Latest news with #CraigBailey
Yahoo
05-07-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
Patriotism soars on the Space Coast
A rocket. A flag. And an eagle. All three are rich in American symbolism so what better choices could be found for this week's Photo of the Week. Let's make that plural: photos. We were captivated by both images and their timing, particularly this week as America celebrated Independence Day. Photographer Tim Shortt captured the photo of the rehabilitated juvenile male bald eagle as it soared back into freedom thanks to help from the Florida Wildlife Hospital & Sanctuary in Palm Shores. The eagle, released on Merritt Island on July 1, had been found grounded in early June and was nursed back to health. The SpaceX rocket carrying a weather satellite for the European Space Agency was photographed with an American flag in the foreground as it soared off Pad 39A at Kennedy Space Center, also on July 1. Photographer Craig Bailey took that beautiful photo. Executive Editor Mara Bellaby can be reached at mbellaby@ This article originally appeared on Florida Today: An eagle soars, a rocket flies, a flag waves | Photo of the Week
Yahoo
14-06-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
Vapor cone plays ring around the Falcon 9 rocket
It's one of those "You don't see that every day" moments, captured by FLORIDA TODAY photographer Craig Bailey in this Photo of the Week. And there's a lesson to go along with it. The shot, from a rare daylight Starlink launch, shows a vapor cone forming around a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket after it lifted off from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station. How and why that vapor cone happens is likely a mystery to many. Not for Bailey, who's compiled a motherlode of launch shots and can explain what's behind the formation. "As the rocket approaches the speed of sound, when the atmospheric conditions are right, a vapor cone will appear around the rocket.," Bailey said. "This one is unusual because the low angle of the morning sun creates a shadow of the rocket on the vapor cone. But like the vapor cone, the shadow is only there for a brief moment and then is gone." This article originally appeared on Florida Today: Vaper cone of flame: What's behind that formation? | Photo of the Week
Yahoo
31-05-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Confetti and caps fly as Class of 2025 soars into future
You can practically hear "Pomp and Circumstance" and feel the confetti raining down on the crowd as you flip the tassel on a decorated mortarboard. This joyful Photo of the Week by FLORIDA TODAY's TIm Shortt, of Titusville Terriers celebrating the "big walk," seems to express the overall spirit shared throughout Brevard County as more than 5,000 students graduated from more than two dozen high schools in May. FLORIDA TODAY was there for many of those celebrations, and also captured the action as diplomas were conferred at Eastern Florida State College and Florida Tech. Between veteran photographer Craig Bailey and Shortt, and with an assist from reporters Tyler Vazquez, J.D. Gallop, Finch Walker and Amber Oleson, a treasure trove of memorable moments was captured. "Anyone who has attended as many gradations as I have through the decades knows how many extraordinary young people we have here in Brevard," said Shortt. "We too often hear about the bad apples, but I can attest that the vast majority are bright, determined and are going to do just fine." This year, Shortt shot graduations at at least nine schools, including Eastern Florida State College, where he majored in photography back when it was Brevard Community College. This image was his overall favorite — and as a bonus, his niece, Maddie Jones, was among the grads there. "I graduated Astronaut in '78, and while a proud War Eagle from across town, I gotta give credit to our rivals over the years for a fantastic ceremony," he said. "On this night, I was full-on Go Terriers!' For more photos from graduations around the Space Coast, click here. This article originally appeared on Florida Today: Confetti, caps, Class of 2025: Oh, what a night! | Photo of the Week
Yahoo
20-04-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
This super shot leaves us moonstruck
Shoot for the moon. Once in a blue moon. Moonstruck. We could go on and on with the green-cheesy moon idioms to describe this shot, but let's just call this cool snap FLORIDA TODAY's latest Photo of the Week. Photographer Craig Bailey didn't promise the moon. But he certainly made us feel like he flew us there with this gem, that of a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket, carrying 21 Starlink satellites, passing in front of the moon after liftoff from Kennedy Space Center on April 12. And after two days of scrubs, the launch came on the night of April's full moon, a micromoon, to boot. "I was out on the wildlife refuge with several others hoping to get a photo of the moon transit," Bailey said. "I like these types of photos because they're different from the 'average' launch photo and they don't happen that often. They take a little more advance planning — and a lot of luck." The result? Truly something to (you knew it was coming, right?) moon over. This article originally appeared on Florida Today: A launch shot that sends us over the moon: Photo of the Week
