We were originally scheduled to leave on April 6. However the initial launch attempt of STS-59 was delayed one day for an engine inspection so we delayed our flight to Florida one day as well.  The rescheduled launch was set for 8:06 AM on Friday April 8. 

The hotel that we stayed at was the Ramada Inn. Although it is not plush, it was nice and more than adequate. The price for the room was very good as well.   Since we were attending the launch, the rates were only $40 per day.  The location relative to the space center was excellent.

We had a vehicle pass that would allow us to view the launch from the causeway at KSC.  The approximate distance to Pad 39A from this viewing site was about 6.5 miles.  The vehicle pass stated that the gates to KSC would be opened up 4 hours before the launch.

A checkpoint was set up that ahead of the actual KSC gates.  We arrived at this checkpoint about 3:55 am. The security man directing traffic told us in a very unfriendly manner, "Too early, the gates won't open for another 30 minutes, turn right."

We turned in there and saw a line of cars that also had arrived early and were waiting for clearance at the checkpoint.  We joined the line and waited. The gates opened up in about 5 minutes, so much for the accuracy of information by the security person.

I was initially confused, unsure if everyone had to do this or just what was going on.  After running the options through my muddled 4:00 A.M. thinking process, I decided to stay in the left lane and bypass the long line of cars.

This was the correct decision.  This line of cars was going to the Space Port in hopes of getting a bus ride out to the causeway.  Since we already had a vehicle pass we were granted access without incident through the main KSC gate.

Onward I drove hoping that we hadn't missed a sign and gotten off on to the wrong place at KSC.  The vehicle assembly building certainly is impressive at that time of the day when it is brightly illuminated against the black sky by the xenon lamps.

We arrived at the causeway and people were directing the cars were to park. We parked in area “G”.  It was now time to venture out of the car and lay our claim to a piece of beach front property on the Banana River.  It's not really what I would consider a river though and it shouldn't be confused with a beach either.  We found a suitable spot, planted our camera tripods and claimed this land in the name of our family.

I suppose now would be a good time to mention the weather.  It was cloudy, it was windy, and it was cold.  This is Florida, cloudy and windy I can understand, but where did that cold part come from?

Even though the public address system claimed that weather conditions would improve as time got closer to the launch, I did not have a great deal of confidence that today was going to be the day.

Not only did Endeavour have a specific launch window to hit, but so did our family.  My wife, Mary had to be back at work on Tuesday, April 19.  If Endeavour launched on Friday that meant that with a nominal 9-day plus 1 (10 day) mission it would come back on Monday April 18.  That would be just in time for Mary and the children to be able to see the landing as well as the launch.

I guess the best thing about having to get up that early is that you get to experience the bright spotlights illuminating the shuttle on the pad. Where is some “Also Sprach Zarathustra” music when you need it?  It was quite impressive to see the shuttle on the pad.  This view by itself was almost worth getting up at three o'clock in the morning for.

I had borrowed a small telescope from a friend of mine for this occasion and it provided us with a marvelous view of Endeavour.  I had hoped actually take some photographs through the telescope (it was the equivalent of a 1000 mm lens). However it was so windy, that the vibration was just too much to get any reasonable photographs. 

This time, like us, they made sure that they arrived with plenty of time to spare. Linda has a big family.  From speaking with this relative we found out that there are 9 children in her father's family.   With the limited number of passes that the astronauts receive for the launch and landing, it was surprising that our family was able to be included at all.

Mary and the children retreated back to the car to get in some sleep and escape from the wind.  I diligently maintained our claim to the beach front property.  I had thought about bringing a picnic blanket for the occasion but of course never had time to find one with all of the other preparations required for our trip.

The rental car did have a removable piece of carpeting in the trunk though and that worked out as reasonable makeshift picnic blanket.  I even toyed with the idea that for the next launch I witnessed, I would purchase cheap lawn chairs that could be discarded at the end of the vacation.

It was now two hours later around six o'clock in the morning.  The sky was a little bit lighter, but it was still cloudy and windy.  This was the time that the crew was entering the vehicle.  I know that the launch and entry pressure suits are not terribly comfortable, but I would guess the astronauts were still slightly more comfortable than I was. The viewing site had a public address system so it was nice to keep track of what was going on at the pad.

At this point I wrote off using the telescope for photography entirely and packed it back up.  On one tripod I set up a video camera.  On another tripod I set up my 35 mm camera with a 280 mm telephoto lens.

I did not want to just be staring through a camera during the whole launch so I went for the tripod route with a squeeze bulb activator.  That would give me one and only one shot of the initial launch.  I positioned the camera so that it would be in a good position to capture the shuttle as soon as it rose out of the steam cloud that it would generate from the water sound suppression system.

The video camera I intended to leave aimed at one spot on continuous recording from the T-9 minute and counting mark.  As backup cameras I also had a Kodak disposable telephoto camera with 1000 ASA speed film, a normal Kodak disposable camera with 400 ASA speed film, and a Kodak disposable panoramic camera.  It was not an impressive collection of photography equipment but it did give us some variation.

I figured that I would use the telephoto, Mary would use the panoramic, and Toby would use the normal disposable.  Marian did not have any photographic duties. Surely one of these cameras would be able to capture an image of the launch suitable for future reflection.

Toby finally came back out from the car to see what was going on.  Time had progressed and it was now about 15 minutes away from the opening of the launch window.  I sent Toby back to the car to get his mother and sister.

Time for a check of the weather, Astronaut Hoot Gibson, as Chief of the Astronaut Office, was piloting the Shuttle Training Aircraft to check the conditions at the landing strip.  The conditions were "No Go".  The beginning of the launch window came and went but unfortunately the vehicle remained on the pad at T-9 minutes and holding.

The launch director was cautiously optimistic that weather conditions would improve before the window closed.  I did not share in his optimism.  I was disappointed and was trying to figure out some way that Mary and the children could still see the landing.

The end of the launch window was approaching and we were still at T-9 and holding.  The launch window closed.  However there was still a faint glimmer of hope.  Launch Director Bob Sieck called up to the crew that even though weather conditions were still no go, there was a chance that they would improve within the next thirty minutes.

The launch team was prepared to extend the window for thirty minutes if it was all right with the crew.  The ending time of the launch window was determined by the amount of time that the medical personal feel the crew can spend in the pressure suits on their backs.  Commander Sid Gutierrez radioed back that the crew was ready and willing for the extension.

Maybe just maybe, the clouds will part long enough for the launch to occur.  Images from the 1970 movie "Marooned" flashed through my head as David Jansen waited on the pad in a Dynasoar launch vehicle for the eye of the hurricane to arrive. 

This was not like it was in the movie though.  Finally Launch Director Sieck announced that we would scrub for the day.  Who was more disappointed the crew or the thousands of spectators?  That is a difficult call.

Time to pack up the camera equipment and head to the car, only to wait in traffic rivaled only by the end of a Nebraska football game.  Really the traffic was not that bad, it only seemed that way due to the scrubbed launch.

After resting briefly at the hotel we decided to tour the Astronaut Hall of Fame.  The Hall of Fame is a separate entity from the KSC Spaceport Visitors Center.  It is run in conjunction with the Florida version of Space Camp.

The Hall of Fame has some really nice space artifacts in it. It was interesting to me to see things on display that I have in my home.   I must admit though, that since they have Wally Schirra’s Mercury Sigma 7 space capsule, my collection pales in comparison.

They had the opportunity to take a bus trip around the pad with Endeavour on it the night before. That must have been a spectacular bus tour.  The next day, Saturday morning would be their last chance to see the launch of STS-59.  They had to return to Norway on Saturday.

A small airport near the Kennedy Space Center was holding an air show of vintage W.W.II aircraft that weekend.  The Astronaut Hall of Fame has a viewing site on their roof for looking at the Kennedy Space Center in the distance.  We found that the roof also gave us an excellent view of the B-17's and P-51 Mustangs flying overhead for the air show.

Although we did not see the entire air show my family seemed pretty excited about being able to see the vintage airplanes.  Maybe I'll convert them into being true believers yet.  After the Hall of Fame we still had some extra time left in our day so we went to the Kennedy Space Center's visitor center, Spaceport USA.  It is amazing how much time you have in a day when you get up at three o'clock in the morning.

Titusville is definitely not the gourmet capital of the world.  It is a fairly small town and the selection of restaurants is fairly limited.  They seem to roll the streets up at 9 P.M.  We had asked for a recommendation for a good place to go for seafood.  The Dixie Crossroads restaurant was the consensus recommendation.

The atmosphere at the place was all right but the food was mediocre at best.  It was on par with the dreaded Red Lobster Restaurant chain in the Dallas area.  Another thing that we noticed in Titusville restaurants was the service or lack thereof.  Titusville is not the place to eat at if you are in a hurry.  Service is painfully slow. After this dining experience we returned to our Hotel room to recharge our batteries and the video camera batteries for the next day.

The launch window on Saturday opened up at 7:05 am.  This meant that the KSC gates should open up at 3:05 am barring encounters with unknowing security guards.  Having been through the process the day before we were a little more organized on how much time we needed to get ready for setting out for the space center.

This allowed us to sleep in until 2:30 am.  We were on the road shortly before 3:00 am.  This time we arrived at the security checkpoint shortly after the appointed 3:05 time.  No problem with security this time we were waived right on through.  When we arrived at the viewing site we again parked in the "G" viewing section.  Our positioning in the section was better than the day before though, because our timing at the security gate was better.

Saturday's weather was still very windy, still very cold, but no clouds. I just knew that this was going to be the day!  Although the wind was fairly strong it was in the correct direction at the shuttle landing facility so that it would not present a problem in case of an RTLS abort.  It was amazing to me that they could launch the vehicle in that strong of wind. The wind might not bother the shuttle but it did preclude me taking any photos through the telescope once again.

As the time passed we heard the shuttle Public Affairs Officer announce that the crew was at the pad and getting ready to ride the elevator up the gantry to the white room access.  This was about two hours before the opening of the launch window.

My family had been anticipating the launch of STS-59 for over a year.  After we had gotten to know Linda, we decided that we would attend Linda's next launch into space whenever it occurred.

Even before the space shuttle first flew on STS-1, I had made a commitment to myself that someday I would view a shuttle launch.  I grew up watching Gemini and Apollo, but I had never been able to experience a launch other than in the front of my TV.

It was now less than nine minutes away from launch.  During the year of anticipation, I tried to guess what my emotions would be when the launch finally became imminent. Would I feel like a kid on Christmas day?  Would I be fearful of what might happen to my friend and her crewmates if something went bad?  I really did not know. 

Before I ever got to know an astronaut personally, I was never fearful watching a launch on television.  Now however it was different.  I felt fear, joy, and a sense of completion all at the same time.  Being here, now, at the launch of STS-59 was the culmination of a life long dream for me.  This was arriving at the finish line after being an avid follower of the space program for over 30 years.  It was as close as I, or as most people, will ever come to a journey to the stars.

I had a lump in my throat and tears in my eyes.  I was really glad at this time that my wife Mary was concentrating on the vehicle on the launch pad and was not paying attention to the tears in my eyes.

The video camera had been recording since the count resumed at T-9 minutes. I was prepared with a squeeze bulb in my hand for that one shot of the liftoff through my camera's 280 mm telephoto lens that I hoped would turn out.  In my other hand I held the Kodak disposable telephoto camera.  "T-10, 9, 8, 7, 6, main engine sequence started, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1, and liftoff the Space Radar Laboratory mission!"

Upon ignition of the shuttle’s main engines, for a brief instant you could see a flicker of orange below the shuttle.  Soon after that an immense cloud of steam obscured the vehicle.  This steam is generated by the interaction of the main engines with the Water Sound Suppression System.

Then the solid rocket boosters ignite.  There was no turning back; the vehicle was leaving the launch pad.  The immense cloud was illuminated from behind.  Within seconds the vehicle emerges from behind the cloud.

I did not really hear any applause from the crowd of assembled spectators.  The only sounds I remember hearing were "Ooh" from the crowd at the sight of vehicle emerging from behind the steam cloud.

The color of the SRB exhaust plume was unexpected.  This was the biggest surprise at seeing the launch in person.  On television the flame from the SRBs is washed out to white or yellow.  In person you see a very bright orange or tangerine color.  The plume was bright; it is hard to describe its intensity.

Another of my senses was surprised by the launch.  That sense was my hearing. The silence was deafening!  We were watching a vehicle weighing in at around four and one half million pounds that was accelerating upward away from the launch pad.  It was generating a massive amount of heat and light, and there was total silence.

Well at least it was silent except for the blowing wind. Finally after the shuttle had reached a fairly high elevation the sound had reached us.   I was disappointed by the lack of intensity of the sound.

Do you remember Walter Cronkite being shaken while covering the launch of a Saturn V?   I thought to myself, “This is it?  Surely the shuttle must at least shake the ground a little.”  I think that the sound level that reached us was somewhat muted by the strong wind that was blowing from right to left.  I guess I've been spoiled with my audio expectations by viewing the IMAX movie "The Dream Is Alive" once too often.

Ah, but it was a grand experience indeed.  I have but one complaint about the whole launch.  From the time of ignition to the time that the vehicle was no longer visible passes much too quickly.  It is times like this that one really needs a slow motion control on reality.  Years of anticipation waiting for this view and it vanishes in seconds.

The contrail or cloud generated by the shuttle is also quite a sight.  It curved into the sky like a cobra dancing to the flute.  It was a thing of beauty. It remains long after the shuttle is thousands of miles downrange. Perhaps this is a large-scale form of cloud seeding.  The exhaust from the SRBs actually transform into their own cloud.   The 7:05 launch time even made this scene more majestic.

At the lower levels the cloud was a gray, brown and orange color.  When it got up to a certain elevation, the rays of the rising sun brilliantly illuminated it and it took on the color and brightness of newly fallen snow.

Astronaut Hoot Gibson made a low pass along the causeway in the Shuttle Training Aircraft on his way back to the shuttle landing facility. We went back to the hotel room for a little rest and relaxation.

Saturday afternoon, we decided to go back to the KSC visitor's center and see if we could take one of the bus tours that Spaceport USA offers.  They have two tours.  One is called the Red Tour and the other is called the Blue Tour.

The Red Tour shows you the outside of the Vehicle assembly building from close up. It typically drives around the shuttle launch pads and other sites of the modern day manned space program.

The Blue Tour on the other hand shows you the older part of the space program. That tour takes in the historic launch sites for Explorer 1 and the area where the first American in space was launched.

I had been on the Red Tour before and expected most of it to be closed down since the shuttle launch had just occurred that morning so I wanted to take the Blue Tour.

To my disappointment we found that the Blue Tour though is run only on weekdays. Since this was the weekend, it was unavailable.  My family had never been on the Red Tour we decided that would be a reasonable substitute since we were already at the visitors center. 

I was surprised that the bus drove us right by Pad 39A.  That was the very launch pad where Endeavour had been sitting a mere six hours before.  It surprised me that the launch pad area would be opened up so soon after the launch.

It inspired awe within me to be so close to where the action was earlier in the morning.  By now there was no activity seen around the launch pad.  It could have been mistaken for any sleepy industrial complex on a weekend.

The Kennedy Space Center really may need security guards but it certainly does not need guard dogs.   Did I mention the alligators?  We certainly saw a lot of them while we were on the bus tour.  Alligators may have been endangered at one time, but they are certainly well established at the space center.  Most of the people on the tour bus were more excited to see the alligators than they were the hardware of the space program.

After we got back from the bus tour we went to watch the IMAX film "The Dream Is Alive".  I of course have seen this film countless times, but it was the first time for Mary and the children.  Everyone thoroughly enjoyed it.  Of course it was a little more exciting after just having watched the launch of the shuttle that morning.  Even though I have seen this film many times before, I still seem to notice things that I have missed each and ever time that I watch it.

Sunday we took the day off from any space activities.  It was time to provide the kids and my wife with something else to think about.

April 11, 1994

Monday, we went to Universal Studios Florida.  The amusement rides here were very entertaining.  The "Back to the Future" ride must be experienced to be able to understand.  I think a space shuttle launch would be a lot less stressful on the body.

April 12, 1994

Tuesday arrived and we decided that we needed some time off from touring so we slept in that morning.  That afternoon we went back over to the Kennedy Space Center to try to get onto the Blue Tour.   This time the tour was operating and we did get to take it.  The tour was interesting but I found that it was way too rushed.   I could not absorb all of the sights fast enough.

On a somber note we drove around an abandoned and sealed missile silo complex on Patrick Air Force Base.  This complex is the resting place for the pieces of the space shuttle Challenger that were recovered after the January 1986 accident.

The highlight of the Blue Tour was driving within a few thousand feet of launch complex 36.  These two pads are where the unmanned Atlas Centaur rockets are launched.  What made this so special was that in less than ten hours (at 2:00 A.M. April 13, 1994) an Atlas Centaur rocket would launch the GOES weather satellite into orbit. We of course were well aware of this projected launch and I hoped to watch it.  I was amazed that they let the bus tours that close to the launch pad that close to the launch.

That evening we went to what I consider is the best restaurant in Titusville.  It is called Paul's Smokehouse.  Not only do they serve barbecue, but also the seafood offering was fairly decent.

The restaurant has a great view on the edge of the Indian River.  Why is the view so nice?  You can see the Kennedy Space Center of course.  It would be a great place to have a champagne brunch while watching a space shuttle launch.  I would highly recommend it for the less casual space shuttle viewers.

Our next major event on the agenda was the launch of the Atlas Centaur rocket in the wee hours of the morning on April 13.  For my observation account of that launch please follow the Atlas 94 link.

Two of the main three objectives of this trip had now been met.  Seeing the space shuttle launch and the Atlas launch.  Only the shuttle landing remained.  Mary and the children would have to miss this since they had to head back to Dallas on Monday, but I had more flexibility and intended to stay on for the show.

The next four days we spent at Disney World/Epcot Center/Disney MGM Studios.

I won't bore you with details but we had a lot of fun.  The fireworks at Epcot and the Magic Kingdom were still great even though Mary had said they would not be the same.  Fireworks and launches are different spectacles entirely.

Sunday we went to the beach at Jetty Park.  After walking a short way along the beach I looked to the North and saw launch complex 36.  The site from where the Atlas was launched a few days earlier.

This would have been an excellent view of the launch.  I will keep that in mind in the future. Maybe on our next trip to Florida we will watch an Atlas launch during the day and a shuttle launch at night.  The only bad part of our beach excursion was that we got a little too much sun.

Monday we drove about an hour south of Orlando to Cypress Gardens.  This was a nice excursion.  We saw a butterfly conservatory, some wonderful botanical gardens, and some thrilling water skiing exhibitions all in one place.

Tuesday  was the day the space shuttle was scheduled to land.  The passes that we had for the landing were going to be significantly better than the ones we had for the launch.  I would be riding a VIP buses out to the shuttle landing facility to view the landing.

NASA would begin boarding the buses one hour prior to touchdown. While I was waiting I struck up a conversation with yet another cousin of Linda's.  He also had been in Florida for the launch with his family.

Now, like me he was alone for the landing.  There really were not all that many family members present for the landing.  The launch, it seems, draws a lot more interest.  Now for the landing it was an audience mainly of older retired people.  I did notice that astronaut Franklin Chang-Diaz in the crowd as what appeared to be an escort for a group.

As the time arrived for Endeavour's engines to be fired to bring it back from orbit, it was announced that this landing attempt at 11:52 AM would be waved off.  Once again the Florida weather was not cooperating.  There were too many clouds and too much rain, too close to the landing facility.

We waited around the KSC Visitors Center rocket park for the second landing opportunity for that day.  I feared at this point that today was not going to be the day for a landing but I still held out hope.

I figured that if they didn't make the first landing attempt that morning, the weather would only get worse as the atmosphere heated up.  The time approached for the firing of the OMS engines for the second landing attempt at 1:53 PM.  The weather looked bleak and they were waved off again.

Should I stay in Florida for one more day for the next days attempted landing? The weather reports that I heard on Monday evening said that Tuesday's weather forecast looked better for landing than Wednesday's did.  With that in mind, I became convinced that Endeavour was headed to California for a landing at Edwards Air Force Base.

Prompted by disappointment and loneliness, I made the decision to terminate my vacation and head back home.  I arrived at the airport well in advance of my flight and luckily enough I was able to get on an earlier flight.

Wouldn't you know that this earlier flight to take me home also continued on to Los Angeles?  Tempting as it was, I called it an end with two out of the three objectives satisfied.

You know that I would have been kicking myself if the weather cleared and Endeavour really did land back in Florida.I did get to see the landing.  However, it was on NASA TV from the comfort of my own living room.