Watching Artemis 1 Launch from Indian River

[Mako]

Hi everyone, wondering who is planning on coming over to Brevard to watch our launch of Artemis 1 on Monday morning, especially who might be bringing your boat up.

The best locations are obviously from KSC itself. Tough tickets to snag unless you're coming in with a friend. I'll be watching from 3 miles out (minimum safe blast distance) from the launch tower "parking lot", but the good news is that the second best viewing area is from the Indian River, slightly north of west of the VAB.

Depending on your draft, you want to position yourself outside Banana Creek, at least a mile off the Merritt Island shoreline. You'll get about 4 feet of depth and even more if you head towards the middle of the river instead.

I'd say don't get too close to the shore line because the trees will block the view of the pad, and if you can watch elevated from your flybridge, then even better.

They say we're expecting upwards of a half million people crowding the Space Coast for launch. We're reporting to work by 3am, but even the roads on US1 will be packed by 5am.

If you can't bring your trawler/cruiser up here then just your dinghy is fine and you can launch from Kennedy Point Park. Weather forecasts mild conditions and the river gets rough only on really windy days.

It's an historic event and there's lots of excitement in the air around here.

Hope everyone enjoys!

 

[smitty477]

Hi everyone, wondering who is planning on coming over to Brevard to watch our launch of Artemis 1 on Monday morning, especially who might be bringing your boat up.

The best locations are obviously from KSC itself. Tough tickets to snag unless you're coming in with a friend. I'll be watching from 3 miles out (minimum safe blast distance) from the launch tower "parking lot", but the good news is that the second best viewing area is from the Indian River, slightly north of west of the VAB.

Depending on your draft, you want to position yourself outside Banana Creek, at least a mile off the Merritt Island shoreline. You'll get about 4 feet of depth and even more if you head towards the middle of the river instead.

I'd say don't get too close to the shore line because the trees will block the view of the pad, and if you can watch elevated from your flybridge, then even better.

They say we're expecting upwards of a half million people crowding the Space Coast for launch. We're reporting to work by 3am, but even the roads on US1 will be packed by 5am.

If you can't bring your trawler/cruiser up here then just your dinghy is fine and you can launch from Kennedy Point Park. Weather forecasts mild conditions and the river gets rough only on really windy days.

It's an historic event and there's lots of excitement in the air around here.

Hope everyone enjoys!

"but the good news is that the second best viewing area is from the Indian River, slightly north of west of the VAB."

That's where we will be - just not on a boat. Hope the weather holds up...

 

[Olebird]

Took a friend over to watch the last suttle night launch - (from my Bonanza 5000ft msl, 10 miles) He was afraid we migfht not see it LOL!



When that thing lit off - Havana was a good sea!! What a fire works show!


We gotta get off this rock! And soon

 

[Mako]

would be interesting to watch from a small plane, but watch out for all the fighter jets and helicopters buzzing around

 

[Olebird]

Was a beehive .... but organized. F4's patrolling - but when they painted you with their fire control radar everthing on the panel would light up - iff would go nuts - time to turn to a new heading. Navy used to run traing intercepts out of PNS and JAX. Pucker factor goes way up when you know some shave tail doing M1 with maybe 200hrs total time has a radar lock on you. They stopped it several years ago after some near misses. Very common along the gulf coast.


If you have a chance - it's a bucket list item. My son was sailing his boat up the nature coast one night when Space X launched one of it's boosters that come back to land - scared the heck out of him!!

 

[HopCar]

It’s going to be loud! You’ll see the shockwave coming across the water.
I was at the press site for the Apollo 11 and 12 launches. That was about 3.5 miles from Pad 39A. There is water between the rocket and press site. It actually scared me the first time I saw the shock wave headed toward me. Everybody there remembers feeling a solid thump in the chest when it hit. It wasn’t just loud but physical as well.

 

[Mako]

You’re right that feeling the launch is as important as seeing or hearing it. I watched a launch from the roof of the VAB (500 ft) once and it was quite blasé. There was no reverb or reflection off surrounding buildings, blasting your senses and setting off car alarms (that’s a real trip!)

 

[BobMc]

One of the best viewing spots for launches from the 39 pads (A/B) is in the Mosquito Lagood, just north of the Haulover Canal on the northern end of Merritt Island. We were fortunate enough to be there for the last space shuttle launch in 2011, and although we watched many shuttle launches from the Banana River (just north of the Barge Canal), the view from Mosquito Lagoon was incredible! This launch of Artemis is going out to the NE, so from the Mosquito Lagoon you'll have a great vantage point.

 

[HopCar]

This rocket has a lot of used parts in it! The main engines are all previously launched shuttle engines and some of the segments of the solid rocket boosters are also used shuttle parts!

So we’ve got old SRB segments strapped next to a big fuel tank similar to the Shuttle fuel tank! What could go wrong?

Good thing this one’s unmanned.?

 

[HopCar]

“This launch of Artemis is going out to the NE, so from the Mosquito Lagoon you'll have a great vantage point.”
__________________
Thanks for the info. I was going to ask which way it was going. Probably won’t see it from Miami. I’ll go up for the first manned launch if I live long enough.

 

[tpfbdf]

I grew up in Central Florida and was lucky enough to work out at KSC for a Summer in the late ‘80s. I got to see at least one launch standing in front of the Launch Control Center. Quite spectacular to get hit on multiple sides by that shockwave. LOL! If you are in the area and can at least step out to see the launch… it should be spectacular! (With a NE trajectory… I’m guessing the folks in Jacksonville should get a glimpse?)

 

[dannc]

The viewing spot is all kinda relative.

We once parked along a causeway near the Cape to see a shuttle launch which did not work out since the launch was scrubbed for some reason.

I saw an Apollo launch while driving to Orlando down 441, which is quite a distance from the Cape. Danged Apollo was BIG.

We could see launches from the Cape in South Florida if there was no cloud cover. Saw the Shuttle and other launches a few times.

One day I was driving north on I95 when the Challenger was launched and it was obvious that something bad happened. It was not right. Got to work, and we were one of the few departments on a large site with 10,000+ employees to have TV, which allowed us to verify that Challenger had blown up. I could see all the way in South Florida that something went wrong with Challenger. Twas not a good day.

Later,
Dan

 

[Mako]

Even though weather overall seems to be cooperating, there may be morning low cloud cover like we had today, which would result in about T+10 seconds of excitement, followed by about 2 minutes of roar only.

BTW I've seen some calculations estimating a few decibels less noise than shuttle, a lot due to the altered flame trench.

 

[PJHoffnet]

Agree with southern Mosquito Lagoon - but it will probably be busy.

One of the best viewing spots for launches from the 39 pads (A/B) is in the Mosquito Lagood, just north of the Haulover Canal on the northern end of Merritt Island.

“This launch of Artemis is going out to the NE, so from the Mosquito Lagoon you'll have a great vantage point.”

SpaceX Falcon 9 launch with the Axiom crew onboard (08 APR '22). SLS/Artemis 1 will certainly be a much bigger candle.

We were headed up to Daytona Beach for a weekend 'staycation' and to watch the St Lucie Mets play to DB Tortugas.

Had just make the turn northward in the Mosquito Lagoon after clearing the Haulover Canal. The Admiral had a great view - I was paying a bit more attention to navigation and collision avoidance at the helm

[/IMG]

 

[hmason]

I have been able to see most launches from our marina in Stuart. We watch from the flybridge. Dang if tomorrow morning I’m scheduled for a tennis game from 8:30 to 10:30. Hope the launch is a bit delayed.

 

[Old Sea Dog]

Launch postponed. Next window is Friday.

Sent from my SM-G715U1 using Trawler Forum mobile app

 

[psneeld]

Didn't find it, but was the hydrogen leak from the ULA made second stage?

 

[Mako]

The issue is not with the engine itself, but with the bleeder system which chills/pre-cools the engine down to liquid hydrogen temperatures. Without this step the engine would catastrophically fail when being bombarded with −400 °F fuel.

The press briefing held an hour ago was quite candid and transparent about the problem and moving forward. Pretty much jived with what our techs were telling us.

I was surprised that I didn't see many boats out on the river. However, the manned missions always tend to draw bigger crowds. Traffic was a parking lot even at 3am out on the roads.

 

[Simi 60]

Was thinking the other day when it was on the news here that NASA and the moon seems a bit ho-hum now that the other guy sends rockets up regularly, that come back and land on a barge and is gearing up to go to Mars.

 

[psneeld]

The issue is not with the engine itself, but with the bleeder system which chills/pre-cools the engine down to liquid hydrogen temperatures. Without this step the engine would catastrophically fail when being bombarded with −400 °F fuel.

The press briefing held an hour ago was quite candid and transparent about the problem and moving forward. Pretty much jived with what our techs were telling us.

I was surprised that I didn't see many boats out on the river. However, the manned missions always tend to draw bigger crowds. Traffic was a parking lot even at 3am out on the roads.

My question was about the stage built by ULA.

Hope you aren't part of ULA...their nickname in the Canaveral area is not flattering.

 

[Mako]

No @psneed, I'm civil servant. So what is this nickname?

 

[PJHoffnet]

Bit of a smaller crowd then I was expecting too.

I was surprised that I didn't see many boats out on the river. However, the manned missions always tend to draw bigger crowds. Traffic was a parking lot even at 3am out on the roads.

I'd guestimate there were 50-60 of us anchored/loitering west of the VAB/SLC 39B, east of the AICW. It looked like the first day of a fishing tournament as folks raced south to be first under the NASA Causeway - and I guess first back to the ramp.

Couple of the bigger off shore center consoles sure made it a washing machine for the littler bow riders. Didn't bother us - had folks overtaking us one & two whistle all the way back down to the Barge Canal. Guess going 8 knots is like driving 60 on I95.

 

[Mako]

We should know by Thursday if this Saturday is a go. At least the launch window is a more "normal" time in mid-afternoon.

 

[PJHoffnet]

NASA's Tuesday (2200HR Zulu) news conference set the next launch attempt as 1817HR Zulu on Saturday 03 SEPT. It's gonna be a zoo since it's in the middle of the holiday weekend.

 

[BobMc]

We should know by Thursday if this Saturday is a go. At least the launch window is a more "normal" time in mid-afternoon.

Actually, there is no "normal" time for a launch since it all depends on the mission and how everything lines up. The Saturday afternoon launch has a high likelihood of being scrubbed due to weather (not even factoring in other issues) as that's the time of day that thunderstorms start showing up here in central Floridah.

 

[psneeld]

No @psneed, I'm civil servant. So what is this nickname?

Last Atlas V launch I went to see was postponed for the 4th or 5th time and a local we were talking to shook his head and said "yeah...around here ULA is known as Unable To Launch Again"

Told you it wasn't flattering.....

 

[Mako]

So we're about 1/2 hour away from a "successful" launch of Artemis. Everything is looking good. Wondering who's over there on their boat watching, and if you are, then I'm jealous because I'm watching from my little Mac screen.

 

[HopCar]

Wish I had driven up. I’ll try to get a glimpse of it from Miami. I’ve managed to see two launches from Miami but that is very unusual. This one has twice the thrust of either of the rockets I’ve seen from Miami so I figure I have a chance. When I was 19 I saw both Apollo 11 and 12 from the press site 3-1/2 miles away. Photo Apollo 11 night before the launch.

 

[psneeld]

T-10 and on hold for an ethernet switch.

 

[HopCar]

I saw it from Miami! Just a small flame rising in the North for a few seconds but I saw it!