The Glass Lady

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“Three… two… one… ignition!”

Lt. Commander Jacob Enright checked the monitor directly in front of him on the control panel. Space Shuttle Endeavor’s Payload Assist Module engine fired its 17,360-pound molten thrust at the lethal weapons satellite LACE on schedule to push it out of continuous orbit. In twenty-five minutes, it would hit the atmosphere in the middle of the Indian Ocean and hit the water as harmless debris soon after.

“Ignition plus twenty seconds. Range two miles, Skipper,” Enright called out as he read the constantly changing computations. “One minute now. Still burning.”

“Range below?” Colonel Parker asked.

“Four miles. Slant range two miles and counting.”

The PAM’s attitude thrusters were programmed to keep the PAM horizontal and to hold at a slight tilt. This off-center component pushed LACE down and away from the shuttle as it slowed her speed.

“Seventy seconds. Range six miles below.”

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