Booster Max Q
Condensation clouds form around the nose of Atlantis’ solid rocket boosters as the space shuttle makes the transition to supersonic speed. The effect can be seen below, in a frame taken from one of NASA’s HD video cameras mounted to the External Tank:
Chris Hadfield
Canadian astronaut Chris Hadfield gives an interview at the press site of the Kennedy Space Centre. Hadfield flew on two shuttle missions, STS-74 (Atlantis) and STS-100 (Endeavour).
Orbit, Ho!
Riding 30 stories of fire, twin solid rocket boosters propel space shuttle Endeavour toward low earth orbit on the final launch of her career, and the penultimate launch of the entire 30-year long space shuttle Program.
Tower Clearance
Space shuttle Endeavour, STS-134, clears the tower on the final launch of her career as seen from the Banana Creek viewing site.
NASA Marshalls
A family of ospreys stand watch in their nest, framed by the NASA ‘meatball’ logo on the side of the Vehicle Assembly Building.
Flag Forward
Endeavour’s flag flies proudly over Launch Complex 39A. This is actually a fairly difficult shot to get, 95% of the time the wind blows the flag backwards.
Reveal
Space shuttle Discovery, STS-133, aims purposefully skyward on the launch pad immediately after rollback of the Rotating Service Structure.
Manners
A beaver poses for a Ms. Manners poster, displaying teeth stained red from a winter diet of bark.
Flight Lines
A mature black-crowned night heron wings its way past the camera, at the end of its long migration north for the summer.
Little Britt Willy
A groundhog surveys the rocky landscape of the Canadian Shield, offshore from Georgian Bay’s Byng Inlet.
Bustard Light 2011
The sun sets on the lighthouse and twin ranges of the Bustard Islands, Georgian Bay.
Ancient Waiting
A painted turtle leans into the sunset light, basking in the beautiful warmth of long August days.
Almighty Branch
A beaver, reaching for a tasty low-lying branch, misses the target and sinks back slowly in the water.
Backlit Display
A brown anole does its best to ward off the photographer on the Maritime Hammock Trail of the Archie Carr National Wildlife Refuge.
