It doesn't necessarily have to be a Shuttle to be impressive. Several years ago I watched an Atlas rocket launch at 2 am from the parking lot of my hotel in Melbourne (FL). Even the smaller rocket lights up the sky like the dawn.

Then, a few years later, I was at a conference on Kiawah Island, SC. We had just commenced a "social hour" facing the beach, right at dusk. The sky was already deep blue in the east, and the minimal clouds were pink in the west. Then we saw a vertical cloud in the south, spotlit by the sun which had just set. And it (the cloud) was getting taller, fast. It was frankly a little disconcerting until I recalled having heard the news broadcast earlier in the day that had mentioned plans for a shuttle launch. Then it became one of those amazing moments of grandeur and beauty that you never forget.

As the shuttle climbed into the dark sky we could just make out a tiny flame at the top of the cloud. From our distant vantage point, we got a good impression of how quickly it starts to make its way across the Atlantic. It still amazes me how clear a view we had, nearly 300 miles away.