Isle of Wight science writer and evangelist, Dr Lucy Rogers, made a trip over to Florida recently for the NASA Tweetup. Read on for her account of the trip, which included witnessing the launch of Space Shuttle Discovery. Ed
Space Shuttle Discovery made her last flight earlier this year. I therefore decided that if I was going to see a Shuttle launch for myself, I had better go soon – there were only two launches left.
I clearly remember a classmate at primary school telling us about the first ever Space Shuttle launch. In the intervening 30 years, I have been interested in space and the human spaceflight program, but it was not until I had broadband and twitter that I really could keep up to date easily.
Threw my hat in ring
So when the opportunity to apply to attend a NasaTweetup (an informal gathering of twitterers, hosted by Nasa) arose, I had to put my name forward.
This tweetup was around the launch of Space Shuttle Endeavour on mission STS-134. I had watched other NasaTweetups on Nasa TV, and knew what a fabulous opportunity it would be – with the chance to learn more about Nasa, explore NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida and experience a space shuttle launch.
I was therefore bitterly disappointed not to make the initial list. But as 4,000 tweeps (familiar term for those who use twitter) put their names in, and there were only 150 places, I was not surprised. I did make it on to the reserve list however, and I decided I was going to go out anyway, and see the launch of Endeavour from *somewhere*.
So, after the initial delays to the launch, (Endeavour was due to launch earlier in April) I booked my flights from London to Florida – my first trip “across the pond”. Then I discovered that the prices of hotel rooms were boosted during the launch window – rooms that were normally $50 were now $200+ a night.
Strangers pulling together
Fortunately, the camaraderie of all space tweeps meant that people who had never met before arranged to rent whole houses together. I was able to get into one of these houses, although as last one in, I did get the airbed on the floor.
Two days before I flew out, I received an email to say I had a place on the tweetup. Squeeee (a term of excitement, often used on twitter, but rarely in real life, at least not by me).
My first morning (Wednesday 27th) was spent getting all the official stuff done, like getting passes to Kennedy Space Centre – a US government facility, so passports, fingerprints etc. were required. I met some other tweeps there too.
Pop over to Lucy’s blog to read the rest of her report.
