Here’s the scenario: after keeping a careful eye on the schedule for the second launch of Discovery in 2006, and after several weather delays, it looked like the evening of the 9th of December, 2006 was a go. We turned on CNN and watched the live coverage of the launch. When we watched the launch go off without a hitch, we ran out the front door, down the stairs and looked to the north. As soon as we got outside, there was a bright orange fireball (the light you see in the middle of the photo). That bright fireball stopped before I could set the zoom on my camera, as the external thrusters fell off. It’s not much to look at in the photo, but you should have seen the big ol’ grin on my face…