The Falcon Heavy launch brought me to tears


The buzz over SpaceX's Falcon Heavy rocket launch might have seemed to erupt out of nowhere, but for space enthusiasts, it was a long time coming. I've followed the development of the Falcon Heavy since it was announced in 2011, and I was on the ground at Cape Canaveral to see the launch in person, about three miles away at NASA's press site.

It had gotten to the point where I didn't think the rocket launch would ever happen. After all, the Falcon Heavy was supposed to take flight in the spring of 2016. It turns out, though, that the development of the rocket was much more difficult than anticipated, to the point where Elon Musk admitted to the press that the project was almost canceled three separate times.

And yet, I knew that if and when it did take off, I needed to be there to witness it. I've spent the last year making tentative plans and warning my friends that I might have to cancel at the last minute if the rocket launch date was scheduled. (I, thankfully, have very understanding friends.) I refused to make Thanksgiving or Christmas travel plans in 2017 because of the Falcon Heavy. I have literally scheduled my life around this rocket launch.

Was it worth it? Absolutely, and I'd do it again in a heartbeat.

The morning of the launch was a bright sunny day, and the always-crucial weather forecast looked favorable. I was optimistic when I arrived at the press site and settled down to work. However, the assembled journalists were soon greeted with unwelcome news: the high-level winds were out of bounds for the launch. Elon Musk had specifically mentioned the wind concern the day before, so we all knew SpaceX was going to be conservative with launch conditions. They quickly delayed the scheduled launch time from 1:30 to 2 PM ET, with a launch window that extended to 4 PM ET.

We expected launch delays (it was a test, after all), but that didn't stop the despair from setting in. We were desperate, and the uncertainty was grueling. To make matters worse, the winds kept up and the time kept getting pushed back further. Everyone was on edge, staring at the countdown clock in the press room, helpless to do anything. Every time the launch clock reset, the entire room would groan in unison.

Like the millennial reporters that we are, we turned to Twitter to express our frustration.

We all started resigning to ourselves to the possibility we'd have to return the next day.

Finally, a new launch time was set: 3:45 PM ET -- SpaceX was cutting it close to the end of the window. The launch would likely not happen if anything went wrong during the countdown. We were all basically walking bundles of nerves. Even our anxiety had anxiety.

Our anxiety mixed with confusion as the clock counted down and propellant was loaded. Wait, nothing was going wrong? Suddenly, we were set for launch? The fueling proceeded as scheduled, the weather continued to cooperate and the upper level winds were quiet.

When we got to about 20 minutes before launch, it started to feel real. "Is it possible this might actually happen today?" I asked myself. I left my computer on its desk on the press room and headed outside, squinting in the bright light, to take a look at the rocket on its pad.

Everyone was excited, but still a little in disbelief. As that clock ticked downward though, it became real. Thirty seconds before launch, I called out the time to reporters who weren't listening in on the feed from Launch Control; surprise rippled through the ranks that it was so close.

And then, ignition.

Smoke billowed out from the bottom of the rocket as it began to lift off. A few seconds later, it started to move upward. It felt like the rocket was in slow motion, while simultaneously moving blazingly fast. It's hard to describe the color of the flames shooting out from the bottom of the rocket; It looked like the brightest molten lava.

A few seconds later, the sound hit those of us at the press site. It wasn't just a noise I could hear; I felt the rumbling deep in my chest. As the rocket ascended, the emotion (and the years I'd been waiting for this launch to happen) hit me, and I started sobbing. I may have been standing in the middle of strangers, but I felt no embarrassment. We were united in our exhilaration.

As we watched the Falcon Heavy ascend into the sky, we whispered under our breath for it to keep moving upward ("please don't explode"). After it disappeared, we knew it wasn't over. It was time to search the skies for the first stages returning to land. A few minutes later, we spotted them: two flanking boosters in a perfectly synchronized descent.

The launch of the Falcon Heavy was spectacular. But it was the sheer audacity of the twin booster landing that that transformed my joy into wonder. When I heard the two sets of twin sonic booms (four in all) as the rockets touched down on their respective pads, I couldn't help but scream, "Holy shit!" They'd done it. And with it, SpaceX had opened a door to a new era in American spaceflight. Watching that launch (and landing) is an experience I will never forget.

via Engadget RSS Feed "http://ift.tt/2C5NtSy"

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Evernote cuts staff as user growth stalls

Image
Note-taking app Evernote has fallen on hard times of late, culminating in its latest spate of job cuts impacting 15 percent of its workforce (54 employees). CEO Chris O' Neil -- an ex-Googler who took the reins in 2015 -- announced the firings at an all-hands meeting earlier today, reports TechCrunch . In a message on the Evernote blog , O' Neill admitted he'd set "incredibly aggressive goals" for the company in 2018. He continued: "Going forward, we are streamlining certain functions, like sales, so we can continue to speed up and scale others, like product development and engineering." The layoffs follow an exec exodus just weeks ago and the company's recent brand refresh (complete with a refined logo and wordmark). But critics are more concerned about its product, especially the free tier, which they claim lacks the perks to...
Read more

The best air conditioner

Image
By Liam McCabe This post was done in partnership with Wirecutter . When readers choose to buy Wirecutter's independently chosen editorial picks, it may earn affiliate commissions that support its work. Read the full article here . After six summers of researching, testing, and recommending window air conditioners, we've learned that quiet and affordable ACs make most people the happiest—and we think the LG LW8016ER will fit the bill in most rooms. This 8,000 Btu unit cools as efficiently and effectively as any model with an equal Btu rating, and runs at a lower volume and deeper pitch than others at this price. Little extra features like a fresh-air vent, two-axis fan blades, and a removable drain plug help set it apart, too. The LG LW8016ER is a top choice for an office or den, and some people will find it quiet enough for a bedroom, too. If our main pic...
Read more

We won't see a 'universal' vape oil cartridge anytime soon

Image
Pre-loaded cartridges of cannabis concentrate are currently among the most popular means of consumption, and for good reason. They're discreet to use and easy to handle, a far cry from the dark days of 2016 when we had to dribble hash oil or load wax into narrow-mouthed vape pens by hand. But, frustratingly, an ever increasing number of oil cartridge manufacturers employ one-off design standards so that their products won't work with those of their competitors, thereby locking customers into proprietary ecosystems. We've already seen this with nicotine vaporizers -- which has a seen a massive rise in "pod systems" in the last few years, each outfitted with a unique canister and battery built to be incompatible with those of their competition. Is it too late for the burgeoning cannabis industry to set a universal standard for their product designs? ...
Read more