NASA Kepler Mission Launch—March, 2009

I've been working in the Science Office Center (SOC) for the NASA Kepler mission the past two and half years. The long awaited time for launch had finally arrived.

Attending a launch is an overwhelming experience, especially when you're involved with the payload. The photos do not capture this emotion, but you might get a feel for it from the spectator's reactions in the videos.

One of the most striking aspects of the launch for me was the brightness of the rocket's exhaust. Pictures show the flames as yellow, but in person, the light is perfectly white. If you've ever watched magnesium burn, you get the idea. And then there's the noise of the rocket, which doesn't reach you until the rocket has climbed high into the sky. It wasn't as loud as I had expected, nor did it shake the ground, but it was still quite loud.

Time moves fast. And slow. All at the same time. It seemed like the rocket was gone in seconds, but watching the recording clock on my camera, I saw that minutes had actually gone by.

You can see the photos below in a slideshow, view them on a map, or download the GPS tracks for the flight out or the the flight back. You can also view more photos of the assembly of the Delta II rocket at the Kennedy Space Center's Media Gallery and read the Kepler launch blog.

Ron Jons, a Cocoa Beach institution

After a great night's sleep, Lori and I pretty much vegged around the hotel room during the day. Lori worked, while I configured my new ThinkPad T500.

We attended the L-2 Kepler Reception that evening at the Marriot Courtyard hotel. Bill Borucki and Dave Koch were there of course, as well as project management Jim Fanson and Leslie Livesay, and participating scientists including Geoff Marcy. The Science Operations Center (SOC) were there in force in their blue hats (thanks, Jon!), as well as a whole bunch of people from the other units we had never met before.

We stopped by Ron Jons on the way to the reception. Dave raved about it. While we could miss the launch, he said, we couldn't miss going into Ron Jons. It's an enormous surf shop in an odd building. On the other hand, many of the buildings are odd.

You can download the GPS tracks.

We toured the Kennedy Space Center today starting from the Kennedy Visitor Complex. There is a lot to see and do here. The tickets are valid for a couple of days, and you really need two days to see everything. The tour alone takes most of the day. The Saturn 5 exhibit along the way is amazing. You have no idea of the scale of this rocket until you're right underneath it. We had to skip the International Space Station (ISS) exhibit to get back to the Kepler mission briefing.

Towards the end of the day, we attended the Kepler mission briefing, geared towards family and guests. However, I learned a lot about the Delta II and the launch sequence.

You can download the GPS tracks.

Launch pad 39A	The vehicle assembly building (VAB). Unfortunately, we didn't stop near the front where a enormous NASA logo and American flag are painted.	Pad 39b with Discovery hidden by the protected tower
A shuttle engine	Actual equipment from the Apollo control room	Lori is dwarfed by the base of the Saturn 5
Miles and miles and miles of tubes	Bill takes a self-portrait in front of the Saturn 5 engines that were so big, it was impossible not to get them in the background	Mike appears to hold up the first stage in another picture
The second stage's engines	The first stage	The Lunar Module (LM)
Command/Service module (actual one on floor) which housed the crew. The Launch Escape System (LES), the mini-rocket attached to the CM with the scaffolding, could whisk the CM to safety in case of mishap. On the way to the moon, the CSM would detach, turn around, and extract the Lunar Module (LM) from the conical section.	A reinactment of the moon landing	Mike moves worlds to show the Kepler field of view (FOV)
Lori in the rocket garden Bill in the KSC rocket garden sporting his soma.fm t-shirt

After lunch, I checked out Jetty Park where the SOC was going to meet for a picnic dinner and watch the launch. Afterward, Lori and I took a walk on the beach.

You can download the GPS tracks.

The fairing closes in on the Kepler spacecraft, attached to the third stage (and the rest of the rocket for that matter) Photo by NASA	The Delta II with Kepler after the protective tower is pulled back	“Search for Earth-size Planets” Photo by NASA
It was surreal—people fishing, walking, sunning, playing, while a rocket in the background (upper right) was being prepared for launch. And I was involved with it! An artsy version
Bill and Lori self portrait	Lori on the beach with the Delta II and Kepler beyond	Bill with the rocket in the background

In the evening, we headed back out to Jetty Park and had dinner with the rest of the SOC. While the kids played in the playground, illuminated by the lights of our cars, some of us established our position on the jetty early on to beat the descending hordes and set up our tripods.

The jetty is 2.9 miles from launch pad 17B and is the closest the public can view a launch anywhere in the world.

You can download the GPS tracks.

Enjoy!

The Delta II and Kepler, being fueled for launch	A Close Encounters of the Third Kind shot	Delta II “breathes” once its liquid oxygen tank is full less than an hour from launch
Ignition! Photo by NASA Go Delta II! Go Kepler! Photo by NASA Kepler streaks off to make new discoveries Photo by Ben Cooper And then it was gone Bill Borucki celebrates a successful launch at the Hilton bar with Martha, Dave, Jennifer, Natalie, and Doug Photo by Geoff Marcy

Copyright © 2009 Bill Wohler Last modified: Sun Mar 22 11:35:01 PDT 2009 About photos

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