Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith

The disc contained Star Wait, a documentary about Star Wars fans who had waited in line for Episodes II and III. Unlike the shuttle, this future launcher and associated crew exploration vehicle will have a launch escape system to save the crew in the event of a disaster. Target stores also offered a bonus disc with the Revenge of the Sith DVD. This contrasts with the current shuttle where astronauts and heavy cargo are launched in a single vehicle. The footage used contains no scenes from Revenge of the Sith nor does it have the changes contained in the 2004 DVD Special Edition releases. This technology would be used to develop two separate launchers, one for manned missions and the other for unmanned heavy cargo. The DVD version contains the content from the first two discs: The Story of Anakin Skywalker and The Story of Luke Skywalker. NASA plans on using modified shuttle components to build an expendable Shuttle Derived Launch Vehicle.

Presented in full frame with Dolby Digital 2.0 sound and running 1 hour in total, it was originally produced and released in 2004 as a 3-disc collection for the VideoNow Color personal video player. NASA currently uses these for unmanned launches, and plans to use them for future manned launches. The sticker on the cover describes it as "R2-D2 and C-3P0's chronicles of Luke and Anakin Skywalker". Another approach is lower cost expendable launch vehicles. [5] As with many previous Star Wars "history" featurettes, it is hosted with newly shot footage by the droid duo, R2-D2 and C-3PO. Like the X-33, the X-30 encountered major technical difficulties, primarily due to the system complexity and materials required for hypersonic flight, and was finally cancelled. Wal-Mart stores included an exclusive bonus disc, entitled The Story of Star Wars, with some copies of Revenge of the Sith, when it arrived on DVD. The official name was the Rockwell X-30.

Disc 2:. Department of Defense, but passenger-carrying civilian versions were planned, sometimes called the "New Orient Express". Disc 1:. It was originally investigated by the U.S. [4]. It would achieve much of orbital velocity while still within the upper atmosphere. Together with Star Wars: Battlefront II, the DVD has earned around $280 million as of November 8, 2005. This would be launched and landed horizontally like an airliner.

A playable demo of Star Wars: Battlefront II was also included on the DVD. Another variant of SSTO is a hypersonic, scramjet-powered, airbreathing vehicle. The 15 part web documentary series, "Making Episode III", is also included in the set. During design that program increased in complexity and development cost, encountered problems and was finally cancelled. The DVD includes a new full-length documentary as well as two featurettes, one which explores the prophecy of Anakin Skywalker as the Chosen One, the other looking at the movie's stunts. NASA evaluated several concepts in the 1990s, and selected the X-33, which would eventually have been the Venturestar. The DVD was a two-disc set, with picture and sound mastered from the original digital source material. One approach is Single Stage To Orbit (SSTO), which would be 100% reusable and use a single stage.

Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith was released on DVD on November 1, 2005 in the United States. In general future designers look to less complex, more reliable launch systems with lower maintenance costs. In the latter mode, two players team up to combat increasingly difficult waves of enemies. Nixon in 1971 [4], the operational costs, flight rate, payload capacity, and reliability have been worse than anticipated. In the first mode, two players fight with characters of their choice against each other in a lightsaber duel to the death. While it was developed within the original development cost and time estimates given to President Richard M. It also has a form of multiplayer mode, which includes both "VS" and "Co-Player" mode. Opinions differ on the lessons of the Shuttle.

After the death of Obi-Wan, Anakin proceeds to kill Palpatine, and take over the galaxy. Advances in technology over the last decade have made probes smaller and lighter, and as a result unmanned probes and communications satellites can use relatively cheap and reliable expendable rockets, including Delta launcher, and Atlas V. One unique and popular aspect of the game was that it included an alternate ending, which functioned as such to both the game and the movie, which involved Anakin killing Obi-Wan, instead of Obi-Wan defeating Anakin as in the movie. The Shuttle's history of unexpected delays also makes it liable to miss the narrow launch windows. The style of the game was mostly lightsaber combat and fighting as Obi-Wan or Anakin. Following the Challenger disaster, carrying in the shuttle payload bay the powerful liquid fueled Centaur upper stages planed for interplanetary probes was ruled out. However, many sections of the game featured cut scenes from the movie, or entirely new scenes for the game. NASA's plan for using the shuttle to launch all unmanned payloads declined, then was discontinued.

The game followed the movie's storyline, for the most part, integrating scenes from the movie. No other launch vehicle had the shuttle's payload capability or could return large items from the space station to earth. A video game, based on the film, was released on May 5, 2005, two weeks before the film. Even though the initially planned Space Station Freedom was signficantly scaled back, the shuttle was still vital to service it. In addition to this, the siege of the Jedi Temple is slightly more violent than the cinematic version is. During development, shuttle features were primarily chosen based on capability required to service the future space station. For example, during the Battle of Coruscant, Anakin's callsign is Red 5, a reference to Luke's callsign in the Battle of Yavin. The result is high labor cost, with around 25,000 workers in Shuttle operations and labor costs of about $1 billon per year.

The novel includes many little details that some Star Wars fans are likely to appreciate. Furthermore, because in some cases there are no survivable abort modes, many pieces of hardware simply must function perfectly and so must be carefully inspected before each flight. The novelization includes much more dialog than the movie, including a conversation between Count Dooku and Darth Sidious, where the reader learns Palpatine lied to Dooku about what the Empire would truly be. Because loss of crew is unacceptable, the primary focus of the Shuttle program is to return the crew to Earth safely, which can conflict with other goals, namely to launch payloads cheaply. A book version of the movie was written by Matthew Stover. Instead, this turnaround process usually takes months, however once Columbia was launched twice within 56 days. This album was chosen as one of Amazon.com's Top 100 Editor's Picks of 2005 (#83). After landing, the orbiter would be checked out and start "mating" to the rest of the system (the ET and SRBs), and be ready for launch in as little as two weeks.

The DVD features 16 music videos set to remastered selections of music from all six film scores, set chronologically through the saga. The Shuttle was originally conceived to operate somewhat like an airliner. The soundtrack also came with a collectors' DVD, Star Wars: A Musical Journey, at no additional cost. Some reasons for higher than expected operational costs can be ascribed to:. A music video titled A Hero Falls was created for the film's theme, Battle of the Heroes, featuring footage from the film. Another way to calculate launch cost is the incremental expense of adding a single additional shuttle mission, which is is about $100 million. John Williams was also composer and conductor of the score for the other five films in the Star Wars saga. Some of this can be attributed to operating beyond the 10-year anticipated lifespan of each Shuttle, and higher than anticipated maintenance costs.

The music was composed and conducted by John Williams, and performed by the London Symphony Orchestra and London Voices. This has been much more expensive than anticipated. The soundtrack to the film was released by Sony Classical on May 3, 2005, more than two weeks before the release of the film. This includes all related costs such as maintenance, ground facilities, training, etc., and divides that figure by the number of shuttle flights. Lucas' coverage of the exterior cityscapes, skylines and interior isolation is similar to the cinematography and mis-en-scene of Roman Polanski, particularly in The Pianist, The Tenant and Rosemary's Baby, a film in which a husband makes a literal pact with the devil. There are various ways to calculate costs -- the $500 million figure inclues all operational details of maintaining and servicing the Shuttle fleet. Midway in the film, Lucas intercuts between Anakin and Padmé by themselves, thinking about one another in the Jedi Temple and their apartment, respectively during sunset, in a sequence without dialog and complimented by a moody, synthesized soundtrack. Per launch costs are roughly $500 million today.

McDiarmid, Lucas, and others have also called Anakin's journey to the dark side faustian in the sense of making a "pact with the devil" for short-term gain. However, this does not fully explain the high shuttle operational costs. In both cases, jealousy drives the husband to strangle his wife. Nixon in 1971 [3]. In Revenge of the Sith, Vader comes to believe that his wife, Padmé, has betrayed him to his former master, Obi-Wan. In fact when discounting inflation, the shuttle development program was within the initial cost estimate given to President Richard M. In Othello, the title character is led to believe by Iago that his wife has committed adultery with his confidante and lieutenant. When evaluating shuttle development costs in later-year dollars, this superficially appeared to be a large cost overrun in the program.

Palpatine's scheming manipulations of Anakin have been compared by many, including McDiarmid himself, to those of Iago, the villain of Shakespeare's Othello. Between when the program began in 1972, and first flight in 1982, inflation increased prices over 200%. Lucas' editing schemes during Order 66, the slaughter of the Separatists and the declaration of the Galactic Empire is reminiscent of the montage of massacres during the christening scene of The Godfather, a film directed by mentor Francis Ford Coppola. suffered from severe inflation. The close-ups on Grevious's and Obi-Wan's eyes is likely an homage to the work of Sergio Leone, whose protracted gunfights featured such extreme close-ups, especially in The Good, The Bad and The Ugly. During the 1970s the U.S. The lightsaber duel between Obi-Wan and the four-armed skeletal cyborg General Grevious echoes similar fight sequences in Ray Harryhausen's filmography, particularly the fights involving animated skeletons and multi-armed statues in Jason and the Argonauts and the Sinbad the Sailor series. One reason behind this apparent failure is inflation.

Based on the scene in the opera, it has been speculated that either Palpatine or Plagueis manipulated the Force to create Anakin, thus being Anakin's "father", but this has been neither confirmed nor denied, and was purposefully left ambiguous. Although the final design differs from the original concept, the project was still supposed to meet USAF goals and be much cheaper to fly in general. Also, Rotwang builds the android whose appearance heavily influenced the image of Lucas' C-3PO, who was built, in The Phantom Menace, by Anakin. Although it did operate as the world's first reusable crew-carrying spacecraft, it did not improve on those parameters in any meaningful way, and is considered by some to have failed in its original purpose. Both Anakin and Rotwang wear a menacing leather glove on one hand and concentrate on saving —or resurrecting— a lost loved one. It was intended to improve greatly on the previous generation of single-use manned and unmanned vehicles. Anakin also bears a resemblance to a villainous character played by Klein-Rogge from a film by Lang —the mad scientist Rotwang from the classic film Metropolis. The original mission of the Shuttle was to operate at a high flight rate, at low cost, and with high reliability.

Mabuse, particularly as portrayed by German actor Rudolph Klein-Rogge in director Fritz Lang's films. [2]. Palpatine's appearance and actions are also reminiscent of Dr. NASA's budget for 2005 allocates 30%, or $5 billion, to Space Shuttle operations. The very idea of the individual slaughter of the Jedi, order 66, is reminiscent of the coup of the Knights Templar by Pope Clement V on Friday the thirteenth, 1307. The total cost of the program has been $145 billion as of early 2005 ($112 billion of which was incurred while the program was operational) and is estimated at $174 billion when the Shuttle retires in 2010. In Lucas' film, the wife herself is a liberal senator. While the Shuttle has been a reasonably successful launch vehicle, it has been unable to meet its goal of radically reducing flight launch costs, as the average launch expenditures during its operations up to 2005 accumulates to $1.3 billion [1], a rather large figure compared to the initial projections of $10 to $20 million.

In Frankenheimer's film, the wife is the daughter of a liberal senator. The Columbia Accident Investigation Board called this tendency the "normalization of deviance" -- a gradual acceptance of abnormal events simply because they haven't been catastrophic to date. Also, in both films, the brainwashed assassin eventually murders —or is led to believe he has murdered— his own wife. Over time NASA managers gradually accepted more tile damage, similar to how O-ring damage was accepted. Palpatine's fabrication of a Jedi "coup d'etat" is comparable to the plot of the John Frankenheimer thriller Seven Days in May, while his conversion of Anakin to the dark side and motivating him to assassinate his political enemies in order to aid his ascent to dictatorial powers are more close to the content of Frankenheimer's previous film, The Manchurian Candidate. The original shuttle operational specification said the orbiter thermal protection tiles were designed to withstand virtually no debris hits at all. Anakin's execution of Dooku mimics the scissor-beheadings of Ridley Scott's film Gladiator, and the subsequent run across the elevator shaft walls while the spaceship is falling in battle echoes the disastrous situations of The Poseidon Adventure. The foam had not been designed or expected to break off, but had been observed in the past to do so without incident.

Early on the Jedi navigate their way through General Grevious' ship by traversing elevator shafts, thematically and visually echoing the tradition of post-Die Hard action movies and Lars von Trier's mini-series Riget (The Kingdom). Columbia failed because of damaged thermal protection from foam debris that broke off the external tank during ascent. Throughout Revenge of the Sith Lucas refers to a wide range of films and other sources drawing on political, military and mythological motifs to enhance the impact of his story. Challenger's O-ring eroded completely through, with fatal results. Worldwide gross eventually reached $848,466,209, ranking 12th all-time and the 2nd worldwide in 2005, right behind Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire.. Unfortunately NASA and Thiokol senior managers overruled him and allowed the launch to proceed. Revenge of the Sith was released in 115 countries. He raised concerns that the unusually cold temperatures would stiffen the O-rings, preventing a complete seal.

history.). Morton Thiokol designed and manufactured the SRBs, and during a pre-launch conference call with NASA, the Thiokol engineer most experienced with the O-rings pleaded repeatedly to cancel or reschedule the launch. (Taking ticket-price inflation into account, it is the 55th highest grossing movie in U.S. Instead of finding out why, managers felt because it had not previously eroded by more than 30%, that this was not a hazard as there was "a factor of three safety margin". Its total of $380,270,577 ranks it 7th all-time domestically, the highest-grossing movie of 2005 by a margin of over $100 million. In the case of Challenger, an O-ring which should not have eroded at all did, in fact, erode on earlier shuttle launches. It apparently stopped running in domestic theaters on October 20, 2005. In both cases a mind set among senior managers developed that concerns had to be objectively proven rather than simply suspected.

It was the third fastest (after Shrek 2 and Spider-Man) to reach $350 million. A heavily layered, procedure-oriented bureaucratic structure inhibited necessary communication and action. It became the only film to tie Spider-Man 2's record of eight days to $200 million, and with $25,088,336 in its third weekend (June 3-5) it had passed $300 million on Saturday, its 17th day, surpassing the record of 18 days held by Shrek 2. In both cases the vehicle gave ample warning beforehand of abnormal problems. It joins Spider-Man, The Matrix Reloaded and Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire as the only movies to make $100 million in three days. In both cases, junior engineers were greatly concerned about possible problems, but these concerns were not properly communicated to or understood by senior NASA managers. It totaled $158.5 million in its first four-day period, surpassing the previous four-day record held by The Matrix Reloaded ($134.3 million) and making it the second highest grossing movie of 2005 after just four days in release (behind Hitch, $177.6 million, which it passed on its fifth day). In both cases events happened which were not planned for or anticipated.

According to the box office prediction and analysis site Box Office Mojo, Revenge of the Sith set domestic records for highest gross in a given number of days for each of at least its first twelve days of release except for the seventh and eighth, where the record is narrowly held by Spider-Man 2. While the technical details of the accidents are quite different, the organizational problems show remarkable similarities. This broke several box office records:. This gives a 2% death rate per astronaut per flight. In total, it earned a record $50 million on its opening day. Two Shuttles have been destroyed in 114 missions, both with the loss of the entire crew of seven:. The film earned an estimated $16.5 million from 2,900 midnight screenings in North America upon its release. † Satellites deployed
* This was flight STS-80, during November 1996.

One nomination:. Whilst all three Orbiters are externally very similar, they have minor internal differences; new equipment is fitted on a rotating basis as they are maintained, and the newer Orbiters tend to be structurally lighter. One nomination:. Individual Orbiters are both named, in a manner similar to ships, and numbered, using the NASA Orbiter Vehicle Designation system. In contrast with the previous two prequels, these flaws are generally seen as minor and not obtrusive to the film. After landing the vehicle stands on the runway to permit the poisonous hydrazine fumes used for part of the attitude control during descent to dissipate. As with earlier prequels, many felt that Lucas did not draw out the potential of Natalie Portman's performance, but this is partially because her entire sub-plot (as a founding member of the Rebel Alliance, alongside Bail Organa and Mon Mothma) was cut from the film-- it's restored in the DVD, however. Landing speed is very high -- 213 to 255 mph, vs 160 mph for a jet airliner.

Many critics were pleased with the acting, however, with Christensen's depiction of a more mature Anakin Skywalker and Ian McDiarmid's charismatic turn as the ascendant Chancellor Palpatine receiving the most acclaim. It glides to landing with a glide angle of 4:1. Despite the generally positive reception, many critics asserted Lucas' continued weakness with dialogue in general, particularly with the romantic plot-line. In the lower atmosphere the orbiter flies much like a conventional glider, except for a much higher descent rate, over 10,000 feet per minute (roughly 20 times that of an airliner). Lucas has directed," and equal to The Empire Strikes Back as "the richest and most challenging movie in the cycle.". Attitude control is achieved from a mixture of RCS thrusters and control surfaces. Scott of the New York Times concluded that it was "the best of the four episodes Mr. This is achieved by performing s-curves at up to 70 degree bank angle.

O. In addition, the standard reentry aims deliberately high- the vehicle needs to bleed off extra altitude and speed to reach the landing site. A. The vehicle attitude is controlled to take on a nose up attitude of up 40 degrees to maximise drag. Some critics have noted that they view it to be the best of the prequels, while other reviewers have judged it to be the best Star Wars film since Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back. The vehicle will then start significantly entering the atmosphere at about 400,000 ft doing around Mach 25. Film review site Rotten Tomatoes gave it a rating of 82% based on 229 reviews, compared to the 63% and 65% received by Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace and Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones, respectively. However the reentry can be and has (once) been flown manually.

Critical reaction towards the film was largely enthusiastic, especially in comparison to the two previous prequels. The entire reentry, except for the lowering of the undercarriage, is under complete computer control. A New Hope also contained a very mild amount of what some consider adult language, such as "damn" and "hell." Revenge of the Sith contains no such content. This OMS firing is done roughly halfway around the globe from the landing site. A New Hope was originally rated G, but its rating was deliberately pushed up in order to attract a broader audience. The deceleration of the Shuttle lowers its orbit perigee down into the atmosphere. All previously released films in the series, except for A New Hope, were rated PG. The vehicle begins reentry by firing the OMS engines in the opposite direction to the orbital motion for about three minutes.

Due to its dark undertones and scenes of violence, Revenge of the Sith is the first and only Star Wars film to receive a PG-13 rating from the MPAA. The Shuttle then fires the OMS engines to circularize the orbit and avoid reentry. Both rips are widely spread and available in popular P2P networks. At this point the Shuttle is still slightly suborbital, since the trajectory intersects the atmosphere. Then, on June 4th, 2005, an Internal Xvid Rip version of the film was leaked into P2P file sharing networks as well, which was the final, theatrical cut of the movie seen in theaters, and was a much higher fidelity version of the film than the workprint one, although still not quite as good as the theatrical release, and was also wasn't a Telecine transfer yet, due to vibrations and frame-skips during certain moments in the movie. The tank then falls to largely burn up in the atmosphere, with some fragments falling into the Indian Ocean. The movie was a time-stamped workprint, suggesting it may have come from within the industry rather than from someone who videotaped an advance screening. Before complete depletion of propellant (running dry would destroy the engines) the main engines are shutdown, and the empty external tank is released by firing explosive bolts.

A copy of the movie leaked into P2P file sharing networks just hours after opening in theaters. Finally, in the last tens of seconds of the main engine burn, the mass of the vehicle is low enough that the engines must be throttled back to limit vehicle acceleration to 3g, largely for astronaut health and comfort. Most of them took advantage of an offer to see the film at a nearby cinema, the Arclight. The vehicle continues to climb and takes on a somewhat nose-up angle to the horizon — it uses the main engines to gain and then maintain altitude whilst it accelerates horizontally towards orbit. However, a line of people stood there for more than a month hoping to convince someone to change this. However, as the burn continues, the weight of the propellant reduces, the ever-lighter vehicle produces more and more acceleration until the thrust to weight ratio exceeds 1 again and the vehicle can hold itself up. Grauman's Chinese Theatre, a traditional venue for the Star Wars films, did not show it. The vehicle at that point in the flight has a thrust to weight ratio of less than one — the main engines actually have insufficient thrust to exceed the force of gravity, and the vertical speed given to it by the SRBs temporarily decreases.

The global outplacement firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas claimed before the premiere that it may have cost the US economy approximately US$627 million because of employees who took a day off or reported in sick. The Shuttle then begins accelerating to orbit on the Space Shuttle Main Engines. It was released in most other countries on May 19, six years to the day after the release of The Phantom Menace (A New Hope and Return of the Jedi were also released on the same day, six years apart). The SRBs parachute back to the ocean to be reused. Revenge of the Sith premiered at the Cannes Film Festival (out of competition) on 15 May 2005. 126 seconds after launch, explosive bolts release the SRBs and small separation rockets push them laterally away from the vehicle. The Revenge of the Sith novel was released two months before the premiere and the actual script was leaked on the Internet a few days later. Around a point called "max-q", where the aerodynamic forces are at their maximum, the main engines are temporarily throttled back to avoid overspeeding and hence overstressing the Shuttle (particularly vulnerable parts such as the wings).

Many times the stars, and Lucas himself, were spotted on the cam. Orbital velocity at the 380 km (236 miles) altitude of the International Space Station is 7.68 km per second, or 17,180 mph, roughly equivalent to Mach 23. Not only did Hyperspace members receive special articles, but they also received many other benefits, such as a webcam, which transmitted a new image every 20 seconds during the time it was on from Fox Studios Australia. This isn't visually obvious since the vehicle rises vertically and is out of sight for most of the horizontal acceleration. Members of Hyperspace, the Official Star Wars Fan Club, received a special look into the production. To achieve orbit requires expending much more energy in a horizontal direction than in a vertical direction. According to an interview with Hayden Christensen in Playboy magazine, playwright Tom Stoppard did an uncredited rewrite and dialogue polish on the script. The vehicle climbs in a progressively flattening arc, accelerating as the weight of the SRBs and main tank decrease.

It is rumored that the scenes he worked on included the Yoda/Palpatine battle and a part of the Mustafar duel. Shortly after clearing the tower the Shuttle rotates so that the vehicle is below the external tank and SRBs. Lucas sent over an animatics artist to assist him. At takeoff the vast majority (~71%) of the thrust is provided by the SRBs. This happened when a project of his fell through and he had some spare time. After the Challenger disaster, there were extensive upgrades to abort modes. Lucas confirmed in an interview that Steven Spielberg tinkered with several action sequences in Sith. Many of these concern SSME failures, since that is the most complex and highly stressed component.

The long process of post-production continued until weeks before the film was released in 2005. There are extensive emergency procedures (abort modes) to handle various failure scenarios during ascent. George Lucas finished the script of the film only five days before the beginning of principal photography. The SRBs cannot be turned off once ignited, and afterwards the shuttle must take off, no matter what. Principal photography on the film occurred from June 30 to September 17, 2003 at Fox Studios Australia. Initially the main engines are ignited and computers verify their operation for several seconds; if successful, the SRBs are ignited and the vehicle is then committed to takeoff. The film was produced with a budget of US$113 million, making it the least expensive of the three prequel films. It is called the Shuttle-C and would trade re-usability for cargo capability with large potential savings from reusing technology developed for the Space Shuttle.

It was later adapted into a script from 2003 to 2004. A cargo-only, unmanned variant of the Shuttle has been variously proposed and rejected since the 1980s. The film's story was written by Lucas, in the form of a basic plot outline, in 1973. In addition the Air Force developed their own much lighter single-piece SRB design using a filament-wound system, but this too was cancelled. She claimed this was because she posed for the June 2005 issue of Playboy magazine, whose appearance on newsstands coincided with the movie's May release, but Lucas denied this, stating that the cut had been made more than a year earlier, and that he had cut his own daughter's scenes as well. The loss of the ASRB program forced the development of the Super LightWeight external Tank (SLWT), which provides some of the increased payload capability, while not providing any of the safety improvements. Bai Ling filmed minor scenes for the film playing the role of a senator, but her role was cut during editing. These culminated in the considerably simpler, lower cost, probably safer and better performing Advanced Solid Rocket Booster which was to have entered production in the early to mid-1990s to support the Space Station, but was later cancelled to save money after the expenditure of $2.2 billion.

(However, the final storyline in the Republic comic series reveals that Vos escaped this initial attack.). Several other SRB improvements were planned in order to improve performance and safety, but never came to be. Expanded Universe character Quinlan Vos' death scene was never filmed, though his death was implied (but not explicitly shown) in the comic adaptation. Notable is the adding of a third O-ring seal to the joints between the segments, which occurred after the Challenger accident. The death scene of Shaak Ti is a DVD deleted scene. The SRBs (Solid Rocket Boosters) have undergone improvements as well. The deaths of Barriss Offee and Luminara Unduli were either cut from the film or never filmed in the first place. As the Shuttle cannot fly unmanned, each of these improvements has been "tested" on operational flights.

Many Order 66 scenes were cut. It weighs 7,500 lb (3.4 t) less than the last run of lightweight tanks. The scene where Yoda arrives on Dagobah to begin his self-imposed exile was also cut, but is featured in a deleted scene in the DVD release. This version of the tank is made of the 2195 Aluminum-Lithium alloy. (Due to the dating supported by Expanded Universe sources, and the fact that Chewbacca is still on Kashyyyk at the time, the pilot of the Falcon in the cameo is the previous owner(s) to Lando Calrissian and Han Solo, as Lando and Han were children at the time.) It is one of the ships landing in the background. STS-91 saw the first flight of the "super light-weight external tank". However, the Millennium Falcon makes an appearance in the scene in which Anakin and Obi-wan return to Coruscant. The resulting "light-weight external tank" has been used on the vast majority of Shuttle missions.

George Lucas wrote early drafts of the script in which a 10-year-old Han Solo appeared, but the role was never cast or shot. Additional weight was saved by removing some of the internal "stringers" in the hydrogen tank that proved unnecessary. Scenes with Captain Needa and Mon Mothma were deleted. The 600lbs saved by not painting the tank results in an almost 600lb increase in payload capability to orbit. Ultimately, his audition was never chosen. For STS-1 and STS-2 the external tank was painted white to protect the insulation that covers much of the tank, but improvements and testing showed that it was not required. According to him, Gary Oldman is a friend of Rick McCallum, and recorded an audition as a favor to him. The normal maximum throttle is 104%, with 106% and 109% available for abort emergencies.

Matthew Wood, who ultimately voiced Grievous, disputed this story at Celebration III, held in Indianapolis. The 109% thrust level was finally reached in flight hardware with the Block II engines in 2001. Out of respect and solidarity with the other members of the guild, he chose to back out of the role rather than violate the union's rules. The upgrades have improved engine reliability, maintainability and performance. However, complications arose during contract negotiations after Oldman learned the film was to be made outside of the Screen Actor's Guild, of which he is a member. SSME upgrades are denoted as "block numbers", such as block I, block II, and block IIA. Gary Oldman was originally approached to provide the voice of General Grievous, and he accepted. However this would have required revising much previous documentation and software, so the 104% number was retained.

Also in the movie was Jeremy Bulloch (Boba Fett in the original trilogy), who played a speaking role as Captain Colton, the pilot of the Rebel Blockade Runner Tantive IV. They could have rescaled the output number, saying in essence 104% is now 100%. Nick Gillard, the stunt coordinator, plays a character named Cin Drallig (his name spelled backwards). During the lengthy development program, Rocketdyne determined the engine was capable of safe reliable operation at 104% of the originally specified thrust. Much of the crew also make cameos in the film. The 100% figure is the original specified power level. His three children also play cameos: his son, Jett, as a young Jedi-in-training called Zett Jukassa killed defending the Jedi Temple against clone troopers; his daughter, Amanda, as a character called Terr Taneel, seen in the security hologram; and daughter Katie as a blue-skinned alien called Chi Eekway, visible when Palpatine arrives at the Senate after being saved by the Jedi, and talking to Baron Papanoida at the Opera House. This explains phrases such as "Main engines throttling up to 104%." This does not mean the engines are being run over a safe limit.

It marks Lucas' first and only appearance in any of the Star Wars films. The Space Shuttle Main Engines have had several improvements to enhance reliability and power. George Lucas makes an appearance at the Coruscant Opera House as a blue faced being named Baron Papanoida, that can be seen outside Palpatine's box. With the coming of the Space Station, the Orbiter's internal airlocks are being replaced with external docking systems to allow for a greater amount of cargo to be stored on the Shuttle's mid-deck during Station resupply missions. The film concludes with Beru, Luke, and Owen staring out over the desert at Tatooine's twin suns. In the Apollo-Soyuz Test Project tradition, programmable calculators are carried as well (originally the HP-41C). In space, onboard a Star Destroyer, Darth Vader and the Emperor oversee what is either the construction of the first Death Star or the Death Star prototype.^[1] Leia is brought to Alderaan to live with the Queen, and Luke is brought to Tatooine to live with Owen and Beru. This is called a "glass cockpit".

On Naboo, Padme's parents hold her funeral. In addition to the computer upgrades, the original vector graphics monochrome cockpit displays were replaced with modern raster color displays, similar to contemporary airliners like the Airbus A320. Obi-Wan and Yoda will watch and wait until the time is ready for the Skywalker children to do their part in the battle against the Sith. Internally the Shuttle remains largely similar to the original design, with the exception of the improved avionics computers. Aboard the Tantive IV, Obi-Wan, Yoda, and Bail Organa agree to keep the children hidden and separated. The memory was changed from magnetic core to semiconductor with battery backup. When Palpatine tells Vader that he killed Padmé, Vader unleashes a furious scream in a rage that distorts and destroys droids and equipment in the room. In 1990 the original computers were replaced with an upgraded model AP-101S, which has about 2.5 times the memory capacity (about 1 megabyte) and three times the processor speed (about 1.2 million instructions per second).

On Coruscant, occurring simultaneously in the film with the birth of his children, Vader is given a special suit that keeps him alive. They have no hard disk drive, but load software from tape cartridges. Just before she dies, Padmé says there is still good in Anakin. The CPU could process about 400,000 instructions per second. Padmé gives them the names Luke and Leia. The IBM AP-101 computers originally had about 424 kilobytes of magnetic core memory each. However, they manage to save her babies—she delivers twins, a boy and a girl. It is specifically designed for a real time embedded system environment.

Padmé is given medical assistance, but although she is physically intact, her will to live is gone and she dies. The software for the shuttle computers are written in a high-level language called HAL/S, somewhat similar to PL/I. Later, Palpatine arrives at Mustafar with a squad of clone troopers, and they rescue Vader from the brink of death. However in theory it can fail, so the BFS exists for that contingency. After picking up Vader's lightsaber, Obi-Wan leaves Mustafar with the badly-injured Padmé. For example the number of code lines is tiny relative to a commercial operating system, changes are only made infrequently and with extensive testing, and many programming and test personnel work on the small amount of computer code. He ignites into flames, sustaining near-fatal third-degree burns and severe lung damage. This should never happen, as embedded system avionic software is developed under totally different conditions than commercial software.

Vader tumbles down the embankment and rolls to a stop at the edge of the lava. The BFS was created because although the four primary computers are hardware redundant, they all run the same software, so a generic software problem could crash all of them. Obi-Wan soon gains the advantage of higher ground, and, when Vader attempts to jump over his former master, Obi-Wan cuts off both of his legs and his left arm. The Backup Flight System (BFS) is separately developed software running on the fifth computer, used only if the entire four-computer primary system fails. The fierce lightsaber duel continues between Obi-Wan and Darth Vader. In the rare case of two out of four computers simultaneously failing (a two-two split), one group is picked at random. With clone troopers coming to aid Palpatine, Yoda makes the heart-wrenching decision to retreat, and escapes with the help of Bail Organa. If a second computer of the three remaining fails, the two functioning computers vote it out.

In a ferocious contest of Force powers both are flung apart, Yoda falling to the floor of the Senate chamber. This isolates it from vehicle control. In the Senate building, Yoda confronts Palpatine and the two engage in a fierce battle. If one computer fails the three functioning computers "vote" it out of the system. Obi-Wan and Vader break into a ferocious lightsaber duel. The four general purpose computers operate essentially in lockstep, checking each other. Enraged, he uses the Force to choke Padmé unconscious. After two failures it can land safely.

Vader sees Obi-Wan emerge from Padmé's ship, and suspects her of betraying him to his former Master. After a single failure the shuttle can continue the mission. Horrified, Padmé realizes that Obi-Wan's story was true. The design goal of the shuttle DPS is fail operational/fail safe reliability. Padmé wants to leave public life to live together and raise their child, but Vader tells her that he has brought peace to the Republic, and that he can overthrow Palpatine so he and Padmé can rule the galaxy together. Collectively they are called the shuttle Data Processing System (DPS). When the couple reunite on Mustafar, they embrace. A fifth backup computer runs separate software called the Backup Flight System (BFS).

Unbeknown to her, Obi-Wan secretly boards the ship just before it takes off. Four computers run specialized software called the Primary Avionics Software System (PASS). Padmé later departs to Mustafar to see her husband. The shuttle uses five identical redundant IBM 32-bit general purpose computers (GPCs), model AP-101, constituting a type of embedded system. Obi-Wan meets with Padmé and tells her that Anakin has turned to the Dark Side, but Padmé refuses to reveal where Vader is. Much research went into the shuttle computer system. On Mustafar, Vader is initially greeted by Viceroy Nute Gunray, however Vader immediately attacks the Separatist leaders and their small force of guards, ending the slaughter by killing Gunray. A primary concern with digital fly-by-wire systems is reliability.

Yoda says they have no choice but to destroy the Sith. This means no mechanical or hydraulic linkages connect the pilot's control stick to the control surfaces or reaction control system thrusters. Obi-Wan looks into the security recordings and sees Vader slaughtering the Jedi and then kneeling to Palpatine. The shuttle was one of the earliest aircraft to use a computerized fly-by-wire digital flight control system. In the Jedi Temple, Obi-Wan and Yoda reconfigure a signal to warn all Jedi to keep away. The SRB cases are made of steel about 1/2 inch (1.27 cm) thick. Palpatine informs the Senate of a Jedi plot to overthrow the Republic and announces that the Republic will be reorganized into the Galactic Empire. They are jettisoned two minutes after launch at a height of 36 nautical miles (67 km), then deploy parachutes and land in the ocean to be recovered.

Senator Bail Organa rescues Obi-Wan and Yoda, and brings them to the Jedi Temple before heading to the Senate building. The Solid Rocket Boosters (SRBs) contain the solid fuel that provides about 71% of the vehicle's liftoff thrust. Vader later goes to Padmé and tells her the Jedi have tried to take over the Republic. The ET is made of aluminum-lithium alloy. With a battalion of clone troopers, Darth Vader eradicates the Jedi in the Jedi Temple. It is discarded 8.5 minutes after launch at an altitude of 60 nautical miles (111 km) then burns up on reentry. Ki-Adi-Mundi, Aayla Secura, Barriss Offee, Luminara Unduli, Plo Koon, Stass Allie, and other numerous Jedi across the galaxy are exterminated, but Yoda and Obi-Wan barely manage to survive. The External Tank (ET) contains the 2 million liters (528,000 gallons) of liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen propellant that feeds the SSMEs.

Palpatine orders clone troopers across the galaxy to turn against their Jedi Generals. The orbiter structure is made primarily from aluminum alloy, although the engine thrust structure is made from titanium. Palpatine orders Vader to go to the Jedi Temple and kill all the Jedi within, then to go to the Mustafar system and kill Viceroy Gunray and the other Separatist leaders. Unlike previous space vehicles which used insulation that burned off during reentry and couldn't be reused, the orbiter thermal protection can be reused up to 100 times with only minor repairs. Palpatine takes Anakin as his Sith apprentice, and christens him with the Sith name Darth Vader. Lower temperature areas on the upper surfaces are protected by flexible thermal blankets. Shocked, in pain, and caught off guard, Windu is consumed by Palpatine's Force lightning, forcing him out the window and killing him. The underbelly and much of the fuselage sides is protected by silica tiles.

Sensing that Palpatine was trying to corrupt Anakin, Mace tells Anakin not to believe him, but Anakin believes that the only way to save his wife is to keep the Chancellor alive, so he attacks Windu by cutting off his weapon hand. The hottest areas are on the wing leading edges and nose, which are protected by reinforced carbon/carbon. Just as Windu is about to kill the Chancellor, Palpatine tries to convince Anakin that the Jedi were really trying to take over. Various materials are used, depending on the amount of heat. As Palpatine and Windu engage in a lightsaber duel, Anakin arrives. The Thermal Protection System (TPS) covers the outside of the obiter, protecting it from the intense heat during reentry. Windu attempts to arrest the Chancellor, but Palpatine lunges with a fierce lightsaber attack which kills Agen Kolar, Kit Fisto, and Saesee Tiin (who were assigned to accompany him). The Reaction Control System (RCS) provides attitude control and translation along the pitch, roll, and yaw axes during the flight phases of orbit insertion, orbit, and reentry.

Anakin tells Jedi Master Mace Windu about Palpatine's true identity. The Orbital Maneuvering System (OMS) provides orbital maneuvers, including insertion, circularization, transfer, rendezvous, abort to orbit, and abort once around. Upon realizing this, Anakin threatens to kill Palpatine, but instead decides to expose him to the Jedi Council. They are used for propulsion during ascent. Meanwhile, Anakin discovers that Palpatine is the Sith Lord, Darth Sidious. Three Space Shuttle Main Engines (SSMEs) are mounted in the rear part of the obiter. Obi-Wan retrieves the droid's blaster and shoots the General several times in the chest, killing him, then tosses the blaster on the ground, muttering that it was, "so uncivilized.". Since the arm is a crucial part of the Thermal Protection Inspection procedures now required for Shuttle flights, it will probably be included on all future flights.

Obi-Wan manages to break open Grievous's loose chestplate, exposing the living organs in his chest. Until the loss of Columbia, the Canadarm had been used only on those missions where it was needed. After a long chase through the Utapauian city, Obi-Wan catches Grievous at his private hangar, where they yet again fight. Inside the payload bay is the Remote Manipulator System, also known as the Canadarm, a robot arm used to retrieve and deploy payloads. At this moment, the Clone Army arrives, forcing Grievous to retreat on his Wheel Bike. Thermal control is also maintained by adjusting the orientation of the Shuttle relative to Earth and Sun. Undaunted by the General's four-saber technique, Obi-wan quickly finds an opening in Grievous's defences and slices off two of his four hands. The payload bay doors have heat radiators mounted on their inner surfaces, and so are kept open for thermal control while the Shuttle is in orbit.

After witnessing an argument between Grievous and Nute Gunray, he emerges from the shadows on top of a walkway and quickly disposes of Grievous's personal bodyguards before engaging Grievous himself. The orbiter has a large 60 by 15 ft (18  m by 4.6 m) payload bay, filling most of the fuselage. Obi-Wan is sent to Utapau to find General Grievous. Astronauts pass through the airlock hatch to put on their space suits. This intrigues Anakin, due to his nightmares regarding Padmé. Galley, toilet, sleep locations, storage lockers, and the side hatch for entering/exiting the vehicle is also located there, as is the airlock hatch into the payload bay. Palpatine says the ability to save people from death is something that can be learned, but not from a Jedi. The mid-deck has three more seats for the rest of the crew members.

Palpatine subtly manipulates Anakin in their discussions, making him distrust the Jedi. The highest flight deck seats the commander and pilot, two mission specialists in the back. Later at an opera house, Anakin arrives and Palpatine tells him the story of an old Sith legend; the story of Darth Plagueis the wise. Its crew cabin consists of three levels: the flight deck, the mid-deck, and the utility area. As the Chancellor's bodyguard, Anakin builds a close friendship with Palpatine. The orbiter resembles an airplane with delta wings. Later, Obi-Wan privately tells Anakin that the Council wants him to spy on the Chancellor because they believe that he is corrupt. The vehicle is launched vertically like a conventional rocket, and the orbiter glides to a horizontal landing like an airplane, after which it is refurbished for reuse.

This enfuriates Anakin, who believes it to be an insult. The tank and boosters are jettisoned during ascent, so only the orbiter goes into orbit. The Council agrees with the Chancellor's appointment, however Anakin is not made a Jedi Master. The shuttle is a partially reusuable launch system composed of three main assemblies: the reusable Orbiter Vehicle (OV), the expendable External Tank (ET), and the two reusable Solid Rocket Boosters (SRBs). Chancellor Palpatine makes Anakin his representative on the Jedi Council. Columbia was lost, with all seven crew members, during reentry on February 1, 2003, and has not been replaced. However, Anakin is troubled by visions of Padmé dying in childbirth, visions like those he had of his mother before she died. Endeavour was built to replace it (using spare parts originally intended for the other Orbiters) and delivered in May 1991.

Despite Padmé's worries, as they have kept their love and their marriage secret, Anakin is overjoyed at this news, and the couple make plans to raise their child. Challenger was destroyed when she disintegrated during launch on January 28, 1986, with the loss of all seven astronauts on board. Upon his return planetside, Anakin is reunited with his wife, Padmé Amidala, and she informs him of her pregnancy. The Shuttle was meant to visit Space Station Freedom, announced in 1984, an ambitious and much-delayed project later downsized and merged into the International Space Station program. Unable to leave the cruiser, which has been damaged in an engagement with the Republic fleet, Anakin crash-lands the ship on one of Coruscant's landing fields. Challenger was delivered to KSC in July 1982, Discovery was delivered in November 1983, and Atlantis was delivered in April 1985. Anakin and Obi-Wan try to capture Grevious, eliminating most of the bridge crew in the process; Grevious escapes, however, launching the ship's escape pods. The first fully functional Shuttle Orbiter, built in Palmdale, California, was the Columbia, which was delivered to Kennedy Space Center on March 25, 1979, and was first launched on April 12, 1981—the 20th anniversary of Yuri Gagarin's space flight—with a crew of two.

Anakin, Obi-Wan, and the Chancellor attempt to escape the ship, but are captured by General Grevious, leader of the droid army, and taken to the bridge. Amid great fanfare, the Enterprise was rolled out on September 17, 1976, and later conducted a successful series of glide-approach and landing tests that were the first real validation of the design. Palpatine reassures him that Tyranus was too dangerous to be kept alive. The first complete Orbiter was originally named Constitution, but a massive write-in campaign from fans of the Star Trek television series convinced the White House to change the name to Enterprise. Anakin immediately expresses regret; to kill a foe who surrenders is not the way of the Jedi. The contractor for the Space Shuttle Solid Rocket Boosters was Morton Thiokol (now part of Alliant Techsystems), for the external tank, Martin Marietta (now Lockheed Martin), and for the Space shuttle main engines, Rocketdyne. Palpatine urges Anakin to kill Tyranus, and despite Anakin's reservations, he does. The prime contractor for the program was North American Aviation (later Rockwell International), the same company responsible for the Apollo Command/Service Module.

In the ensuing lightsaber duel, Anakin defeats Tyranus by amputating his hands. The final design was less costly and less technically ambitious than earlier fully reusable designs. They make their way to the observatory were Chancellor Palpatine is being held captive by Darth Tyranus (Count Dooku). The Shuttle program was formally launched on January 5, 1972, when President Nixon announced that NASA would proceed with the development of a reusable Space Shuttle system. During the space battle, Obi-Wan's ship is damaged by two buzz droids and the two Jedi crash into the hangar of the The Invisible Hand, where the Chancellor is held hostage. Ultimately the current design was chosen, using a reusable winged orbiter, solid rocket boosters, and expendable external tank. The camera tracks down from a blinding Coruscanti sun, to reveal a Venator-class Star Destroyer, with two Jedi Starfighters flying alongside it. During early shuttle development there was great debate about the optimal shuttle design that best balanced capability, development cost and operating cost.

Jedi Knights Anakin Skywalker and Obi-Wan Kenobi lead a mission to rescue him. They evaluated the shuttle studies to date, and recommended a national space strategy including building a space shuttle. Chancellor Palpatine has been kidnapped by the Separatists second-in-command, General Grievous. Agnew. The opening crawl reveals that the galaxy is in the midst of war. Nixon formed the Space Task Group, chaired by vice president Spiro T. . In 1969 President Richard M.

It broke several box office records in its opening week, and went on to earn over US$ 850 million worldwide, making it the highest grossing film of 2005 in the U.S., the 2nd highest grossing film of 2005 worldwide (right behind Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire), and the 12th highest grossing worldwide film of all time. The early studies were denoted "Phase A", and in June 1970, "Phase B", which were more detailed and specific. Released on May 19, 2005, the film was generally positively received by critics, especially in contrast to the two previous prequels. Even before the Apollo moon landing in 1969, in October 1968 NASA began early studies of space shuttle designs. As the final film to be released in the series, it bridges the gap between the original trilogy and prequel trilogy of the Star Wars epic. . When the sinister Sith, led by Darth Sidious, unveil a thousand-year-old plot to rule the galaxy, the fate of Anakin Skywalker, the Jedi order, and the entire galaxy is at stake.
.

Three years after the onset of the Clone Wars, the noble Jedi Knights have been leading a massive clone army into a galaxy-wide battle against the Separatists. However, following the STS-114 return-to-flight mission in August 2005, the Shuttle program is currently grounded pending repairs and the solution of outstanding safety issues. Among fans, it is commonly referred to as ROTS. According to the Vision for Space Exploration, use of the Space Shuttle will be focused on completing assembly of the ISS in 2010, after which it will be replaced by the yet-to-be-developed Crew Exploration Vehicle (CEV). It was the sixth and final film to be released in the Star Wars saga, but it is the third part of the series by chronology of events. The program started in the late 1960s and has dominated NASA's manned operations since the mid-1970s. Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith is a 2005 science fiction film written and directed by George Lucas. Each Shuttle was designed for a projected lifespan of 100 launches or 10-years operational life.

Until a further source fully explains this, the issue remains disputed. However this cabability is used to return large payloads to earth from the International Space Station, as the Russian Soyuz has limited capacity for return payloads. Anderson's novels Jedi Search and Champions of the Force explain that a prototype Death Star was built in preparation of construction of the first Death Star in A New Hope, which would give another explanation for why the first Death Star took so long to build, in contrast with the second Death Star from Return of the Jedi. While the vehicle was designed with the capability to recover satellites and other payloads from orbit and return them to Earth, this capacity has not been used often. However, Kevin J. It carries large payloads to various orbits, provides crew rotation for the International Space Station (ISS), and performs servicing missions. He goes on to say that it would be "a bit of a stretch," but explains that due to "union disputes and supply problems," it took 19 years to build. It is also the first winged manned spacecraft to achieve orbit and land.

He explains that it was the exact same one as seen in A New Hope. The Shuttle is the first orbital spacecraft designed for partial reusability. ^ In the DVD commentary for Revenge of the Sith, Lucas makes an offhand comment regarding the first Death Star. When its mission is complete, it re-enters the earth's atmosphere and makes an unpowered gliding horizontal landing, usually on a runway at Kennedy Space Center. Halbfinger, New York Times, May 19, 2005. The winged shuttle orbiter is launched vertically, carrying usually five to seven astronauts and up to about 22,700 kg (50,000 lbs) of payload into low earth orbit. ^ Latest 'Star Wars' Movie Is Quickly Politicized by David M. NASA's Space Shuttle, officially called Space Transportation System (STS), is the United States government's sole manned launch vehicle currently in service.

^ Box Office Mojo - Star Wars: Episode III. The trailer allows the transportation of the Orbiter from the OPF to either the SCA-747 "Mate-Demate" stand or the VAB without placing any additional stress on the undercarriage. DVD-ROM content includes a free trial of Hyperspace. Prior to the closing of the Vandenburg facility, Orbiters were transported from the OPF to the VAB on its undercarriage, only to be raised when the Orbiter was being lifted for attachment to the SRB/ET stack. Production photo gallery. Air Force's launch facility at Vandenburg Air Force Base in California (since then converted for Delta V rockets) that would transport the Orbiter from the landing facility to the launch pad, which allowed both "stacking" and launch without utilizing a separate VAB-style building and crawler-transporter roadway. Trailers and TV spots. A 36-wheeled transport trailer, originally built for the U.S.

Poster and print campaign. The Shuttle Carrier Aircraft is a modified Boeing 747 that flies the Space Shuttle from alternative landing sites back to Cape Canaveral. "A Hero Falls" music video. The Crawler-Transporter moves the Space Shuttle from the Vehicle Assembly Building to Launch Complex 39. Star Wars: Empire at War PC game trailer. While the shuttle might safely endure a lightning strike, a similar strike caused problems on Apollo 14, so for improved safety NASA chooses to not launch the shuttle if lightning is possible. Star Wars: Battlefront II trailer and Xbox game demo. However upon takeoff the shuttle sends out a long exhaust plume as it ascends, and this plume can trigger lightning, plus provide a current path to ground.

A 15-part collection of Lucasfilm's Web documentaries. Like most jet airliners, the shuttle is constructed of conductive aluminum which would normally protect the internal systems. "It's All for Real: The Stunts of Episode III". Airplanes are often struck by lightning with no adverse effects because the electricity of the strike is dissipated through the conductive structure and the aircraft is not electrically grounded. "The Chosen One" featurette: George Lucas traces the myth of Darth Vader through episodes 1-6. The shuttle is not launched under conditions where it could be struck by lightning. "Within a Minute" documentary film about the making of the Mustafar battle. Since then, NASA has installed commercial plastic owl decoys and inflatable owl balloons which must be removed prior to launch.

Exclusive deleted scenes with introductions by George Lucas and Rick McCallum. One shuttle launch was delayed in 1995 when a pair of woodpeckers drilled almost 200 holes into the foam insulation of Discovery's external tank. Commentary by writer-director George Lucas, producer Rick McCallum, animation director Rob Coleman, and ILM visual effects supervisors John Knoll and Roger Guyett. When CNN reported on the breakup of the Columbia over Texas, they erroneously reported it was traveling at nearly 18 times the speed of light, instead of 18 times the speed of sound. Available Audio Tracks: English (Dolby Digital 5.1 EX), Spanish (Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround), French (Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround). (source : John Young's April 2003 After Dinner Speech). Available subtitles: English. On the same subject, a little-publicised detail about the first Shuttle mission, STS-1, was that it had a protruding gapfiller that ducted hot gas into the right wheel well on re-entry, buckling the right main gear on landing as a result.

Instead it contained a rap video with a dancing Yoda and clone troopers. This image from the NASA archives shows many missing tiles on the STS-1 OMS pods : [[5]] The problem on Columbia was that the damage was sustained to the carbon-carbon leading edge panel of the wing, not the heat tiles. This was the first release not to contain a secret blooper reel of footage from filming as an easter egg. STS-1, STS-16 and STS-41 have all flown with missing thermal tiles from the orbital maneuvering system pods (visible to all the crew). This has caused some backlash from fans collecting both the VHS versions, complaining that their VHS set will not be complete without Episode III. In fact Shuttles had come back missing as many as 20 tiles without any problem. This release is notable because, due to marketing issues, it was the first Star Wars film never to be released on VHS (except in Australia and the United Kingdom). The subject of missing or damaged thermal tiles on the Shuttle fleet only became an issue following the loss of Columbia in 2003 as it broke up on re-entry.

Additionally, Anakin is missing the scar on his right eye on the DVD cover. At the point when it is perfectly vertical, the boosters ignite and the launch commences. The DVD cover art is the only cover of the six films not to include a central character brandishing a lens flare-boasting lightsaber blade towards the viewer. This takes approximately 6 seconds. Unlike any other film directed by Lucas, Revenge of the Sith was released on DVD without any noticeable alterations from the film's original theatrical cut. As the boosters flex back into their original shape, the launch stack springs slowly back upright. In all of the other films, the two characters were played by at least two different people. After main engine start, but while the solid rocket boosters are still clamped to the pad, the offset thrust from the Shuttle's three main engines causes the entire launch stack (boosters, tank and shuttle) to flex forwards about 2 meters at the cockpit level.

This was the first Star Wars film in which Anakin Skywalker and the suited Darth Vader were played by the same actor in the same film. When watching a launch, look for the "nod" ("Twang" in "NASAese"). As confirmed by the DVD-ROM commentary, during the scene in which Yoda departs Kashyyyk and bids farwell to Chewbacca and Tarfful, Tarfful's growls are actually Itchy's growls from The Star Wars Holiday Special. NASA was one of its main customers. In a wide shot of Darth Vader's half-done operated body and a claw with his mask moving closer to put the mask on near the end of the film, it is apparent that he doesn't have his voice amplifier piece or his neck plating on, but after the shot with the mask lowering , the neck plate is attached. The Compass sold poorly, because it cost at least $8000, but offered unmatched performance for its weight and size. However, after making the suggestion and others agree by saying "aye," he too says "aye", suggesting his line was meant to be spoken by a different character. Early Shuttle missions took along the GRiD Compass, arguably the first laptop computer.

At one point in the film, Ki-Adi-Mundi makes a motion that Obi-Wan Kenobi should lead the search on Utapau for General Grievous. This is still lower than the actual approximately $100 million per launch, but less difference than is commonly thought. Lucas's friend and fellow filmmaker Steven Spielberg was confirmed to have worked on some of the conceptual work and animatics for the film, focusing mainly on the Yoda/Palpatine fight and the Mustafar duel. Correcting for inflation to 2005 dollars, this equates roughly to $36 million incremental costs per launch. On the DVD cover, Anakin's scar (the result of a lightsaber duel with Asajj Ventress in Star Wars: Clone Wars) on his right eye is missing completely. Early cost estimates of $118 per pound of payload were based on marginal or incremental launch costs, and based on 1972 dollars and assuming a 65,000 pound payload capacity. In Padme's Wardrobe site, the costume used on the poster is called the Peacock Gown, and the costume used on the DVD cover is called the Green Cut Velvet Robe. Some early hypothetical studies examined 55 launches per year, but the maximum possible launch rate was limited to 24 per year, based on manufacturing capacity of the external tank.

In the movie, this costume appears with the hood down. This does not reduce actual operating costs, but if dividing total program costs by number of launches, more launches per year produces a lower per-launch cost figure. A different costume was used on the DVD cover, however this costume appears in the same way as on the cover only in the deleted scenes. Launch rate is significantly lower than initially expected. However, the costume does appear in some of the deleted scenes. Before the current "Block II" engines, the turbopumps (a primary engine component) had to be removed, dissembled, and totally overhauled after each flight. On the poster, Padmé wears an outfit that does not appear in the movie itself. The main engines were highly complex and maintenance intensive, necessitating removal and extensive inspection after each flight.

.that business on Cato Neimoidia doesn't count." This was going to be a running gag throughout the film, but all subsequent uses were eventually cut. Maintenance of thermal protection tiles turned out to be very labor intensive, averaging about 1 person·week to replace a tile, with hundreds damaged with each launch. After returning Supreme Chancellor Palpatine to Coruscant, Obi-Wan tells Anakin ". Columbia — lost during reentry, February 1, 2003. This is the first film in the Star Wars Saga in which a dream is literally depicted on camera. Challenger — lost 73 seconds after liftoff, January 28, 1986. Episode III features the longest opening continuing shot in the entire Star Wars saga (over two minutes long). Ulysses probe.

According to the filmmakers in the audio commentary, the speed in which Anakin and Obi-Wan engage their lightsaber duel on Mustafar is the speed in which the duel was filmed, and was not digitally accelerated. Galileo spacecraft. Several lava explosions, seen in Mustafar at the fight scene between Anakin and Obi-Wan Kenobi, were in fact real life explosions shot from Mount Etna's eruption which were later combined with computer generated effects to create the impressive and real-life atmosphere. Magellan probe. Copies of the film titled Charlotte are valued more than standard releases. An interplanetary orbit; these have included: