Technology, Books and Other Neat Stuff

Testing out Flickr's new video upload with a quick snippet of the STS-117 launch taken from Titusville. It's from about a minute into the launch, but you can just still here the constant rumble of the solid rocket boosters.

I'm quite impressed with the speed of the upload, and the quality of the conversion into Flash. I may use my little pocket video recorder a lot more now...

I'm writing a Photoshop tutorial at the moment, and one of my intermediate images came out as though it had fallen from an alternate 1950s Russia, with that stylised propaganda poster look I like.

Putney, London/Orlando, Florida
August 2007/June 2007

Not quite what one should use for a report of a safe landing, especially post Challenger and Columbia.

[Update: They've now fixed it to the much better "California landing for Atlantis"]

Ignition! Atlantis lifts away from the pad in a gush of steam and bight, bright light. It's silent in Titusville as everyone holds their breath.

Not quite the image I was aiming for, but the out of focus shuttle in the background seems to work well, with the sharp palm leaves in the foreground.

Titusville, Florida
June 2007

The shuttle well away now, the launch contrail drifts and twists in the light breezes.

Titusville, Florida
June 2007

The SRBs have burnt out and separated from Atlantis and the fuel tanks. Atlantis is still visible as a bright light in the east.

Titusville, Florida
June 2007

Not long after ignition and the shuttle is already well above the few high clouds.

Titusville, Florida
June 2007

The SRBs burn bright as the shuttle climbs high into the Florida sky.

Titusville, Florida
June 2007