Supersonic Transportation System

This NASA photo depicts one of America's shuttles - part of the country's "Space Transportation System" - leaving the launch pad at Cape Canaveral.

The shuttle, shown here, is "Discovery." NASA describes the image - taken on September 12, 1993 - as follows:

In this photo taken with a fisheye lens, shuttle Discovery roars away from Launch Pad 39B at 7:45 a.m. EDT as the STS-51 mission begins. The Advanced Communications Technology Satellite and attached Transfer Orbit Stage booster were deployed during the flight, along with a second primary payload, the Orbiting and Retrievable Far and Extreme Ultraviolet Spectrograph-Shuttle Pallet Satellite.

Click on the image for a better view.