For all you non-nerds out there, today we got real nerdy and waited outside in our backyard to see the space shuttle Endeavour fly past our house. We waited for 30 minutes but then Antz and Liv couldn’t take the heat and went indoors. He told me to text him when I saw it, like less than 5 minutes I heard the booming sound of a plane and all these simultaneous cheering. I almost dropped my Nikon and my phone trying to text Antz and take photos at the same time. By the time I sent him a text to come outside it was flying directly over my head. I had the Nikon D300 with the 200mm lens but for some reason *my camera is a douche* I couldn’t get it to auto focus to get a better close up. Here’s the best ones I got, all the crappy ones that make it look like a toy when it was incredibly massive. It was exhilarating watching it fly by. I am so happy I got a shot of Endeavour with Liv in it. I hope she’ll show her great-grandchild one day.
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| Directly over our house |
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| The shuttle gets lost against the mountains |
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| folks were watching on top of this hill next to Occidental College |
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| Pretty fucking historic |
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| this one is my fave |
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| YAY!! |
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| darn power lines! |
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| headed towards downtown LA (City Hall) |
It flew right over our house and then turned around and flew by the Jet Propulsion Lab which is in La Canada. Here is an article from LA Times explaining the shuttle’s route.
Anticipated fog in the Bay Area
has postponed Endeavour’s departure from Edwards Air Force Base from
7:15 a.m. to 8:15 a.m. That means the shuttle is now expected back in
Los Angeles air space around 11:30 a.m., when it will circle numerous
area landmarks.
Endeavour will fly over at least the following:
- Los Angeles City Hall
- California Science Center
- Getty Center
- Griffith Observatory
- Queen Mary
- Long Beach Aquarium
- Malibu, Venice and Huntington beaches
- Jet Propulsion Laboratory
- Universal Studios
- Disneyland
Police are advising people to plan ahead. Consider taking public
transportation or planning where you’re going to park in advance. There
are likely to be crowds.
The Griffith Park Observatory should be a great spot to get a
close-up glimpse and photographs of the shuttle with the city in the background. There’s also plenty of space throughout
the park that should offer good views.
Los Angeles City Councilman Tom
LaBonge will provide free shuttle service from the parking lot of the
Greek Theatre to the Griffith Observatory beginning at 8 a.m. Friday.
With plenty of parking and ample room for crowds, Universal CityWalk
should be a fun viewing area as the shuttle flies over Universal
Studios.
In Orange County, Disneyland would offer a similar experience. Maybe
you can even take a picture of the shuttle with Sleeping Beauty
Castle in the background.
Downtown, the best spots for seeing the shuttle as it passes over Los
Angeles City Hall will probably be tall buildings or the top levels of
nearby parking garages. City officials will open the Tom Bradley Tower to
view Endeavour’s flyover, and they expect spectators to gather at the
newly opened Grand Park.
In Long Beach, the parks that dot Shoreline Drive or Ocean
Boulevard are probably among of the best places to see the shuttle as it
passes over the Queen Mary and Aquarium of the Pacific. The Queen Mary
will also offer free admission between 9:30 a.m. and 11 a.m. to anyone
who tells the ticket attendant the code word “Endeavour.”
And if you want to watch the shuttle land at LAX, you’re in
luck. El Segundo police are blocking off sections of Imperial Avenue for
public viewing. Beginning at 9 a.m., police will close the 300 to 600
blocks of East Imperial Avenue and the 700 block of West Imperial Avenue
to traffic, a stretch that includes Clutter’s Park.
We plan to see it in person at the California Science Museum.