Incredible.

As a skydiver I've always thought about what an amazing freefall those boosters get upon re-entry. Thanks for posting that.

At 3:03 you can see the second rocketbooster falling to earth from thousands of yards away... really stunning.

To see the planet wheeling between the sun and the stars is just amazing, also to hear what it sounds like as the thing descends through the atmosphere... I really think this is the coolest ride a video camera has ever taken

Why don't they burn up upon entering the earths atmosphere ?

What an awesome video! I have never seen this before. Thanks a lot for posting it!

Originally posted by InterestedObserver
Why don't they burn up upon entering the earths atmosphere ?

If I remember correctly the object itself does not burn but the air around it becomes superheated. Friction with the atmosphere creates 'flames' which are not the same as terrestrial fire or am I wrong? I wonder if anyone knows the answer to this.

In any case at 3:00-3:40 it seems the object is superheated and entering the atmosphere, then you can see puffs of black 'smoke'? Then it cuts to the parachute opening.

[edit on 30-3-2008 by NewWorldOver]

The SRBs aren't high enough to have to go through the atmosphere and reenter when they are detached. They're only on the shuttle for roughly 75 seconds or so. Long enough to get her going, and get up pretty high, but not high enough to burn up on reentry.

This is an amazing video I haven't seen before.
Thanks so much for sharing, it's beautiful!