Shuttle Sightings (Opportunities) Abound

http://spaceflight1.nasa.gov/realdata/sightings/cities/view.cgi?country=United_States®ion=Michigan&city=Detroit

Greetings everyone!

A somewhat rare set of opportunities are available to us over the next week. As you might be aware, the Space Shuttle Discovery is currently docked with the International Space Station, 220 miles above our Earth, orbiting at 17,500 miles per hour. The link above details some specific dates and times that the combined vehicles will be observable to us. Weather dependent, this is a humbling experience if the skies clear to witness the beacon of light traverse the early evening skies. Imagine the amount of thinking, planning, designing, testing, engineering, dedication, etc...that has gone into this extraordinary example of American science and engineering. In my opinion, we are not celebrating the value that our space program brings to this country nearly enough.

If you are not in the Detroit area, you can follow the link back to the prior pages and find your location. Most everyone on this mailing list should be able to use the same data. You can also Google "ISS Sightings" and it will link you to the main page. If you are not sure how to read the chart, give a call and I will gladly assist in the interpretation.

Hoping for clear skies and realigned priorities...

Karl

And a "little something" extra for your viewing and listening pleasure!
http://dingo.care2.com/cards/flash/5409/galaxy.swf