Letter to the Editor: Our NASA Journey

This story was written by Stew Greenberg.

At 11:29 a.m. EDT on Friday, July 8, Space Shuttle Atlantis lifted off launch pad 39A at Kennedy Space Center, marking the start of its 13-day mission, STS-135, the final space shuttle mission ever.

Yeshiva Ketana of Long Island (YKLI) was well represented at the launch by 13 boys from grades 5-7, who were chosen from schools around the country to have their science experiment flown on this historic mission marking the end of the 30-year space shuttle program. As a reward for their monumental achievement, the students, along with many parents, administrators, and teachers were invited to witness the launch in person.

Under the leadership of Project Coordinators Rabbi Ari Ginian and Stewart Greenberg, the YKLI group met in JFK International Airport in New York on Thursday afternoon, July 7. They were welcomed aboard their flight by the pilot and co-pilot, who were given shirts to match the boys.

The group was weary from the flight to Orlando but lingered awake awaiting the NASA press briefing at 1:30 a.m., when the launch team would indicate if they would proceed with the “tanking” process despite the less than stellar weather forecast. At the edge of their seats, the group learned “all systems were GO for launch.”

Wake up was at 4 a.m. Off they went to KARS park, a NASA recreational facility designated exclusively for NASA employees and their families and guests. Though the sky was cloudy and hazy, KARS park afforded a direct line of sight to KSC Launch Pad 39A off in the distance. The boys explored the grounds and the NASA educational booths that were set-up for the occasion.  

The group was approached by several NASA employees, engineers, and instructors and asked who they were and where they were from, as they all stood out due to their matching orange YKLI-in-Space shirts. One instructor who approached some members of the YKLI group was responsible for training the space shuttle pilots how to dock the shuttle with the International Space Station. Many NASA employees came over to thank the project coordinators for taking the interest in their work and teaching the next generation about the science of space.

At approximately 11 a.m. everyone gathered at their viewing locations to witness the historic event. While waiting, fighter planes and helicopters were seen above, patrolling the skies, photographing the over 800,000 spectators amassed on this small island.

Everyone was mesmerized by the big red countdown clock. There was a constant din of crowd noise until one minute on the countdown, when the crowd quieted except the voices of Launch Control. As the shuttle engines lit, all saw the beginning of the momentous ascent to orbit. When the shuttle reached the cloud cover it seemed to dart in and out between breaks in the clouds to give the spectators yet a few more final glimpses of Atlantis before it left our atmosphere.  The storied rumble of the shuttle was not felt at first, but as Atlantis soared downrange towards the KARS Park location, the water started to ripple and the ground started to shake and everyone felt it in their bones.

At long last, despite NASA’s indicating a 70 percent chance of scrubbing the launch due to weather, STS-135 was finally in orbit. The YKLI group not only witnessed world history in the making, but, after months of long hours in the lab, they witnessed the ascent of their own experiment from the ground at Cape Canaveral to an orbit around the earth.

The YKLI IN SPACE group spent Shabbos at the Chabbad Center near the hotel. Saturday night’s surprise activity was go-karting followed by a poolside barbeque and marshmallow roast.

Sunday morning, after a special breakfast, it was off to Kennedy Space Center. At KSC, dressed in blue YKLI-in-Space shirts, the group toured the rocket garden, and then had lunch with astronaut Bruce Mernick. The group asked questions and even had an opportunity to take pictures with him. Then they boarded the shuttle launch experience, simulating the feeling of being propelled into space from the launch pad.

The group ventured to the Astronaut Memorial where they paused at the name of Ilan Ramon A”H, a Jewish astronaut who perished on the Challenger. Free time was then spent touring the inside of a space shuttle and, of course, the gift shop.  At 4 p.m. the group boarded the bus for one final time to make the trip back to the airport.

Once in the terminal at JFK, after saying goodbye it was back to real life. The boys would be back in their respective sleep-away or day camps in the morning and would share their story with their friends.

Atlantis STS-135 is due to land on July 21 at 5:56 a.m. on the runway at KSC. The YKLI-in-Space program plans to be there to witness “wheels down” and “all stop” for the final time in the 30-year program. Hours after landing, they will then be given back their experiment that flew on the long journey to the International Space Station. The experiment will be brought back to the YKLI lab where it will be analyzed and compared to the identical experiment that was simultaneously conducted on Earth, in the YKLI lab. The findings will then be documented and published.