Atlantis Links Up To Hubble For Repairs

Posted by timothy on Wednesday May 13, 2009 @08:57AM from the hey-baby-I-see-the-stars-in-your-eyes dept.

An anonymous reader writes "Space Shuttle Atlantis has finally caught up with the Hubble Space Telescope after following it for several hours. The 'link up' between the Space Shuttle and Hubble was a very delicate one as the two were flying through space at 17,200 MPH, 300 miles above the Earth's surface. The robotic arm of the shuttle grappled the telescope at 1:14 PM EDT today. The telescope will be latched to a high-tech Lazy Susan device known as the Flight Support System for the duration of the servicing work."

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Re:17,000 mph by whyde · 2009-05-13 13:36 · Score: 4, Interesting

I've told this story before on slashdot, but once--about 10 years ago--the shuttle flew over Austin, TX on descent to land in FL not long after sunset. We went outside to see the boiling plasma trail it left in the atmosphere, then went back inside to see it touch down 9 MINUTES LATER.
Fast, indeed.