Read more space and science news on CNN’s Light Years blogĬNN’s Ben Brumfield and Ric Ward contributed to this report.The Over Land Transporter (OLT) is mated to the space shuttle Endeavour, after Endeavour was removed from the NASA 747 Shuttle Carrier Aircraft (SCA). It flew a Spacelab mission and numerous International Space Station assembly missions and rendezvoused with Russia’s Mir Space Station. Over the next 20 years, Endeavour flew some of the most high-profile shuttle missions, covering 25 flights and nearly 123 million miles. It was the baby of the shuttle fleet, built as a replacement for Challenger. Named for the first ship commanded by British explorer James Cook, Endeavour rolled out of an assembly plant in Palmdale, California, in 1991 at a cost of $1.7 billion. It strikes a chord of nostalgia in you because she’s done so many flights from the space center. “It’s the last time that she’ll ever be at her home base again. Wednesday’s leg took Endeavour to Houston, with flyovers along Florida’s Space Coast, Stennis Space Center in Mississippi and the Michoud Assembly Facility in New Orleans.Īs Endeavour bid farewell to Kennedy Space Center, it elicited strong emotions from people – such as CNN iReporter Randy Lathrop of Cocoa, Florida – who have lived with the shuttle program nearby for decades. “Social media users are encouraged to share their Endeavour sightings using the hashtags #spottheshuttle and #OV105, Endeavour’s orbiter vehicle designation,” NASA said. Watch: Trees removed to make way for EndeavourĮndeavour’s three-day piggyback flight was divided into three legs that could be described as scenic routes to showcase the shuttle to the public from coast to coast. Related gallery Photos: Space Shuttle Enterprise in the Big Apple Challenger exploded shortly after launch in 1986, and Columbia broke apart upon re-entry into Earth’s atmosphere in 2003. Two other shuttles – Challenger and Columbia – were destroyed in accidents that killed all aboard. His wife had watched the launch of his mission but missed the landing, so it was great for her to see the shuttle in the air, he added.Įndeavour, along with Discovery, Enterprise and Atlantis, became a museum piece after NASA ended its 30-year shuttle program in July 2011. “It is the most amazing spacecraft ever built, by far.” “The space shuttle is really a testament to American engineering and ingenuity,” he told CNN affiliate KOLD. Kelly, who was in space when Giffords was shot and six others were killed in January 2011, said it was emotional to see the orbiter again. Gabby Giffords, before touching down at Edwards Air Force Base in California. On Thursday, it flew low over Tucson, Arizona, where Mark Kelly, who was the commander on the last Endeavour mission, watched with his wife, former U.S. NASA said Endeavour will be moved via roads on October 12-13 to its final spot at the science museum. Upon arrival at Los Angeles International Airport, the orbiter will be removed from its perch aboard the Boeing 747 it has piggybacked for three days.
The last space shuttle to grace the skies, Endeavour, ended two decades of glorious flights Friday, wowing onlookers as it descended onto a runway at Los Angeles International Airport atop a modified Boeing 747 jet at 12:51 p.m. The orbiter’s final destination is the California Science Center in Los Angeles, but it still has some sightseeing to do before it goes on display. The space shuttle Endeavour began its final aerial show on Wednesday, thrilling spectators across the southern United States before completing the first stage of its transcontinental voyage in Houston.