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Sam Rua | all galleries >> Galleries >> Sky and Beyond > STS 134 (Endeavour) & International Space Station
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30 May 2011 Sam Rua

STS 134 (Endeavour) & International Space Station

Tucson, AZ

*** Best view at original size ***

I got up at 3 am to catch this pair over Tucson. It was very
interesting to see a plume of material being jettisoned from
what was most likely the space shuttle Endeavor (lower streak).
I had never seen that before and was very happy to be able
to see this on the penultimate opportunity to see a space
shuttle fly over. Very cool and well worth the early rise.

Below is the shot out of the camera. We've had some really windy
days that kicked up a lot of dust, which really helped to make the
sky glow from the nearby lights much worse than usual. The very
good low light sensitivity of the 5D and the long exposure really
made the light glow very pronounced. The processed image is a closer
representation of what the event looked like, even though the lights
are still brighter than they actually appeared at the time.

Canon EOS 5D Mark II ,Canon EF 16-35mm f/2.8L USM
Tripod, 8 sec exposure, cropped for comp full exif

other sizes: small medium large original auto
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CM Kwan02-Jun-2011 13:04
This is amazing, Sam! V
Paolo Peggi (aka Bracciodiferro)02-Jun-2011 06:17
Excellent,Sam! V
Paolo
Long Bach Nguyen02-Jun-2011 05:44
awesome shot...great to see you were able to capture a bit of history.
Range View 02-Jun-2011 04:07
Superb image Sam. Considering Endeavor is now retired makes this a very special image. To also catch the plume is a special added bonus! You should send it to APOD.
Barbara
Hernan E. Enriquez31-May-2011 11:47
Terrific image Sam, thanks for sharing!
Bryan Murahashi31-May-2011 04:45
Very cool shot of the pair and of this plume. V
Guest 31-May-2011 04:30
Terrific capture, Sam. The master of time lapse exposure. BV
Carol Rollins31-May-2011 04:03
Wow, Sam, this is great! Definitely worth the early rise. Bravo. ~
an nguyen31-May-2011 03:20
Really cool shot .
Worth every minute waiting .
Guest 31-May-2011 00:40
Yep, I would say it was worth it also. Great capture Sam. See you in a month.
Jean D31-May-2011 00:30
WOW. A great timed shot to be proud of Sam. Well done Night magic. ~BV
azttttommy31-May-2011 00:21
Very cool. Trying to orient myself...are those the Catalinas?
Guest 31-May-2011 00:16
I'll say! What a magical shot! I love everything about it. V.
Tom Munson30-May-2011 21:21
Outstanding, shot, Sam! Love the mountains in the background.
bill friedlander30-May-2011 18:00
Wow! Great timing, great exposure, great image. Getting the mountains in the background is amazing. Bravo. V
Jim Coffman30-May-2011 16:20
Sam, my hat is off to you! This is fantastic!!
Walter Otto Koenig30-May-2011 15:57
A fascinating sight and an extraordinary image. Certainly worth getting up for.
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