Mirror Images

It's really taking a lot of self control right now not to bust out singing a popular Foreigner song from 1978. What you are seeing here is not the result of some fancy photoshopping. It really is two Space Shuttles ready on the pads at the Kennedy Space Center. This is the last time you will ever see this occurrence and the first time it's happened since 2001. The Space Shuttle Atlantis is in the foreground on launch pad 39A in preparation for its launch on STS-125 while Endeavour stands ready on launch pad 39B in case it is needed as a rescue vessel for Atlantis during its risky Hubble servicing mission set to launch October 10. STS-125 will be the first Space Shuttle mission not to rendezvous and dock with the International Space Station since the Columbia disaster in 2003. As the Hubble and ISS are in vastly different orbits, a docking with the ISS in case of an emergency heat shield situation will be impossible. This is why NASA managers have Endeavour ready to go, should it be needed. Once it gets the all clear from it's rescue standby, Endeavour will be rolled over to 39A for STS-126 to the ISS targeted around November 26. After it rolls off 39B over to 39A NASA will begin it's transformation of 39B into a future launch pad for Constellation missions.

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[NASA]
Image Credit: NASA/Troy Cryder

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"Traffic is a Space Shuttle on short final"

I sure thought this photo looked fake, but it comes straight from the boys at NASA and the Kennedy Space Center. The image shows the Space Shuttle Discovery as it makes its final approach to Runway 15 at the Shuttle Landing Facility at the KSC. The mission wrapped up on June 14 as STS-124 with the landing that took place mere seconds after this photo was taken with the orbiter over the approach lights. Pretty crazy shot. I've seen a lot of aircraft head-on during final, but this one takes the cake. Image cropped a bit to better squeeze within the already limiting confines of the blogosphere.

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Photo credit: NASA/Kevin O'Connell, Scott Haun

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