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Credit: Dimitri Gerondidakis,
NASA
Explanation:
On July 4th, the space shuttle orbiter Discovery rocketed into space on
mission STS-121.
Now docked with the International Space Station, Discovery
orbits
planet Earth at about 27 thousand kilometers per hour.
But in this dramatic sunset view
taken in May, Discovery is approaching the service structures
at Kennedy Space Center's launch pad 39B at the blinding speed of
(less than) 2 kilometers per hour.
Of course, the
orbiter,
booster rockets, and
external fuel tank
ride on one of NASA's workhorse crawler transporters.
Built for the Apollo program to carry the giant
Saturn V rocket, the
crawler transporters have seen four decades
of service.
Tomorrow's picture: Eskimo Nebula
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NASA Web Site Statements, Warnings, and Disclaimers
NASA Official: Jay Norris. Specific rights apply.
A service of: LHEA at NASA / GSFC
& Michigan Tech. U.
Based on Astronomy Picture
Of the Day
Publications with keywords: space shuttle
Publications with words: space shuttle
See also: