The final chapter of the Space Shuttle

On July 21, 2011, the Space Shuttle Atlantis completed it's final voyage into space ending the United States' Space Shuttle Program.  This was especially saddening to me since I grew up being part of a generation that saw shuttle launches in person and live on TV.  Thoughts flooded my mind about Neil Armstrong being the first to walk on the moon and Sally Ride being the first woman to enter space.  There was something about the Space Program that gave us hope and dreams... if we can put a man or woman into space, we can do anything.  There is also a sense of pride that came with it as well.  This was something that unified us as a country, something we could all agree on.

Space Shuttle Enterprise

National Air and Space Museum's Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center

Prior to being moved to NYC 

ISO 1600 ~ 30mm ~ f/5.7 ~ 1/25 sec

© Juan Carlos Avila

Apollo 13 was launched into space on April 11, 1970, with the mission to land on the moon for the third time.  However, an oxygen tank explosion critically damaged the service module.  Through creativity and injinuity, the crew of Apollo 13 and Mission Control, were able to come up with a solution to "fix" the damage and the entire crew made a miraculous return home.  Then came the tragedy of Space Shuttle Challenger on January 28, 1986.  There was widespread devastation as the country mourned together for the loss of the entire crew.  After the Challenger disaster, everything was quiet until Space Shuttle Columbia broke apart upon reentry into the atmosphere on February 1, 2003.  I remember watching it live on TV..... just waiting, hoping, praying that Columbia would just appear somewhere.... but it soon became evident that she was just gone, along with her entire crew.

I know there was a lot of controversy about the Space Shuttle program and how the Shuttles were extremely outdated and in need of great repair.  So it makes rational sense for NASA to focus on other areas of Space Exploration and Research that it is better equipped to manage.  But it doesn't change my heart.  I want my kids to grow up seeing shuttle launches and hearing the live feed of the astronauts talking to mission control... I want my son to grow up wanting to walk on the moon, and having that be a possibility... but now he either needs to be a millionaire or move to another country if he ever wants to set foot in space...

Space Shuttle Enterprise 

National Air and Space Museum's Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center 

Prior to being moved to NYC

My son and his friend looking out towards the Enterprise

ISO 80 ~ f/2.8 ~ 1/60 sec

(taken with a point and shoot)

© Corrie M Avila

When I heard about the Space Shuttle swaps that were planned for this summer, I was ecstatic.  Since I am in the Washington DC area, I immediately began planning where I would go to get the best viewing spot.  I took my family and we brought chairs and breakfast to the park just north of Reagan Airport and waited.  We knew an approximate timetable that the Discovery would be doing it's flyby, but we were not informed of an exact flight plan.  So just imagine the excitement and thrill of being with so many people all feeling the electricity of the moment along with the sadness of the end.  I had my camera ready as we waited for this epic and final flight of Space Shuttle Discovery as it circled the DC area on it's way to it's final resting place in the Smithsonian Museum.

Space Shuttle Discovery Passing by the Washington Monument 

and the Jefferson Memorial

ISO 100 ~ 105mm ~ f/10 ~ 1/400 sec

© Corrie M Avila

When we got the first glimpse of Discovery as it was riding piggyback on a NASA equipped 747, tears filled my eyes and my hand shook as I took in the magnitude of this moment.  It flew over so close and so loud, my heart stopped.  Everyone was so quiet you could hear a pin drop.  It was as if the crowd gave an unspoken moment of silence for the Space Shuttle Discovery.

The crowd looking on as Space Shuttle Discovery 

flew over Reagan National Airport

ISO 100 ~ 22mm ~ f/14 ~ 1/160 sec

© Juan Carlos Avila

There were several challenges photographing this event.  The first was that we did not know the flight plan.  Several spots were released as "good viewing" spots, but that was it.  It would have been fantastic if I had a crew of about eight who all had cameras so that we could document the entire event, but that was not realistic.  I had to work with what I had, and that was just my husband and myself.  I really wanted to get a good photo of the Shuttle passing by one of the monuments, but again not knowing the flight plan made this difficult to anticipate.  Finally I chose to go to Gravelly Point because it gave a pretty good unrestricted view wherever the flight plan actually led.  The second challenge was not knowing where to stand ~ this may sound petty, but there were photographers fighting over space near the Potomac River.  And the third challenge was the sun.  Shooting in one direction provided great color, but shooting in the other direction produced washed out results.  Thankfully there was cloud cover, so the intensity of the sun wasn't too bad.

Close up of Space Shuttle Discovery

ISO 100 ~ 135mm ~ f/10 ~ 1/400 sec

© Corrie M Avila

After the arrival of Space Shuttle Discovery, there was a ceremony where the Discovery and the Enterprise were nose to nose.  The Discovery was then moved into it's final home at the Smithsonian Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center.  Here is a link to some photos of this historical event.  Shortly after, Space Shuttle Enterprise began it's voyage to the Intrepid Museum that included a flight on a 747 and a boat ride down the Hudson River in NYC.  The third and final space shuttle voyage is of the Endeavour.  After making several flights across the country from Cape Canaveral, the Endeavor landed at the Los Angeles International Airport.  What I find to be so amazing is how they moved the Endeavour from the airport to it's final destination at the California Science Center.  Here is the link to an amazing time lapse video of how they accomplished this fantastic two day feat of moving the Space Shuttle Endeavour through the streets of Los Angeles.  I would have LOVED to see this in person!  They moved trees, electricity poles, and the margin of error is ZERO... simply amazing.

When I stood at Gravelly Point watching the Space Shuttle Discovery pass by right in front of me, all I could think about was how worn and distressed the exterior was.  But as a true hero, she was returning home, wounds and all.  Three Space Shuttles, three trips, that began April 17, 2012 with the Discovery and ended on October 14, 2012 with the Endeavour.  I will never forget the anticipation of shuttle launches as mission control counted down or the breath of relief when the shuttle landed safely back to ground.  It is the end of an era, but the memories will always be in our hearts.  Perhaps we need something new to unify us as a country...

Happy Shooting!

Corrie <3

Edit on 11/8/12 ~ I failed to mention the Space Shuttle Atlantis that retired to its final location at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida.  Since this Space Shuttle didn't play musical space shuttles with the other three, I forgot to include it.  But she holds an impressive resume all the same.  Space Shuttle Atlantis was the last space shuttle to fly and was the last space shuttle to make it's final "walk."  Atlantis was moved on November 2, 2012 with fanfare, fireworks, and reverence to it's final resting place at the Visitor's Complex.  Here are photos of the event from Fox News.  The exhibit there opens on November 11, 2012 ~ just a few days away.

For a map with the locations of all 4 retired space shuttles click here.

Some additional websites:
http://www.intrepidmuseum.org/shuttle/home.aspx
http://www.californiasciencecenter.org/Exhibits/AirAndSpace/endeavour/endeavour.php
http://airandspace.si.edu/collections/discovery/discovery_arrival.cfm
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apollo_13
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Space_Shuttle_Columbia_disaster
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apollo_13
http://www.nasa.gov/home/index.html