Let me see if I can explain this, while making it sound as cool as it really is:
Night launches with a light haze cloud cover are awesome because:
1) As the shuttle gets close to the clouds it lights up the sky with light reflecting back down. I think you can only see this if you're very close to the pad like where we get to watch from, other people outside the gates never seem to notice as much.
2) As it passes through the clouds it seems to punch a hole in them. Just after it goes through, you can clearly see the clouds roll back (like water rings when you drop a rock in) and it leaves a large hole. The clouds also appear to vibrate as it moves on, just like my shirt does every time.
3) If it's clear enough, you can see it all the way till Main Engine Cut-Off which is usually about 8 minutes down range. Once they reach MECO, they're in space :woot:
And just to say it again, if you have a chance to see one of the 6 launches left you should do it. It is by far one of the coolest things you'll ever see :Banane25: I love this stuff though so I may be a little bit biased :naughty:
