WEBVTT FILE 1 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:06.006 >>ERIN: Can you see my smile?! I feel like a little kid. I was 2 00:00:06.006 --> 00:00:09.676 just like grinning so wide I thought my face would crack. 3 00:00:12.045 --> 00:00:14.047 [logo musical sting] >>KATRINA: I’m Katrina Jackson from NASA’s 4 00:00:14.047 --> 00:00:16.316 Goddard Space Flight Center, and I’m here today at the Kennedy 5 00:00:16.316 --> 00:00:19.286 Space Center to watch the launch of our newest planetary science 6 00:00:19.286 --> 00:00:22.356 mission, OSIRIS-REx, which will study near-Earth asteroid Bennu 7 00:00:22.356 --> 00:00:25.592 and return a sample to Earth. The spacecraft is launching 8 00:00:25.592 --> 00:00:29.329 onboard an Atlas V rocket, and I know I’m excited to see my first 9 00:00:29.329 --> 00:00:32.099 rocket launch, so I’m curious to see how folks here are feeling 10 00:00:32.099 --> 00:00:36.370 about watching this new mission get off the ground. [drums, 11 00:00:36.370 --> 00:00:42.409 music] >>KATRINA: Jerushah, is this your first rocket launch? 12 00:00:42.409 --> 00:00:45.712 >>JERUSHAH: It is, and I’m very excited about it. >>ASHLEY: This 13 00:00:45.712 --> 00:00:48.282 is my first time here and my first launch. >>BRETT: It is my 14 00:00:48.282 --> 00:00:51.351 first time, launching a rocket. Well I’m not launching it, but 15 00:00:51.351 --> 00:00:53.654 other people are, but I’m watching it. >>ERIN: No, it’s 16 00:00:53.654 --> 00:00:57.925 actually my second, my first one was SpaceX CRS-7. >>JASON: No, 17 00:00:57.925 --> 00:01:01.428 this is actually the fourth rocket launch I’ve seen here. 18 00:01:01.428 --> 00:01:03.463 >>DANIEL: Actually I’ve been to several. I’ve been to probably 19 00:01:03.463 --> 00:01:07.000 25 different rocket launches. from Space Shuttle, to Deltas, 20 00:01:07.000 --> 00:01:12.005 SpaceX missions, so this is another one to add to the belt 21 00:01:12.005 --> 00:01:15.976 for me. >>KATRINA: And what makes you excited about watching 22 00:01:15.976 --> 00:01:17.978 a rocket launch? >>ASHLEY: What doesn’t make you excited about 23 00:01:17.978 --> 00:01:19.613 watching a rocket launch?! I hear that you’re going to feel 24 00:01:19.613 --> 00:01:22.316 the shockwaves and the soundwaves. >>ERIN: It’s just 25 00:01:22.316 --> 00:01:24.985 the feeling, right? Like seeing it, alright, there’s a small 26 00:01:24.985 --> 00:01:27.087 speck out there. And then being able to witness it is a very 27 00:01:27.087 --> 00:01:30.757 visceral event where you feel the ground shaking and you 28 00:01:30.757 --> 00:01:33.360 almost can taste it. I don’t know, it’s the most amazing 29 00:01:33.360 --> 00:01:36.129 thing I’ve ever seen. >>JASON: I love rockets. I love space 30 00:01:36.129 --> 00:01:39.032 exploration, I love what NASA’s doing, and of course there’s 31 00:01:39.032 --> 00:01:43.103 nothing more amazing than watching a rocket take off. 32 00:01:43.103 --> 00:01:45.472 >>JERUSHAH: I expect it to be a very emotional experience. You 33 00:01:45.472 --> 00:01:49.543 know to see a rocket actually go up into space to go to an 34 00:01:49.543 --> 00:01:52.846 asteroid, it’s the first time we’ve done this. So I expect it 35 00:01:52.846 --> 00:01:55.482 to be emotional and just awe-inspiring, you know as what 36 00:01:55.482 --> 00:01:57.985 we can do as human beings when we actually put our minds to it. 37 00:01:57.985 --> 00:02:00.887 >>DANIEL: Once you see it, it will live with you for the rest 38 00:02:00.887 --> 00:02:03.190 of your life. There’s no other way to say it. From hearing the 39 00:02:03.190 --> 00:02:06.727 sound, from feeling the power of the rockets, and just overall 40 00:02:06.727 --> 00:02:09.896 you really grasp what NASA is doing. By sending a rocket into 41 00:02:09.896 --> 00:02:12.165 space, I mean it literally is rocket science, they’re doing 42 00:02:12.165 --> 00:02:14.568 phenomenal things. >>KATRINA: Where did you get your suit 43 00:02:14.568 --> 00:02:17.638 here? >>ASHLEY: I got this at the Visitor Center gift shop. 44 00:02:17.638 --> 00:02:19.906 It’s awesome. >>KATRINA: Well I think I should get myself one of 45 00:02:19.906 --> 00:02:22.142 those, one of these days. >>ASHLEY: They come in blue too, 46 00:02:22.142 --> 00:02:24.444 but orange, gotta go with the orange. >>KATRINA: Why do you 47 00:02:24.444 --> 00:02:27.347 think this is so monumental for space exploration? >>BRETT: 48 00:02:27.347 --> 00:02:30.183 Well, there’s going to be a lot learned. I think when we can get 49 00:02:30.183 --> 00:02:34.087 material from an asteroid back on Earth and study it properly 50 00:02:34.087 --> 00:02:37.557 here on Earth, that’s going to be much more effective than 51 00:02:37.557 --> 00:02:39.960 sending a probe out there that has limited instruments and 52 00:02:39.960 --> 00:02:42.295 trying to study it out there. >>JERUSHAH: The fact that we are 53 00:02:42.295 --> 00:02:44.431 going to an asteroid for the first time and actually taking a 54 00:02:44.431 --> 00:02:47.668 sample and bringing it back home, you know, so that itself 55 00:02:47.668 --> 00:02:50.637 is just amazingly exciting, it’s what are we going to learn from 56 00:02:50.637 --> 00:02:53.240 this sample? >>YINAN: Asteroid Bennu is a carbonaceous 57 00:02:53.240 --> 00:02:56.943 asteroid, and so it could contain amino acids and organic 58 00:02:56.943 --> 00:03:00.580 compounds that we haven’t seen before based on other smaller 59 00:03:00.580 --> 00:03:02.482 pieces of meteorites. >>DANIEL: I mean we’re going to learn a 60 00:03:02.482 --> 00:03:05.485 lot about asteroids, where they come from, who we are. There are 61 00:03:05.485 --> 00:03:08.355 a lot of questions that are going to be answered, and I’m 62 00:03:08.355 --> 00:03:11.458 sure there’s going to be a lot of things that we’re still going 63 00:03:11.458 --> 00:03:13.360 to question after this. >>KATRINA: How has your 64 00:03:13.360 --> 00:03:15.495 experience at Kennedy been so far? >>YINAN: Fantastic. It’s 65 00:03:15.495 --> 00:03:18.899 like, NASA Social has given us such access to all the 66 00:03:18.899 --> 00:03:21.802 scientists, and even the administrator of NASA Charlie 67 00:03:21.802 --> 00:03:25.205 Bolden, so it’s amazing. >>DANIEL: It’s a phenomenal 68 00:03:25.205 --> 00:03:27.974 experience. I cannot say enough about NASA Social and what they 69 00:03:27.974 --> 00:03:29.443 have given us opportunities-wise. >>ASHLEY: 70 00:03:29.443 --> 00:03:31.912 I’ve really had a great time at NASA over the past couple of 71 00:03:31.912 --> 00:03:35.315 days. I’m an artist, so I’m definitely going to incorporate 72 00:03:35.315 --> 00:03:37.684 my experience here in some future work. >>KATRINA: Good 73 00:03:37.684 --> 00:03:42.622 luck with watching the launch, and maybe we’ll check back with 74 00:03:42.622 --> 00:03:46.226 you afterwards. >>LAUNCH COVERAGE VOICES: Status check. 75 00:03:46.226 --> 00:03:50.964 Go Atlas. Go Centaur. Go OSIRIS-REx. Everyone is go. 76 00:03:50.964 --> 00:03:56.136 Standing by for launch. Ten seconds. Nine. Eight. Seven. 77 00:03:56.136 --> 00:04:01.074 Six. Five. Four. Three. Two. One. And liftoff of OSIRIS-REx. 78 00:04:06.680 --> 00:04:08.682 Its seven year mission, to boldly go to the asteroid Bennu 79 00:04:15.889 --> 00:04:18.925 and back. >>ASHLEY: The rocket just like, you could see it 80 00:04:18.925 --> 00:04:21.061 lifting off and all the smoke, and then a couple seconds later 81 00:04:21.928 --> 00:04:23.930 you could hear the sound roll in toward you and it got louder and 82 00:04:25.799 --> 00:04:28.902 louder, it was awesome. >>ERIN: It’s like so bright. The 83 00:04:34.941 --> 00:04:37.544 brightness just gets me. There’s just no other white light like 84 00:04:37.544 --> 00:04:41.181 that. And the, like when the bass gets to you, when the sound 85 00:04:41.181 --> 00:04:46.353 rushes up, oh my god, I just want to cry, it’s just magical. 86 00:04:46.353 --> 00:04:49.055 I think everyone needs to see that to put a lot of things in 87 00:04:49.055 --> 00:05:04.337 perspective. [rocket sounds] >>LAUNCH VOICES: And the Atlas 88 00:05:04.337 --> 00:05:08.875 rocket carrying OSIRIS-REx has gone supersonic. Standing by to 89 00:05:08.875 --> 00:05:14.548 pass the max-Q [audience cheering] >>ASHLEY: Um, I was 90 00:05:14.581 --> 00:05:18.084 like really sweaty, and excited, and I’m not even on this 91 00:05:18.084 --> 00:05:21.688 mission, but I’m just so invested in it at this point. So 92 00:05:21.688 --> 00:05:23.990 like watching it go up I was just like “Ahh” and it makes you 93 00:05:23.990 --> 00:05:30.931 feel so small. >>ERIN: I feel like a little kid! I was just 94 00:05:30.931 --> 00:05:33.400 like grinning so wide I thought my face would crack. It’s 95 00:05:33.400 --> 00:05:52.052 amazing! I don’t know what to say! [audience cheering] 96 00:05:52.052 --> 00:05:52.452 [background launch voices] [drums, music] >>KATRINA: Now 97 00:05:52.452 --> 00:05:55.689 that OSIRIS-REx has safely made its way to space, I’m sure many 98 00:05:55.689 --> 00:05:57.290 of the team members are going to take a well-deserved rest 99 00:05:57.290 --> 00:06:00.026 tonight and settle in for the spacecraft’s two-year cruise to 100 00:06:00.026 --> 00:06:03.196 asteroid Bennu. Meanwhile, you can follow the mission’s 101 00:06:03.196 --> 00:06:07.634 online at nasa.gov/osiris-rex and on Twitter @OSIRISREx and 102 00:06:07.634 --> 00:06:12.405 with the hashtag #ToBennuAndBack. OSIRIS-REx will 103 00:06:12.405 --> 00:06:15.008 swing by Earth for a gravity assist next September, will 104 00:06:15.008 --> 00:06:19.145 reach Bennu in August 2018, will collect a sample in July of 105 00:06:19.145 --> 00:06:21.681 2020. and will return to Earth in September of 2023, so it’s 106 00:06:21.681 --> 00:06:23.583 going to be a long and exciting ride, and we are excited to have 107 00:06:23.583 --> 00:06:27.087 all of you along for the journey. [satellite whooshes by, 108 00:06:27.087 --> 00:06:35.061 beeps] [sound fades out]