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Rocket launch visible from Harmony?


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We are sailing this Sunday from PC on Harmony. I noticed that there is a rocket launch of a ULA Atlas V rocket at 11pm EST that same night.

 

Curious if it will be visible from the ship (assuming a clear night) with Harmony being around 6 hours out of port heading south by then. My assumption is that it may be a bright light on the horizon assuming the ship is 150 miles from PC by then if cruising at around 20 knots (about the same distance as PC to Ft. Lauderdale)...

 

https://www.kennedyspacecenter.com/launches-and-events/events-calendar/2020/february/rocket-launch-ula-atlas-v-solar-orbiter

 

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Someone can absolutely tell me I’m wrong, but I’m going to say doubtful. My husband watched a launch several years ago from a home on Merritt Island (less than 10 mi, directly across the lagoon) and I was shocked at how small it looked. He had driven over from MCO because he knew he wouldn’t be able to see it from there. 

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On January 6th we were able to watch the launch of the SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket on Mariner of the Seas. We had a large crowd at the back of the ship, did a count down and all cheered. It was very neat to watch. Even got some great shots. So it is possible if the conditions are right. 

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3 minutes ago, IamKat said:

On January 6th we were able to watch the launch of the SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket on Mariner of the Seas. We had a large crowd at the back of the ship, did a count down and all cheered. It was very neat to watch. Even got some great shots. So it is possible if the conditions are right. 

OP will be about 6 HOURS away from PC at the time of the launch.....so this is doubtful

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4 minutes ago, IamKat said:

On January 6th we were able to watch the launch of the SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket on Mariner of the Seas. We had a large crowd at the back of the ship, did a count down and all cheered. It was very neat to watch. Even got some great shots. So it is possible if the conditions are right. 

What time was that launch and did mariner sail at it's regular time of 4pm? 

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I'm going to go against the grain here and give you a qualified "maybe".  How's that sound for commitment? 🙄

 

While I haven't been able to find the launch profile online, I'm assuming that the Solar Orbiter launch will be at a lower inclination - in other words, it won't be "tipped up" towards the north pole as much.  If this is the case, you *might* see the end of the stage one burn and separation above the northern horizon - but not by much.  Can't really say for sure without doing the math, which can't be done without knowing the launch parameters and the ship's position at the time of launch.

 

Good luck!         --bruce T.

 

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Totally depends on weather,  and flight path. I've seen a launch from south Florida headed back to the cape.

 

But, the odds it doesn't get moved again are pretty steep in my opinion. 

 

But, when you see one close, it's spectacular 

679945945_SpaceXJanuary292020.thumb.JPG.35d9ae7e725ebe94fbb76209967e5d94.JPG

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1 hour ago, John&LaLa said:

Latest info 

 

Screenshot_20200206-084408_Facebook.thumb.jpg.9e6d8c12aac0330494373c8d12168aa4.jpg

We're hoping for a delay in the SpaceX launch that's scheduled for the 15th. If they scrub on Saturday and re-schedule for Sunday, we'll be back in  port on Harmony on the 16th in time to watch it from the port.:classic_biggrin:

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17 hours ago, fl_native said:

We used to see them when I lived down in West Palm, and a night launch would be even more visible.  I think there's a possibility depending on the angle of the launch.

Yep.  We used to watch daytime shuttle launches from the roof of the old IBM building in Boca Raton, and I watched night launches from the beach just south of there.

 

    --bruce T.

 

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1 hour ago, tutzig said:

We will be on the Harmony leaving on March 1st, and were wondering about the early am March 2 launch.

 

@John&LaLa May I ask what kind of camera that was?

 

Debating on a new compact or bridge camera, or a new iPhone 

 

Canon D80 with an image stabilized 70-300 zoom. 10+ miles south of launch pad

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2 hours ago, Heymarco said:

Cruising back to Port Canaveral on the Mariner several years ago, the captain encouraged everyone to go on deck and see a day launch of the space shuttle. The shuttle successfully lunched that day but to everyone’s surprise no one from the ship could see it. It was a really clear sunny day too.

 

Bright sunny days, depending on your angle, make it impossible to see.  It's a little bright flame against a bright sun.  More often you'll just see the vapor trail. 

 

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Onboard Harmony. Last night a group of a hundred or more were on the aft pool deck watching for the launch. Just after 23:00 we saw it through broken cloud cover to the northwest.  It appeared as a smallish orange ball to the naked eye. Crossed over us off the port bow on a southeastern track.  (Or so it appeared).  Pretty neat. Big cheer and applause from those watching. 

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