Space Shuttle

[steve5]

The space shuttle launch may be taking place when we are down at WDW. I am sure the areas around the space center will be croweded. Is there a good place at WDW to watch the launch? From all the details, if it takes place on the 7/11, it will be at night. I am sure you will be able to see it from just about anywhere in the area.

[Strmchsr]

If you can see the sky you'll be able to see the shuttle. Especially at night. Just look to the NE and watch it go.

[hubbyofadisneyholic]

Hope your luck is better than ours was.
We had rented a car and were on the way to watch the launch on 6/13 when it got scrubbed due to the hydrogen leak.
My daughter was totally bummed out...:cry:

[steve5]

I hope so too. Especially since it will be at night. I don't plan on going anywhere outside of WDW, but if it was going up, I want to be positioned to see it.

[faline]

Many years ago (I refuse to reveal how many), we were camping in Fort Wilderness when a shuttle was scheduled for launch. We got up at 4:00 a.m. to head south and to get as close as possible. It's an experience I'll never forget! While we could not get real close, we were close enough that we not only saw it go up, we could feel the ground shake!

[maxrebo77]

We were on the Big Red Boat at Port Canaveral. I was out on the deck. It had rained the night before. You could see the tiny shuttle little puffs of clouds. I went down the stairs to alert the kid and slipped and fell on my tailbone. Couldn't sit right or get up right from sitting for over two years, and the shuttle never took off anyway.

[#1donaldfan]

....it was also scrubbed 6-17 this year ....my sister and her husband left Disney 2 am to catch the launch, and once they hit the last toll, they were told it was not going to go, so they turned around and slept in half a day and missed out, not only on a launch, but fun at the parks....I think the launch was scheduled for 6:40 am ???? anyway, not fun...

[Ed]

....I think the launch was scheduled for 6:40 am ????

Actually, it was scheduled for 5:40 am, which was even worse for those folks.

Shortly after we moved down here, we drove out to Titusville to watch an evening launch, arriving about 4 hours prior to launch. We found a great spot, directly across the river from the launch pad. The countdown was going smoothly, we were all psyched, and they scrubbed the launch with just a few minutes to go. :(

Bottom line is that the shuttle is very old technology, and experience has shown that even the slightest problem can have disastrous results. Therefore, delays and scrubs are inevitable. Better safe than sorry.

[Jll3Sonex]

We caught the launch on 3-15, seeing it from the north side of Port Canaveral, right at dusk.

You'll probably be able to see it without any problems - but if you can manage it I'd recommend getting a bit closer. And be prepared for the mother of all traffic jams trying to get out! It took us over an hour and a half to get back to our motel in Cocoa Beach - 5 miles away... while the Shuttle orbited the Earth once! :D

Man, what a weekend. Epcot, KSC, then a Shuttle Launch... Who says you can't have it all! (BTW, if you're headed over that way, I DEFINITELY recommend the Shuttle Launch Experience at KSC. And yes, you exit through a gift shop after the ride. It IS state law, after all...)

[steamboat willy]

I knew I had seen this somewhere, I called the Shuttle Info line and got through just fine.

NASA Shuttle Launch Recorded Information Line 800-572-4636

Observation deck on Bay Lake side of Contempoarary would be excellent viewing. With back to MK looking over "old" Discovery Island. I used to view night time rocket launches from the boats I drove on Bay Lake. If it's at night and clear you can see from anywhere in Florida just about. Viewing on property without the traffic and you would not miss any Disney Magic.
Then catch early breakfast somewhere!

Steamboat Willy a.k.a. (Steve also)

[lindique]

I was in EPCOT last March and exited Soarin' just as the Shuttle was going up. I had a perfect view of it right over Spaceship Earth. Pure dumb luck (or pixie dust!) - I had no idea that it was going to happen. I just saw people standing around looking up and asked what was going on. Unfortunately, I didn't have my camera with me that day. I was even able to see the solid rocket boosters fall off. It's a sight I'll never forget.