The latest news I have about the STS-114 launch talks about an earliest (unlikely) launch date of Sunday, 17-JUL-05. If they do launch on that day there would be the possibility to observe the Shuttle and the External Tank transiting the Sun. The central line for this event runs from the Southwest corner of England via North-Central France, Switzerland to North-East Italy. The swath along the central line (from where the transit can be seen) is just about 10 km wide. The approximate launch calculation I have done is not that accurate but hopefully NASA posts planned MECO orbit elements ahead of time like they have done for the earlier launch attempts and then it is possible to come up with specific places from where to observe the transit. Should the launch be further delayed the Sun transit situation remains essentially the same except that the central line shifts slightly toward the North and is extended further toward the East (in accordance with the ever earlier launch time). Gerhard HOLTKAMP Darmstadt, Germany ------------------------------------------------------------------------- Subscribe/Unsubscribe info, Frequently Asked Questions, SeeSat-L archive: http://www.satobs.org/seesat/seesatindex.html
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