Endeavour Is Home

As I watched Endeavour land, I was reminded of how amazing this space craft is. The shuttle is America's pride. It is an achievement that we should not take for granted, nor minimize its technology, even today, 30+ years after its design and first flights. There are no other space planes flying and after the shuttle -- who will be next?
I was privileged to see one under construction, to see one launch and to see several land.
They will be missed.
In a few years, we will have no shuttle, no supersonic transport, no way to put people into space, and no way to go to the moon. Seems like we are sliding backwards.
Kevin Cousineau

Welcome home, folks! Enjoy that sushi.

Um, was it just me, or did anyone else notice that the landins was less than pic-perfect.. that the right rear landing gear touched down SEVERAL seconds before the left?

Yes, I am nit-picking.. yet, look at what can happen in off-axis landings...

--T

Congratulations to all at NASA and NASA contractors on another safe and successful journey in the most amazing space ship ever built on Planet Earth!

I'm just glad the 'nauts are okay. Reading the CAIB has resulted in me getting really worried about each flight.

Kevin,

I couldn't agree more. Growing up in New Jersey, I used to love watching the Concorde fly over on approach to JFK - I had a summer job working out on Sandy Hook, and I used to look forward to seeing the Concorde every day. I never imagined it would be retired without any sort of replacement even being on the drawing board. Likewise, I never thought we would be retiring the world's first reusable space plane without an appropriate replacement, or that in the second decade of the 21st century we'd be struggling to even come up with a glorified Apollo capsule and an expendable launch vehicle to put that capsule into orbit!

I have to agree seeing almost every launch and following almost every landing Methuselah has served us well. If you have kids and they have never seen this thing launch its a beauty that cant be explained. It the closest you will ever get to an explosion that big without dying.I have filmed several launches and these are as important to me as my home movies of my kids walking( especially with the impending retirement). Now granted my children can be heard in the background in most cases hahahah. I have been fortunate enough to live and grow up in Florida. I try to explain to people I know that live in some of the northern states, I never do it justice in fact video doesn't do it justice.

Good job on another successful mission NASA and the entire STS team.