We have been fortunate to have seen two space shuttle launches. The first was in August 1984 for the maiden launch of Discovery. The most recent was 2/24/2011 for the final launch of Discovery. It is sad to see this program wind down and we as a nation no longer having ambitious goals to explore and develop breakthrough technology to move forward. Below is a photo taken from the Titusville bridge on 2/24 with a Canon SX30IS using the 35X zoom.
Shuttle Discovery Launch 2/24/2011