A huge pair of Buddy Holly-style glasses along a small road is the only indication that you've reached the entrance to the crash site where musicians Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens and The Big Bopper died on February 3, 1959. Image: Nancy Atkinson

I often drive through Iowa, and have taken the opportunity to see a couple of unusual sights in the state. I previously wrote about seeing the Field of Dreams movie site, and I had also heard there was a small memorial near Clear Lake, Iowa at the site of where young rock stars Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens and the Big Bopper were killed in a plane crash on February 3, 1959. So last fall, I followed some rather cryptic directions I found on the internet and was able to find it, hidden in a corn field. It literally is out in the middle of nowhere. The only way I could tell I had found the right place was that there was a set of huge steel Wayfarer-style glasses along the road, the kind Buddy Holly was known for wearing. But to see the crash site, you have to walk along a fence through a corn field.

Approaching the crash site.

I was there on a Sunday afternoon, and no other cars were there so I felt a little uneasy, but figured since I had come all this way I wasn’t going to turn back. I walked for quite a ways along the fence, until I finally saw something up ahead.

Memorial to Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens and the Big Bopper.

Memorial to Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens and the Big Bopper near Clear Lake, Iowa.

Memorial for the pilot of the plane, Roger Peterson.

Odd stuff left by fans.

I’ve heard that fans of Holly, Valens and Bopper from around the world have visited the site; many leave all kinds of memorabilia at the crash site — pairs of glasses, necklaces, business cards, notes, and flowers. After days of recent rains, it was all kind of a mess. The metal memorial for the three musicians was placed in 1990, and a marker honoring the pilot was put up in 2009.

Of course, the deaths of the three budding musicians happened before I was born, but it seems I heard about the their deaths every year on the anniversary, as I grew up near Fargo, ND/Moorhead, MN, where the musicians were headed for their next gig. And then there was that song written by Don McLean, “American Pie,” that I grew up listening to that has the line, “the day the music died.” And who doesn’t love the movie “La Bamba?”

The day I was there was a beautiful warm fall day, and as I said, no one else was there and it was very quiet. The only unusual thing was that a mourning dove sat on the ground near the memorial and didn’t fly away or move, even when I came close to it.

If you’d like to visit the crash site, here are my directions and a map. Remember, the memorial is on private property.

From Interstate 35
Take exit 197 and go west.
You’ll be on 300th Street. Turn right (north) onto Grouse Avenue (S28). Take a right (east) onto 310th Street, then a left (north) onto Gull Avenue. You’ll pass a farm on your left, and then see the big set of glasses. You’ll have to park along the side of the road and walk along the fence line past the glasses to the crash site.

As I wrote in a recent article on Universe Today: “The Royal Observatory Greenwich in the UK was the perfect setting to announce the winners of this year’s Astronomy Photographer of the Year competition, and I was privileged to be in attendance at the ceremony…”

Yes, I was really in London and was invited to Greenwich and the Royal Observatory for the Astronomy Photographer of the Year awards ceremony in September! The video above is from Will Gater and the BBC Sky and Night Magazine, and as evidence that I was really there, at :59 seconds into the video, you’ll see me hob-nobbing with astronomers and folks from the observatory and museum complex.

If you’ve visited my blog before, you will have noticed the Astronomy Photographer of the Year pictures near the top right side. This competition started in 2009 for the International Year of Astronomy. It was so popular that the organizers and sponsors decided to do it again this year, and now it seems like it will be an annual event.

The images are stunning! To see all the winning astronomy pictures in the six categories, see the Royal Observatory Greenwich website, or you can see all the images submitted on the Flickr Astronomy Photographer of the Year page. And if you live in the UK or visit there soon, you can see an exhibit of the Astronomy Photographer of the Year winners at the ROG from now until February 27, 2011.

It was by complete coincidence that I was in London on the same day as the APOTY awards night, but I’m so glad I was able to be there. The ROG is a must-see destination for any astronomy enthusiast, and is a wonderful location that is full of history, beauty and hands-on learning. There you can straddle the Prime Meridian, see early telescopes and time pieces and look across the same beautiful vistas that early British astronomers saw from the hilltop home of the observatory.

Thanks to Will Gater for the video, and to Paul Sutherland for making sure I was invited to the ceremony!

Here are some pictures from my visit there:

View from Maritime museum looking up towards the Royal Observatory Greenwich.

Up by the ROG, with Greenwich and London in the background.

Standing on the Prime Meridian!

Again, standing on the Prime Meridian.

ROG's planetarium.

The ROG.

The working 28-inch refracting telescope at ROG -- the largest in Britain and the 7th largest in the world.

An old hunk of the early solar system: a very touchable piece of the iron and nickel Gibson meteorite that was found in Africa

Nice to see my two pals, Phil Plait and Chris Lintott are in such close proximity in the book section at the ROG gift shop!

ROG building -- 'Newton' is engraved above the middle section of windows.

A beautiful and historic setting for the Astronomy Photographer of the Year ceremony.

The runner-up winner in the young astronomer category was taken by 13-year-old Laurent V. Joli-Coeur from Canada, who was also at the ceremony. He is one stage with the ROG's public astronomer, Marek Kukula, and Dallas Campbell, from the BBC's 'Bang Goes the Theory.

The view of London at night across the Thames.

Fittingly, the boat that brought me back to London was named the “Meteor Clipper!”

It was a great evening, and a great experience to be at the Royal Observatory.

The ROG website also has a plethora of tips for how to take astrophotos.
And if want more than just images, the ROG online shop has some items for sale from this year’s winners.

My shot of the silhouette shadow of the shuttle stack up in the clouds, which made the Sept. 22, 2010 APOD.

I’m getting some new visitors to my blog today, thanks to the folks at Astronomy Picture of the Day (otherwise known as APOD) who featured a picture that I took back in March of space shuttle Discovery rolling out the launchpad at midnight, and the Xenon lights shining on the shuttle stack created a unique silhouette shadow up in the wispy clouds. I actually think some of the other pictures of the event turned out better, but this one is the easiest to see the effect. If you want to see more of these images and the story of how it happened, see my post, “Beyond the Shadow of a Doubt, the Shuttle is Gorgeous.”

Thanks for visiting! To see where I do my real work, head on over to Universe Today, 365 Days of Astronomy, and the NASA Lunar Science Institute podcasts.

And if you don’t already, you need to visit APOD every day! Thanks again to Robert Nemeroff and Jerry Bonnell for featuring my image on APOD and giving me one of the biggest thrills of my career!

Box seats down the third base line at the Field of Dreams.

This is Iowa.

We drive through the Hawkeye State quite often and had always talked about stopping at the Field of Dreams movie site near Dyersville. We finally went there, and eerily, it looks exactly like it does in the movie. But really, it’s pretty cool: the big white farmhouse, the meticulous baseball field edged by a field of corn, and although there were probably 25-50 visitors wandering around on a nondescript Sunday afternoon, there was an air of quiet and – almost – reverence. It really felt like Shoeless Joe or Moonlight Graham could show up at any moment.

But the only voices we heard were the chatter between parents and children having a game of catch.

Field of Dreams.

Being relatively ardent baseball fans, Field of Dreams is a movie we have watched often. And even though I can quote most of the movie and know each scene, I can never get through it without shedding a few tears. In it, life equals baseball, even though the movie really isn’t about sports. The movie is about nostalgia, the importance of family, yearning to make things right, realizing the wisdom of children, and it is another one of those mythological quests that we all seem to identify with.

The Field.

Stepping up to the crushed rock that outlines the field, we paused a bit, thinking of young Archie Graham’s sacrifice. And heading out into the cornfield (an experience not to be missed!), you really do wonder where you’ll end up!

The Field of Dreams cornfield.

Being a farmer’s daughter, the first thing I noticed about the cornfield was the meticulous way it is planted. The easiest way to plant it would have been to just drive the tractor and planter around the periphery of the outfield. But, instead, the corn is planted precisely so that the rows emanate out, so that visitors can walk directly down the rows and disappear (if you are short enough….)

The house.

The Field of Dreams movie site website says the field was built in four days back in 1988 (is the movie really that old??) “and since then, it has become so much more than just a field…. Located at the intersection of fantasy and reality, it’s a living piece of movie history where tens of thousands of people each year come to have a game of catch, to hit a few balls or just spend time with the people they love – the real message of the hit movie.”

But the house, the baseball field and the 193 acre property is for sale. $5.4 million is the asking price. So far, the family who owns the farm (and they owned it when the movie was filmed) hasn’t had any offers.

I have to say, being there was a very satisfying experience.

But then there’s another way of looking at it. Noted baseball writer Roger Angell had this to say about the movie:

“The stuff about the connection between baseball and American life, the Field of Dreams thing, gives me a pain. I hated that movie. It’s mostly fake. You look back into the meaning of old-time baseball, and really in the early days it was full of roughnecks and drunks. They beat up the umpires and played near saloons. In Fields of Dreams there’s a line at the end that says the game of baseball was good when America was good, and they’re talking about the time of the biggest race riots in the country and Prohibition. What is that? That dreaminess, I really hated that.”

Well, reality isn’t always all its cracked up to be…

Driving away from the Field of Dreams.

One last look at Discovery on launchpad 39A at Kennedy Space Center. Image: Nancy Atkinson

“I lived and worked on the Moon. I called the Moon home for three days of my life.” — Apollo 17 Astronaut Gene Cernan

Those words from Gene Cernan have been floating around in my mind the past few days. Although my experiences the past two months were nothing like Cernan’s, I think I can kind of understand how he felt. I have now lived and worked on the Space Coast and at Kennedy Space Center. I called Florida my home for two months of my life. But now I’m heading home.

As you’re reading this you’re probably shouting, “What! Why is she leaving? There is a shuttle launch in 5 days!” Yeah, yeah, I know. But my family would like me back home, and I had to make the decision over two weeks ago to make arrangements to try and stay or come home, and at that time Discovery’s launch was looking iffy at best because of the stuck helium valve. So, I’ll watch the launch from home, but my heart will be at KSC.

But I had some amazing experiences in Florida. I saw three launches (space shuttle Endeavour, Atlas with SDO and Delta with GOES-P), and had the opportunity to do and experience more than I ever could have imagined. I was in space geek heaven.

I won’t say “goodbye” because I hope to be back, so I’ll just say “so long.”

Panoramic view of KSC launchpads. Image: Nancy Atkinson

Up close with space shuttle Discovery. Image: Nancy Atkinson

“A thing of beauty is a joy for ever:
Its loveliness increases, it will never
Pass into nothingness; but still will keep
A bower quiet for us, and a sleep
Full of sweet dreams ….
Therefore, on every morrow, are we wreathing
A flowery band to bind us to the earth…”
—John Keats

I love that poem by John Keats, but if he had been able to see a space shuttle launch, he might have changed those last couple of lines to something like, “Every day, we labor so that humanity can soar out into the Cosmos.”

And that is what the technicians and specialists who work with the space shuttles at Kennedy Space Center do. Every day.

Last week, I had the chance to go ON launchpad 39A and see space shuttle Discovery up close, so close that I didn’t have to use full zoom on my camera to get the shot, above, of the orbiter’s cockpit area. Other journalists told me the press hadn’t been allowed that close to a shuttle on the pad for years, and so I feel particularly lucky to have had that opportunity. We weren’t told just how close the KSC PAO folks were going to take us, so as we drove closer and closer, we didn’t say a word — we just looked at each other with wide eyes and kept our mouths shut, hoping beyond hope that we’d get as far up on the pad as we did. Here are some more shots from that day:

Nancy on pad 39A with Discovery. Credit: Alan Walters (awaltersphoto.com)

The shuttles truly are things of beauty, and having the opportunity to see two of the fleet up close — I saw Endeavour from just behind the fence in February and recently being directly on the pad with Discovery, their splendor is now imprinted indelibly on my mind. These orbiters have been a part of human spaceflight for nearly 30 years, and they will never “pass into nothingness,” — their history and stories will always be a major chapter in the legacy of our travels to space.

While everyone else is taking pictures, Nancy just stares in wonder. Image: Ken Kremer

It’s almost hard to believe that there are only four, possibly five shuttle flights remaining. Here on the Space Coast there have been lots of conversations about possible extensions to the shuttle program. I used to think it was time to move on to other vehicles and other destinations, and but now I’m not so sure. I don’t know if my thinking has changed because of the current uncertainty of the future of human spaceflight with Constellation potentially being canceled, or if just seeing a launch, viewing these magnificent orbiters up close and meeting some of the people who work daily with the shuttles has actually shifted my views.

There I said it. Deep down, I really want the space shuttles to keep flying. It just seems like they have a lot more life left in them.

Discovery, with the payload for STS-131 secured in the Rotating Service Structure. Image: Alan Walters (awaltersphoto.com)

Thanks to Alan Walters and Ken Kremer for sharing their pictures

The shuttle stack silhouetted in shadow against the clouds during a midnight rollout on March 2, 2010. Image: Nancy Atkinson

Especially stunning was a unique silhouette shadow of the shuttle stack that formed against the clouds as the Xenon spotlights bathed the shuttle in their glare. Art Edwards, who works at the KSC PAO, told me he has witnessed over 60 shuttle rollouts and he has never seen anything like that before. And my dinky little camera (Fuji Finepix S2000) was able to capture the effect while the guys with big cameras couldn’t. Feeling just a little smug! See more pics below.

Discovery rollout shadow, March 2, 2010. Image: Nancy Atkinson

Here’s where the shadow effect first started. The wispy clouds must have been in just the right place, the right consistency and formation for this effect to work.

Another shadow effect of the shuttle stack on the clouds. Image: Nancy Atkinson

First motion from the VAB. Image: Nancy Atkinson

There weren’t many people around the KSC press site where I was standing, and I didn’t know if I was in the right spot to see the shuttle emerge from the VAB, and was worried the Flight Control Center Building might block my view. So I asked a guard who drove by where I could stand so my view wouldn’t be blocked and I wouldn’t miss first motion. He just looked at me and smiled. “You won’t be able to miss it. That baby is big!”

You can see from the image how tall the shuttle stack stands in comparison to the FCC. For reference, see how small the cars look that are parked by the FCC.

Closeup of Discovery during rollout. Image: Nancy Atkinson

Discovery during rollout. Image: Nancy Atkinson

We were able to stay and watch for 2 hours, and then could return at 6:30 am to be brought out the pad to watch them lock down the shuttle, and for a photo op and interview opportunity with the flow director for Discovery. I was so excited about seeing the rollout and having my images of the silhouette turn out that I had to post some of them on Universe Today as soon as I got back “home.” (See the article here, which includes images from Alan Walters and daytime images at the launchpad.) So that meant I got about an hour and a half of sleep before heading back out to KSC. Very fun, though. What a privilege to be there. The space shuttle is a beautiful machine.

I’ve received a few emails from people wondering why I haven’t written anything on my personal blog lately. And honestly, I was surprised to look and see the last post was a month ago. I usually use Saturday mornings for catching up with things I’ve been meaning to do — like post something on this blog — but this is the first Saturday in 4 weeks that I haven’t either been attending media events at Kennedy Space Center, hosting visitors here in Florida, or traveling hither and yon. More about the hither and yon part later. But since the initial goal of having this blog was to share my experiences of being on the Space Coast of Florida for two months, I had better bring things up to date, as my time here is quickly counting down. So what have I been doing the past month?

ENDEAVOUR LANDS on Feb 21, 2010:

Endeavour lands at the Kennedy Space Center Shuttle Landing Facility. Credit: NASA

A beautiful end to the STS-130 mission — Endeavour appeared like a phantom out of the night sky, but not before announcing her arrival with two gargantuan sonic booms. Seeing the landing live and in person was wonderfully thrilling — although I have to admit, we probably would have seen more watching it on NASA TV, as — since it was a night landing we couldn’t see it until right before touchdown — and it rolled past our location quite quickly as the shuttle is traveling well over 200 mph (320 kph) when it hits the runway. Hearing the twin sonic booms is something I’ll never forget.

MY NEW JOB???

Does NASA TV have a new commentator?

Nah. Fellow writer Ken Kremer and I just “practiced” sitting behind the dais in the KSC press auditorium, just in case they ever need any help at NASA TV, or if I ever get lucky enough to be the one launching on a rocket. Fun photo-op.

SEEING CLOSEOUT OF LEONARDO MODULE, Feb 18, 2010:

At the Space Station Processing Facility.

Another great experience was going to the Space Station Processing Facility at KSC and getting to walk the floor inside the giant clean room where the different modules and components are readied for their flight to the International Space Station. Technicians were just finishing packing the Leonardo Multi-Purpose Logistics Module that is heading up to the ISS on the STS-131 mission, bringing supplies and new components for the station.

Below, one of the technicians showed us the boxes where the US food is stored on the ISS. If you can’t read the label it says: “MEATS IN POUCHES AND CANS. ZERO-G USE ONLY.” I wonder what happens if you use it in 1-G?

Payload Day in the SSPF at KSC.

BEHIND THE SCENES AT NASA TV:

In the control room at NASA TV at KSC.

Since I probably will never work on camera at NASA TV, I decided to interview the people who work behind the scenes at KSC TV. You can listen to (or read) my interviews on Universe Today. It was very fun to talk with these great folks — and I also got to talk with George Diller, who I consider the voice of launches at KSC.

GOES-P LAUNCH ON A DELTA IV ROCKET on March 4, 2010

GOES P goes UP! Image credit: Alan Walters (awaltersphoto.com)

Another launch, another launch vehicle! I was duly impressed by the thunderous launch of the Delta IV rocket carrying the GOES-P satellite to space. Launch occurred just after sundown from launch pad 37B at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. We got to be on the NASA Causeway, only about 2 miles from the launchpad. The rocket soared and roared into a crisp and clear night sky, and could be seen for several minutes after launch, and booster separation was clearly visible to us on the ground. With more oomph than the Atlas (plus we were closer) this is a rocket you can feel!

With me was photographer Alan Walters, who is now taking pictures for Universe Today. He has a couple of different cameras, and he used his big gun, but let me use his slightly smaller camera — which is much bigger and more powerful than my Fuji Finepix (which is leaps ahead of my former camera). Alan’s shot of the launch — which I love — is above, and here’s mine below:

GOES -P launch by Nancy with Alan's camera.

Yeah, I know, I’m off center! Alan told me I have that tendency. So what does that say about me?

The Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite-P, or GOES-P, is the latest in a series of meteorological satellites designed to watch for storm development and weather conditions on Earth as well as detect hazards with its emergency beacon support and Search and Rescue Transponder.

ROLLOUT OF DISCOVERY MARCH 4, 2010

Discovery in the palm of my hand. Image credit: Alan Walters (awaltersphoto.com)

I’m going to talk more about watching the rollout of Discovery in another post because I captured something very unique, but here’s a fun picture that Alan took of me after the shuttle reached pad 39A.

STS-131 crew at the launchpad. And I was there, too!

After the rollout, we had the chance for a photo-op and to interview the crew of the STS-131 mission, which hopefully will launch on April 5 (which unfortunately will be after I have to leave Florida.) Pictured here are: Commander Alan Poindexter, Jim Dutton, Rick Mastrachio, Dottie Metcalf-Lindenburger, Stephanie Wilson, Naoko Yamazaki, and Clay Anderson.

It was extremely cold and windy out behind the launchpad that morning, and if you watch the video of the event, you can see me wincing and shivering while I talked with the crew. Behind the crew you can see the flame trench where the exhaust of the the SRB’s whooshes through at ignition, and I think we all could have used a little flame that morning. Brrrr!

There’s more I could post, but this is getting long enough. Suffice to say I’ve been doing interviews, writing and podcasting almost non-stop since my arrival. Its been one of the most amazing times of my life.

And here’s the hither and yon picture:

Tucson, Arizona resort.

I took an unexpected side trip to Tucson, Arizona. Since it wasn’t warm enough in Florida, I thought I’d try Arizona! I met up with my wonderful husband to attend a conference with him, and had the opportunity to stay at a marvelous and beautiful new resort. Most fun was doing a very challenging 14-mile mountain bike ride. Had to traverse single track trails with big rocks, deep gullies, unexpected sand traps, — all the while watching out for cactus! It was exhilarating!

Another highlight of my adventures at Kennedy Space Center was participating in the joint ISS/shuttle crew news conference on February 18. I have to admit, I’ve interviewed lots of astronauts, scientists, engineers, etc. before, but my heart was absolutely pounding out of my chest when I stepped to the mic to ask my questions! Maybe its because I’ve never done an interview live for all the world to see before. But it was thrilling to talk directly to the astronauts, and even give them a couple of laughs. You can watch the video of the crew news conference above. Below is a picture of the set-up at KSC for the media to talk to the crews.

As you can see, we stood right in front of the big screen monitor to ask our questions, and with the astronauts looking directly at the camera on the ISS, it felt like they were looking right back at me — and talking to me personally. It was very fun, and another great memory of my journalistic journey to KSC.

Animation of SDO launch. Images: Nancy Atkinson

Two rocket launches in one week! It doesn’t get any better than this! The launch of the Atlas V rocket with the Solar Dynamics Observatory on Feb. 11 was incredible! (Have I used that word before here?!) Above is an animation of the images I took of the launch, and below is a video taken by another journalist that was near where I was at the Kennedy Space Center press site. The Atlas launch was not as loud and engulfing as the shuttle launch, but still it is breathtaking. Where the shuttle guns it off the pad, Atlas rises slowly and gradually picks up velocity.

What I felt most privileged about was that I was standing about 100 ft. from the SDO scientist, so could witness their excitement at seeing what was likely years of their work heading off to space. And then, I walked back to the press building alongside them, and got their initial reactions. Since I was one of the few journalists there (seemingly there were more photographers than writers) and there was no official press conference after the launch, I got quotes from them that no one else has in their articles! (w00t for exclusivity!)

There was this awesome moment during the launch, and I describe it in my Universe Today article where the rocket was soaring up into the sky and there was a sundog, or rainbow-like effect on the clouds. Then when the rocket experiences the maximum dynamic pressure in its atmospheric flight (Max-Q) it gave off a shock wave which was visible to us on the ground, and it dissipated the sundog! The best video which shows exactly what we saw is posted on Spaceweather.com, and was taken by a 13-year-old girl at the launch. (follow that link — I highly recommend it!) There’s another video that I’ve put in below that shows a different look (the sundog isn’t visible, but the shockwave is –and they replay it) and includes a shadow from the rocket that I didn’t see from the ground.

So, first video:

Second video:

SDO is going to is going be sending back hi-res video of the sun at a constant stream. The amount of data it will provide (equivalent to half a million song downloads every day!) will revolutionize our understanding of the Sun, how it affects us here on Earth, and how scientists might be able to predict solar storms.