Are You Shuttled Out? Well,I'm Not...

I went.  I saw. I was awed. I was overwhelmed. I was blown away.  It was AMAZING!

I’ll bet you are all probably shuttled-out by now, but please don’t run away yet. I know that many of you saw it with your own eyes, or have seen enough footage that you want to run and hide for a few days, but I wanted to share my experience with you, and I hope that you will share yours too.

I remember watching the Apollo 11 take off and the first moon landing on TV in 1969. I remember Space Shuttle’s Columbia’s first launch in 1981. I saw the tragedies unfold with both explosions of Challenger and Columbia.  I have watched through the ups and downs that go with space exploration and I have such great respect and admiration for our astronauts, (and their families) as well as for all the scientists, researchers and more who made the impossible become possible.  Endeavour was built in 1987 to replace Challenger and was the last shuttle built. All of this is why it meant so much for me to see the Space Shuttle Endeavour this morning as it was carried on the back of a NASA 747 Shuttle Carrier Aircraft (SCA) on its final journey to its new home in Los Angeles.

This morning I woke up with excitement and anticipation flowing through my veins. Would it really happen? Would I get actually get to see it? There were so many things that could prevent it from happening.  I checked the weather reports, and Monterey Bay weather seemed iffy, while Mountain View weather seemed like it would be fine. I thought quickly about what I should do; stick to my original plan or head on over to Silicon Valley. I decided to take the chance and we headed out to Monterey at 7:00 a.m.

I expected big crowds, but there wasn’t anything abnormal for Monterey, and parking was a breeze. We walked along Cannery Row and settled on the ocean overlook outside of The Clement Monterey Intercontinental Hotel.  Eventually, the crowd began to grow, but it was never overcrowded. People were networking all around us, and I found that I was also an important part of the networking chain. Information was coming in on Twitter for some people, but I had the advantage that my husband was watching in Santa Clara not far from Moffett Field and he kept me updated via text messages. I also checked web updates on my smartphone, as did most people around me. This is also a reminder about the different technological world we live in today than when the Space Shuttle program began. This same program plays a big role in part of our modern technology.

We were freezing, but not many of us cared about that. We were all waiting with anticipation and chatting with strangers next to us. The excitement was building within each and every one of us.

Suddenly, the word came through and my informant in Santa Clara told us he saw the pair fly over the mountains and on their way to Santa Cruz. The excitement began to build with all of us, everyone reaching for their cameras and binoculars.

The weather cooperated very well, and if anything added to the drama. The fog cleared out directly around us, with a thick haze over the bay towards Santa Cruz. We all watched the haze as we had just heard on that it had arrived in Santa Cruz and was heading across the bay. Someone exclaimed “There it is!” and we all looked into the dense curtain of gray haze. Suddenly, a dark shadow began to appear. Slowly the dark spot became bigger, and the shape began to grow before our eyes.  Within seconds the ghost broke free of the mist and flew out of the haze into its full glory.  There it was. The enormous craft came into full view to spectators. A roar of cheers and applause broke out among the crowd.  We also got a low altitude flyover and we could see every detail.  Everyone was smiling from ear to ear, and there was more than one tear in the eyes of many onlookers. This is the United States of America at its best. I am honored to have witnessed history today, a part of the space program that has always been so important to me.

I have never seen anything like it before, and I have seen a lot of wonderful things in my life. This is up there at the top of that list and I will never forget it.

We felt that sense of camaraderie that comes with sharing such a great experience. Goodbyes were said to our new friends, and the woman next to me wished me a “Happy Shuttle Day”, and it really was just that.

Thank you NASA for bringing me and so many people such joy today and for letting us share in this incredible experience.

We would love to hear your experiences too, so please share! Feel free to post them here in the comments.