From: gherbert@retro.com   
      
     wrote:   
   >A typical rocekt goes almost straight up until it is out of the   
   >atmpsphere then it turns toward horizontal as it accelerates   
   >to orbital speed.   
      
   By the way, this statement is wrong.  Real space launch start pitching   
   over as soon as they clear the pad in some cases, and within a km or   
   two of the ground in all cases.  The Space Shuttle, for example,   
   is only above a 45 degree flight line for the first 115 seconds   
   of flight, when it's about 25.4 miles altitude and downrange,   
   shortly before SRB separation.  It's about 0.2 mile downrange   
   by the time it reaches 1 mile altitude, and starts a roll   
   maneuver as soon as it clears the pad and a pitch nosedown   
   immediately after the roll maneuver is completed.   
      
   Burning going straight up introduces excessive G loading and   
   does not reduce the peak atmospheric drag pressure enough to   
   compensate for it.   
      
      
   -george william herbert   
   gherbert@retro.com   
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
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