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STS-114 The "To & Fro" Object DVDs Now Available At Project P.R.O.V.E.!

STS-114 lifted off from Launch Pad 39B, Kennedy Space Center, on 26 July 2005 at 9:39 AM CDT (14:39 GMT). This daylight launch was the most watched in Shuttle history, with the possible exception of STS-1, the initial Shuttle launch on 12 April 1981. The timing and solar angle were chosen to maximise opportunities to film the liftoff, and ascent, from every possible perspective. These even included modified old jet bombers from the 1950s (WB-57 Canberras), carrying special camera turrets in the nose for the purpose of photographing Discovery at high altitude as she was on her way to orbit. The reasoning behind all of this was to make sure that if there were ANY debris strikes on the orbiter's sensitive heat shield, like the one which doomed Columbia in 2003, they would be captured on film for detailed analysis before allowing Discovery to re-enter the atmosphere. The Crew experienced some facets of Shuttle flight that are entirely new. On orbit inspection of the heat shield, manual repairs to that heat shield, and experiments with different methods of on orbit heat shield repair. In addition, Discovery carried over 15 tons of equipment and supplies to the International Space Station ( in the Raphaello MPLM module ), where she was greeted upon arrival by the Expedition 11 Crew. Three EVAs (Extra-Vehicular Activity or spacewalk) were carried out. These involved Space Station repairs, improvements, and attending to heat shield problems. A fourth EVA to repair a flaw in the insulation below Commander Eileen Collins window was cancelled as unnecessary. Space Shuttle Discovery and her crew landed safely at Edwards Air Force Base (NASA's Dryden Research Center) in the California desert at 7:11 AM CDT (12:11 GMT) on 9 August 2005. Total flight duration was 13 days 21 hours 32 minutes. The mission was highly successful, accomplishing every goal set for it. The sad news is that in the wake of continued problems with external tank insulation breaking away during liftoff, the Shuttle fleet has been indefinately grounded until the problem is solved.
	STS-114 Liftoff

	Belly Inspection

	Inside ISSy

	Robinson On EVA

	STS-114 Landing

THE EVENT

On 2 August 2005, the Shuttle/Station complex was orbiting above the southern Pacific Ocean, west of Chile. It was near local midnight, so the Sun was nowhere to be seen. At this particular time, a very strange object made an appearance, and disappearance. It seemed to swiftly come out of the depths of space, and reverse itself, returning as rapidly as it came. In all my years of watching and recording NASA Select TV during Shuttle flights, and ISS activities, I've NEVER seen ANYTHNG quite like this.

Well, shall we have a look at the visual presentation on this event now?

SETTING THE SCENE
	This pair of NASA displays shows where the spacecraft were at the time of the event. These are before and after, so you can see how far the Shuttle/Station Complex moved during the short "live" TV interval.
THE "TO & FRO" OBJECT
	Now you can see for yourself how this object came zipping out of space, reversed itself, and shot back out of the area. Please note that it doesn't return from whence it came exactly. This it would do if this were an example of the camera being zoomed in and out rapidly on some astronomical object. That was the first thing that came to mind. But upon close study, this is not the case.

Shuttle debris, and ice flakes from water dumps, don't behave like this. They are incapable of movement like we see here. The GIF above shows the "full view" as originally seen in the "live" NASA broadcast, and reproduces the event as almost the exact speed observed in real time. What this object might be is unknown.

ENHANCEMENTS

	Left is enlarged 150%. The speed is reduced to about half normal. We can now have a better look at this "orb".

	In this case, colors have been reversed. The object is black against white. Please note that the anomaly seems to have some sort of gaseous material surrounding it.

	Lasty, we offer you the embossed version for a 3D effect against a neutral grey background.

Because of the observed behavior and appearance of this anomaly, and due to the fact that normal explanations to not account for it, I must classify this objects as an unknown.

***

At all times during this incident, the camera was under the control of the INCO in Houston Mission Control.

(INCO - INstrument & Communication Officer - The man in Houston Mission Control Center who is responsible for operating the Shuttle payload bay, and robotic arm, cameras. He also remotely operates the helmet cameras in space suits. In the case of ISS, this officer is referred to as the CATO - Communications And Tracking Officer. In both cases, these persons CONTROL everything which is PERMITTED to go out on broadcast to the public. It is a commonly believed falacy that the cameras are operated by Astronauts & Cosmonauts on the Shuttles, and Space Station. Very little camera work is done by the crews. They're way too busy for that.)

At the end of the day, it's up to YOU to draw your own conclusions.