Regular contributor of poetry Harvey Madison had an opportunity to be up close and personal at a Space Shuttle Launch. Harvey was kind enough to share those with us and some of them are presented below. You can find more (and larger) photos on Harvey’s web site. You can click on the images below to see a larger version of the photos.

Harvey had press credentials (and a lot of talent) and was thus able to get close enough to get the fabulous photos. Click on “Read the rest of this entry” below to see the photos.

	The clouds cooperated beautifully for the photo-op the day before launch.
	The rotating service structure (RSS) is fully retracted, and all that remains is fueling
	The Beast as darkness falls and the arc lights come on.
	Perhaps the best shot of the trip.
	The crew access arm extended for morning ingress.
	The adrenalin was definitely rising in all the media people as the launch approached.
	This is what 8 million pounds of thrust looks like. It is so bright that any auto-metering camera ruins the exposures.
	It takes 9 seconds for the sound and shock waves to get to the press site. It shakes your clothes, your bones, the ground. What a rush! This is why there is nothing like being there.
	About to penetrate the clouds, the vehicle rolls into the head-down attitude.
	Suddenly it’s over. I found myself saying, “Wait, wait, do it again!”