At 8:30-ish this morning I was awakened by the loud and emphatic “double-boom” of the Space Shuttle’s landing approach. Did you hear it?
That sound still thrills me, as do fighter-jets “slicing” the sky at an air show.
It’s possibly the last time we’ll hear one of those, here in California, with the shuttle program scheduled to be ended next year. I am moved by its passing, are you?
It would be thrilled if I was still there. I used to be on the Space Shuttle Support Team, and I got to hear it on all of the early missions.
I dig it. It’s a shame my kids may not hear it again.
It was loud as hell, but I knew exactly what it was. It sounded like sombody dropped two bodies from 20 feet onto my roof.
I was thinking pianos…
We hear it too in Orlando(ish) when they choose to land at Kennedy. I always smile and say, “Good, they’re home safe.”
This reminds me of last year’s manx TT.
Normally the red-arrows come here. But that year they didn’t. So I assumed there’d be no airshow of any kind. Then I was walking in town and heard this almighty slicing roaring sound “What the $%!|(&* was that!!” I could hear it but couldn’t see it. So it was a few moments before I realized it was a fighter jet.
It makes me want to duck or take cover!
Anyone have a recording of this sound? I’ve seen the shuttle take off twice, but never heard that reentry noise.
nm… quick youtube search found me this..
Not as impressive as a good thunderstorm, but still nice. 
I was actually annoyed that I managed to miss it this time. I remember hearing on NPR (Saturday morning, I think?) that there was bad weather in Florida and they might have to land out here, and my first thought was, “Oooh, goodie, sonic boom!”
Next time, dagnabit!
The last time I heard a sonic boom was 9/11 (2 sets of 2). Before that was 1987 when I was under a natural bridge in Arizona (Tonto’ Natural bridge). It scared the hell out of me. I thought it was going to collapse.
It seems I used to hear sonic booms all the time, where I lived growing up (near UCLA). But in my present location I never hear them. You’d think I would, living not too far away from navy and air force bases. I wonder why…
I always think, “did my AC condenser just blow up?”, and then realize it was the shuttle.