1st Hand Account of the SS1 Flight - Peace, Love, and an Alt Space Revolution

Mad Grad Student · 2004-06-21 21:11:22

After today, all I can say is simply WOW! This was the first time I've ever seen a space launch of any kind, and it was also THE first non-gov manned space flight. Nice little coincidence, eh? Anyway, here's a first-hand account of what actually being there was like.

It all started at 2:00 AM in a Motel 6 in Bakersfield. By the time we'd booked a hotel every single room in Mojave and most of the neighboring towns was booked, so we had to set up base camp 55 miles and an hour's drive away. The drive over was mostly just a fight to stay awake after four hours of sleep (Although it was actually more like five minutes, with all of the anticipation), but there was a very nice surprise once we got about ten minutes out of Bakersfield. There were practically zero lights for dozens of miles around us and the air was sub-20% humidity so when I looked up at the sky it was a magnificant splattering of stars far greater than anything I've seen before in the city. Seeing the Milky Way arcing across the sky made it just perfect.

At about 3:00 we reached Mojave and shortly after the trafic clogged up to get into the airport. There was a line on the median starting about two miles out to get in, but after 40 minutes or so we were safely inside the airport being battered by what could have been a dust storm kicked up by all the cars and the fierce pre-dawn winds. I still ventured out of the car and picked up a Scaled Composites T-shirt and waited with the crowd 'til sunrise.

An hour or so later the eastern sky became deep blood red as the night gave way to twilight. As I set up some lawn chairs only about 70 feet from the runway or so (they let you get really close) I watched as the stars dissappeared, one by one until Jupiter was the only non-airplane dot in the sky. Most of the time I used the binoculars to look at the planes, but turning them towards Jupiter I was still able to see the bright yellow-red disk and two of the Gallilean moons.

Finally, pretty close to schedule, White Knight taxied out with Space Ship One slung underneath. Everyone was packed within ten feet of the fence that had been placed in front of the taxiway, straining to get a good view at the Rutan combo that was about to make history. Fortunately, it wasn't hard, the pair came within 30 feet of the viewing area, the crowd erupting into cheers as it passed by. The two came roaring down the runway and quickly climbed off towards the distant mountains, followed by an Extra and a Beech Starship. During the next hour, nearly the whole crowd craned their necks up to see White Knight slowly gain altitude over the airport.

Ten minutes before the launch, everyone lost the pair. In either a planed move or a stroke of bad luck, White Knight happened to be occupying the space just barely below the blazing disk of the Sun when SS1 disengaged. Nearly the whole crowd was thinking "where are they?' right up until someone called out "There it goes!" I was barely able to see SS1 during most of the ascent, but once it fully crossed the Sun I was able to see the trail of exhaust from the engine. Even with the binoculars, at that point it was so high you couldn't see anything but a fat, vertical contrail from the rocket. Someone nearby had a radio, and we were able to hear the controllers calling out altitude during the burn. "60... 70... 90... 120... 160... 200... 250... cutoff... 270... 300... 315,000... near apogee." Since there was nothing to see everyone was huddled around the radio thinking "Did he make it." I think that most of us were mentally trying to figure out exactly how many feet Melvill needed. In the end, he barely got there.

Ten minutes or so later, we spotted SS1 again, and the whole crowd again cheered like Scaled Composites had won the world series. SS1 and its three chase planes all passed over the field in formation, then landed, SS1 first, once more to the applause of the group. Shortly thereafter, White Knight streaked over the viewing area on a high-speed pass before turning to enter the pattern to land. I headed over to another area to hear Melvill, then Rutan deliver speeches on the event. No one knew at the time about the control problems or that he came within a few hundred feet of not making it to space, we were just having a great time. Afterward, I grabbed a donut and we headed off again, for a three hour drive to Paso Robles, where I am now. What I (and many others) would give to have been in the cockpit with Melvill... :;):

So, did anyone else see the event? It was pretty cool, even though the veiws were probably not as good as those on TV, you just can't beat the thrill and braging rigths of being there. Congratulations to Scaled Composites and Burt Rutan, if this streak continues space will soon be open for the rest of us. I can't wait!

Rxke · 2004-06-22 00:55:06

Thanks for the eye-witness acount, Mad Grad!

Sure beat looking at a very pixellated, shaking picture on BBC online...

Rxke · 2004-06-22 01:10:45

If you look closely, you can see the dent on the underside, near the tail...

http://www.mojavebooks.com/mhv/photos/0 … 5-cr-8.jpg
http://www.mojavebooks.com/mhv/photos/0 … 74-cr8.jpg

full picture'show:' http://www.mojavebooks.com/mhv/040621-1.htm]Here

Palomar · 2004-06-22 10:50:05

when I looked up at the sky it was a magnificant splattering of stars far greater than anything I've seen before in the city. Seeing the Milky Way arcing across the sky made it just perfect.
What I (and many others) would give to have been in the cockpit with Melvill... :;):
So, did anyone else see the event?

*Excellent -- witnessing history firsthand.

Yep, stars away from all that light pollution are fabulous. Especially the Milky Way.

Melville did have companions in the cockpit -- M & Ms.

Thanks for sharing with us, Mad Grad. I only saw the highlights of the mission on TV.

--Cindy

Mad Grad Student · 2004-06-26 22:57:37

I guess I was the only one that saw the launch? Oh, well. I took a bunch of pictures there, and I'm waiting for the rest of this reel of film (Yes, film! Dinosaur-era camera tech) to get used up. Once I've taken the rest of the pictures, I'll upload some of the SS1 flight shots up to this thread.

Mad Grad Student · 2004-07-20 16:34:26

I think I missed something in my original account of the SS1 flight. Sure, what I describe above is the sequence of events that happened, but I feel that the atmosphere, the feel of what it was like to be there was missed. I could try to explain that now, nearly a month later, but I found a great editorial at spacedaily.com that sums up the feeling of what it was like to be there. I'd pretty much be echoing what the author says.

http://www.spacedaily.com/news/xprize-04l.html]It Was Our Day

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#1 2004-06-21 21:11:22

Re: 1st Hand Account of the SS1 Flight - Peace, Love, and an Alt Space Revolution

#2 2004-06-22 00:55:06

Re: 1st Hand Account of the SS1 Flight - Peace, Love, and an Alt Space Revolution

#3 2004-06-22 01:10:45

Re: 1st Hand Account of the SS1 Flight - Peace, Love, and an Alt Space Revolution

#4 2004-06-22 10:50:05

Re: 1st Hand Account of the SS1 Flight - Peace, Love, and an Alt Space Revolution

#5 2004-06-26 22:57:37

Re: 1st Hand Account of the SS1 Flight - Peace, Love, and an Alt Space Revolution

#6 2004-07-20 16:34:26

Re: 1st Hand Account of the SS1 Flight - Peace, Love, and an Alt Space Revolution

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