Quote:
Originally Posted by CamaroSkooter
...and watch as the crew and payload turn to mush from the ridiculous G-Forces 
When you can no longer see a contrail, is that when the shuttle has reached space or is it just in the upper atmosphere at that point?  |
I'm not 100% sure on this, but I would guess that it's still the upper atomosphere. Contrails are water vapor, and the upper atmosphere wouldn't have enough density to form a control. At least, that's my guess.
Also, the white cloudy trail you see early in the launch isn't contrail, but rocket exhaust, so I'm not sure if and when an actual contrail happens.