Watch the STS-127 Launch Video in HD

By Nancy Atkinson - July 16, 2009 at 1:54 PM UTC | Missions

The storm clouds stayed far enough away so that space shuttle Endeavour and her STS-127 crew finally launched on July 15 on its sixth attempt. The video here shows spectacular views, from the camera mounted on the shuttle's external tank, showing the launchpad dropping away below, and then the separation of the shuttle's twin boosters two minutes and five seconds into the flight. Watching the video here, multiple pieces of foam insulation can be seen falling away from the external tank during the early moments of flight. The crew is working today on heat shield inspections to see if any significant damage occurred from any foam strikes on the belly of the orbiter.

Endeavour will meet up with the International Space Station on Friday. The six ISS astronauts will photograph the heat shield tiles to look for any signs of damage, as well.

The mission will include five spacewalks and the installation of the "porch" or exterior portion of the Japanese Kibo module.

Enjoy the ride along to orbit!

Nancy Atkinson

Nancy Atkinson

Nancy Atkinson is a space journalist and author with a passion for telling the stories of people involved in space exploration and astronomy. She is currently retired from daily writing, but worked at Universe Today for 20 years as a writer and editor. She also contributed articles to The Planetary Society, Ad Astra (National Space Society), New Scientist and many other online outlets.

Her 2019 book, "Eight Years to the Moon: The History of the Apollo Missions,” shares the untold stories of engineers and scientists who worked behind the scenes to make the Apollo program so successful, despite the daunting odds against it. Her first book “Incredible Stories From Space: A Behind-the-Scenes Look at the Missions Changing Our View of the Cosmos” (2016) tells the stories of 37 scientists and engineers that work on several current NASA robotic missions to explore the solar system and beyond.

Nancy is also a NASA/JPL Solar System Ambassador, and through this program, she has the opportunity to share her passion of space and astronomy with children and adults through presentations and programs. Nancy's personal website is nancyatkinson.com