As I mentioned in the previous entry, these storm clouds have had the NASA powers-that-be a little nervous about whether to postpone the final launch tomorrow. Lightning is the big concern; it’s already struck twice in the vicinity of the pad complex, once on a water tower 515 feet away from the pad, and again on a nearby beach, but the engineering teams have since determined no shuttle or pad systems were damaged, and last I heard, the countdown was still running. Atlantis is set to go as scheduled tomorrow morning at 11:26 EDT. That’ll be 9:26 my time; I’ll still be on my train at that point, so I’ll miss seeing the launch live. I’m a little unhappy about that… I may have to adjust my routine so I can get in front of a TV or computer for the big event. I was watching the very first launch live 30 years ago; it seems only fitting that I do the same with the last one.

Photo source: Kennedy Space Center’s official Facebook page.