Space Shuttle Endeavour Blasts Into Night Sky

Space shuttle Endeavour and a crew of seven are bound for the international space station. They will double as kitchen and bathroom installers on the mission, undertaking the most extreme home makeover ever attempted in orbit. (Nov. 14)

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[joshig1983]

The International Space Station orbits at 17,239.2 mph or 27,743.8 km/h like you are thinking. (you meant a comma instead of a period, right?)

The orbital speed depends on how far from Earth it is. The closer, the higher the speed. Many satellites are farther than the space station and make a full orbit once every 24 hours(geocentric orbit) with speeds around 6934mph or 11160km/h. If you are impressed by speed, the Voyager 1 probe is moving at roughly 38000mph or 61200km/h.

[huntingprincess890]

my dad and i watched it take off and it was soooo amazing i cant believe that ppl could b so smart and learn to fly those!! i wish tht i could meet someone tht could do that!!! AWESOME JOB!!!

[kenpalmer1965]

This is a great video of a nighttime space shuttle launch. I watched Space Shuttle Discovery launch last night in person and it was awesome! My first time seeing a launch in person. Spectacular stuff! Thanks greatly for sharing it!

Ken Palmer

[Spartan168]

lmao i know sometimes i just think they think of them on the fly

[joshig1983]

The danger of a serious collision near Earth is high enough because of 2 colliding satellites that for the latest Hubble Space Telescope mission, they have an extra shuttle ready for rescuing the astronauts if something goes wrong. They are also using the shuttle's wings to shield against collisions with tiny pieces. Even a colliding screw would probably be enough to fly through their shuttle and kill the astronauts, though. hehe Still unlikely enough that they are doing it.

[joshig1983]

I think for most things probes and astronauts do in space, they assume the probability of a seriously damaging collision is low enough that they don't even plan for it. All they do is hope it doesn't happen. For microscopic particles even atomic size, I think they try to shield for them because those collisions are much more likely and easier to deal with. The most danger for serious collisions is with space garbage near Earth. Voyager's area is clear after billions of years of dust settling.

[Tonka1979]

yes, I meant a comma (in my natural language a period stands as a separator between groups of 3 digits). Speaking of Voyager.. how do they manage not to hit it into other space object like meteorits or even very small fragments of rock. I guess any collision (even with a very small piece of rock) would destroy it instantly

[luisfranciscanora]

im curious who thinks of those lines they say after the shuttle lifts off...

[Tonka1979]

People.. I would be thankfull to those of you who can provide me with some clarifications: once the shuttle entered the orbit it means it travels by approx. 17.000 miles/h, right? Then all those pitch maneuvers or flips are made at that incredible speed?? Or the docking to international space station?? No this can't be... or it can? In those movies with the space shuttle filmed from the station when it's shown travelling over pacific or europe etc... is it travelling at 17.000miles/h?? Thanks