands some distance away, depending on which runway it uses.) The crew speaks to the crowd just before they return to JSC. There are special aircraft displays (including the SR-71, F-15, F-18, X-29, etc.) in the hangars. The radio transmissions are broadcast. This method is only predicted for a few missions this year. Opening the Facility is fairly labor-intensive and very disruptive, so we won't do it for every possible mission.
You can write, as detailed below, to obtain these badges and parking permits. To obtain a hillside pass or official guest badges, write to:
NASA Ames-Dryden Flight Research Facility
Public Affairs Office
P.O. Box 273
Edwards CA 92523-5000
Do this early, because there is a limited amount of space. If you get these and then discover that you can't attend, please try to pass them on to someone else who can use them. Incidentally, there is _no_ charge for any of these.
William Daul (billd@informix.com) suggests it is quicker to call your congress person and ask for a VIP pass. They usually have you pick the pass up somewhere near Edwards.
Come see the Shuttle land--it's great. Wear warm clothes!
If the Shuttle lands in the morning, it will be cool to downright cold. Forget the myth that the desert is always hot, it may be in the low 60s even in the summer at sunrise. It's frequently freezing in the winter. If it's much warmer, it's because the wind is blowing.
However, if you're an Official Guest and will be hanging around until the Astronaut Departure Ceremony, it may be warm by then. Wear layers.
Especially, wear warm footwear. Official Guests will be standing around on the cold, cold ramp and all your body heat will seep out of your feet into the concrete heat sink. Running shoes work well. Hillside Guests will be sitting up on metal bleachers. The portions of their anatomy in contact with the bleachers (feet and seat) may get _real_ cold.
Here is a list of Freqs for the White Sands Missile Range
Military Police: 36.100 141.250
Laser Operations: 173.5625
Drone Operations: 164.500 172.400
Cooling: 168.000
Maint: 34.490
Missile Tracking: 412.875
Range Control: Channel 1 36.510
Channel 2 34.850
Telemetry: 38.450, 38.710, 38.950, 40.100, 41.450
Photography: 30.090, 41.430, 139.440
NASA operations: 34.310, 164.100, 169.075, 169.400
The Stennis Space Center in Mississippi does Space Shuttle Main Engine (SSME) test firings, which, if I understand correctly, can be viewed by the public. Try their public affairs office for details. The Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama also has an SSME test facility where you may be able to view the firings.
Requests for accreditation should be mailed/faxed to the accreditation secretary two to three weeks prior to launch. The request must be from a credible media source and it must be on company letterhead stating the requester(s) full names, social security number, affiliation and purpose (i.e. John B. Quick, 111-22-3333, Time Magazine, photographer). The letter must be signed by the requester's supervisor/editor/or person in charge. All calls concerning accreditation should be given to Leslie. These requests can be faxed to (407) 867 2692. After you are accredited, you can call the Media tour info number, (407) 867 7819 for Photo ops, remote camera setups, etc.
Public Affairs Office
Attention: Accreditation
M/S PA-MSB
Kennedy Space Center FL 32899
Call (407) 867 2468 a couple of weeks after submitting the letter to make sure that your name is on the list as an accredited press type person.
This site (just north of the causeway on the cape side) is accessable only via a "Static Test Road" pass, which is (usually) only obtainable by those involved with shuttle payloads. If you know someone involved with a mission they might be able to get a pass for you.
This a new site at the LC-39 Barge Turn Basin (physically adjacent to the Press Site) for NASA and contractor employees deserving special recognition for their support of KSC's human space flight program. Each pass is for a vehicle. As with other VIP viewing areas, launch commentary, bleachers, restroom facilities, and food and souvenir sales will be provided. The pass will be valid for entrance through KSC gates two hours before launch for vehicles no larger than a 15-passenger van. A badged employee must be in each vehicle.
Astronauts families and other VIP's are situated at the VIP site 1.5 km north- east of the VAB and away from the press. The site is only 5 to 6 km away from the pads. It offers great viewing of a launch and is near the site for the new Apollo exhibit site which encloses a Saturn V. You can see the backside of Pad B and therefore don't see the initial ignition very well.
The day before launch, VIP guests are taken for personalised bus tours of the Launch complex. During this bus tour, they will actually drive you to right outside of the fence of the Launch pad and let you out to take superb close-up pictures. But if it's raining, you're out of luck! - the Rotating Service Structure will be in the way. But, no matter what, you will get *much* closer than the Spaceport busses get! You also drive past the Vehicle Assembly Building, Launch Control Center, Shuttle Landing Facility, crawler transporter, and other neat stuff.
The day of the launch, you're transported to the VIP launch stands which are 5.3 km from Launch Pad B, and 6.2 km from Launch Pad A. The astronaut's relatives and friends are in separate bleachers from the rest of the VIP's. VIP passes may be obtained by writing to your Congress representative (though there is no guarantee that requesting a pass will result in obtaining one). Relatives and friends of the astronauts/experimenters for a given mission may be invited, as can those of other NASA officials.
VIP Passes are restricted such that children under 16 years of age are not permitted. This will in most cases rule out the VIP site for those hoping to bring their families to view a launch. Also, the VIP passes are on a per- person basis, meaning that you'll need a pass for each person in your group. The easier-to-get NASA Causeway passes are for a vehicle, with the only restriction being the size of the vehicle, not the number of people in it nor their age.
People at the VIP site are taken there via bus from the parking lot of Spaceport USA. About ten minutes after the launch the buses return and take the VIPs back to Spaceport USA. From there, VIPs must contend with the traffic themselves, which is filled with all the people coming from the Causeway and Static Test Road sites.
International visitors wanting a VIP pass need first contact their embassy in the US.
The absolutely positively best place is to get yourself a place in the Forward Fireman Team. This is an exceedingly rare thing to come by and takes considerable political pull but it has been done. This team is the group that parks 1650 metres from the pad in one or more Armored Personnel Carriers ready to go in and aid a crew abandoning ship in an extreme emergency. Needless to say they can tolerate only one or at most two extra persons in and among them. You stand a better chance if you have had any kind of fireman training - especially fighting shipboard fires (like Naval veterans) - because then you're more likely to be actually *useful*.
The noise at that distance is no longer noise. It's just one great big horrible screech. Also, the heat off of the yellow-white hot SRB flame columns is so terrific that you have to wear those silver colored fire-proof suits and head coverings. You don't dare leave a camera by itself on a tripod without heat foil covering because it will likely melt or at least burn up the film inside.
ftp://ames.arc.nasa.gov/pub/GIF
ftp://ecf.hq.eso.org
ftp://explorer.arc.nasa.gov/pub/SPACE/GIF
ftp://explorer.arc.nasa.gov/pub/SPACE/JPEG
ftp://ftp.univ-rennes1.fr
ftp://gipsy.vmars.tuwien.ac.at/pub/spacegifs
ftp://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/cdrom/image
ftp://ftp.jpl.nasa.gov/pub/images
ftp://seds.lpl.arizona.edu/pub/images/shuttle
ftp://images.jsc.nasa.gov
gopher://images.jsc.nasa.gov
ftp://sseop.jsc.nasa.gov
ftp://stsci.edu
ftp://wuarchive.wustl.edu/multimedia/images
http://www.spaceportusa.com/main.html - KSC Visitor Center
http://www.spacecamp.com/ - Space Camp
http://www.osf.hq.nasa.gov/ - NASA Office of Space Flight
http://shuttle.nasa.gov/ - Shuttle Mission Home Page
http://www-pao.ksc.nasa.gov/kscpao/kscpao.htm - NASA KSC Public Affairs
http://www-pao.ksc.nasa.gov/de/de-systems.html
- NASA KSC Engineering Development
http://www.ksc.nasa.gov/ - Kennedy Space Center
http://www.nasa.gov/ - NASA Home Page
http://www.nasa.gov/nasa/nasa_hottopics.html - NASA * Hot Topics *
http://www.nasa.gov/nasa/nasa_subjects/nasa_subjectpage.html
- NASA Information Sources by Subject
http://www.hq.nasa.gov/ - NASA Headquarters
http://www.arc.nasa.gov/ - Ames Research Center
http://www.dfrc.nasa.gov/dryden.html - Dryden Flight Research Facilty
http://www.gsfc.nasa.gov/GSFC_homepage.html - Goddard Space Flight Center
http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/ - Jet Propulsion Laboratory
http://www.jsc.nasa.gov/ - Johnson Space Center
http://images.jsc.nasa.gov/ - NASA JSC Digital Image Collection
http://www.larc.nasa.gov/ - Langley Research Center
http://www.lerc.nasa.gov/ - Lewis Research Center
http://www.msfc.nasa.gov/ - Marshall Space Flight Center
http://www.sti.nasa.gov/ - NASA Scientific and Technical Information Program
http://www.nasa.gov/nasa/nasa_affiliates/nasa_institutes.html
- NASA Affiliated Institutes
http://www.nasa.gov/hqpao/other_agencies.html - Other Space Agencies
http://space.mit.edu/ - MIT Center for Space Research
NASA JSC's Electronic Space Information BBS is intended to provide 24-hour access to biographies of NASA officials and astronauts, news releases, space flight mission press kits and television schedules, space shuttle systems information, flight manifests and schedules, and other information about the space program.
Additional X-Windows information and can be obtained by anonymous ftp to krakatoa.jsc.nasa.gov or 139.169.31.12. Donations: Much of this library is comprised of donations by local contributions. We encourage all donations concerning X windows such as widgets, programming tools, and other applications.
Telnet spacelink.msfc.nasa.gov (login as guest) WWW http://spacelink.msfc.nasa.gov Anonymous FTP spacelink.msfc.nasa.gov Gopher spacelink.msfc.nasa.gov Modem Calls (205) 895 0028 (8-N-1) (Up to 14.4 bps)
Brian Rehm (Rehm@serv512.gsfc.nasa.gov) and Peter Armstrong (psstech@infocom. net) tells us:
ftp://spacelink.msfc.nasa.gov/Instructional.Materials/Software/Tracking.Elements also contains the latest orbital elements. There is also tracking software available here for both Macs and PCs.
There's a list of some 4100+ elements posted weekly at
ftp://kilroy.jpl.nasa.gov/pub/space/elements/satelem
You can also access a very large catalogue from a site at the Goddard OIG bbs. It's number is +1 301 262 6784.
You won't find the elements for _ALL_ the objects out there, but you will find a much larger list at ftp://seds.lpl.arizona.edu/pub/sat/satelem. The files are UNIX Z-compressed and have over 3000 objects. To decompress them, just leave off the .Z when ftping them.
Eric Kaercher (astyanax@ddi.digital.net) & Gary Morris (garym@cts.com) writes:
The latest element sets for Shuttle flights and the MIR space station (and someday for Alpha) can be found at http://www.cts.com/browse/garym/elements Elements can also be obtained from several NASA web sites (shuttle.nasa.gov, spacelink.msfc.nasa.gov, www.osf.hq.nasa.gov, oigsysop.atsc.allied.com), ftp sites (garc.gsfc.nasa.gov, archive.afit.af.mil, spacelink.msfc.nasa.gov) and other mailing lists (AMSAT's KEPS list, Spacelink, etc).
NASA
PA - ESB
Kennedy Space Center FL 32899
To receive the "NASA Report To Educators" and other NASA publications, write to the address below:
Educational Publications Services
Mail Code XEP
NASA Headquarters
Washington DC 20546
Serving inquiries related to space exploration and other activities:
Teaching Resource Center
NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory
Mail Stop CS-530
4800 Oak Grove Drive
Pasadena CA 91109
(818) 354 6916 Fax: (818) 354 8080
If you're interested a phone number and address you can contact for public information from JPL concerning unmanned planetary exploration:
(818) 354 5011
Public Information Office
NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory
Mail Stop 186-120
4800 Oak Grove Drive
Pasadena CA 91109
Serving all states through workshops and materials:
National Air and Space Museum
Smithsonian Institution
Education Resource Center, MRC 305
Washington DC 20560
(202) 786 2109 Fax: (202) 786 2262
Keepers of the manifest, in remembrance: Ken Hollis - hollis@titan.ksc.nasa.gov - 1990 to 9 March 1994 - Banned from posting to sci.space.shuttle by NASA and Lockheed
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April 28, 2007 18:12
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