Yesterday I photographed the Liberty Star at Jetty Park towing one of the solid rocket boosters (SRBs) from the STS-129 mission in which Space Shuttle Atlantis launched from Kennedy Space Center (KSC) on Nov 16 at 2:28 p.m. EST.

The way the SRBs are retrieved from the Atlantic after a launch is pretty cool. The SRBs themselves will be refurbished and readied for a future shuttle launch from KSC.

The SRBs are 149.16 ft long and 12.17 ft in diameter, weigh 1,300,000 lb at launch.

The possible next generation manned launch vehicle, the Ares 1, launched today from Kennedy Space Center. The Ares 1-X test launch was spectacular. Go NASA!

Here’s my view from my place at the beach in Cape Canaveral .

I recently had the opportunity photograph Space Shuttle Atlantis at Launch Complex 39A during KSC Family Day.

The STS-125 mission will return the space shuttle to the Hubble Space Telescope for one last visit before the shuttle fleet retires in 2010. Over 11 days and five spacewalks, the shuttle Atlantis’ crew will make repairs and upgrades to the telescope.

I shot this photo the morning of a scheduled launch at Kennedy Space Center. The STS-119 mission will deliver to the International Space Station the final set of solar arrays needed to complete the station’s complement of electricity-generating solar panels, and through them provide the space station with enough power to accommodate its expansion to a full crew of six in 2009.

Discovery lifted off Launch Pad 39A at 7:43 pm which was 15 minutes after sundown. The smoke trail left behind by Discovery turned a bright golden yellow when the Sun’s rays hit it.