![]() ![]() But it is a big endeavor in contrast to NASA's other space shuttle museum deliveries.īoth Discovery and the prototype orbiter Enterprise were also delivered for display on top of NASA's SCA, but their flights to northern Virginia and New York City in April were non-stop and each was completed in less than a day.Įndeavour's longer journey leaves it more susceptible to changing weather conditions and operational constraints. (Image credit: The City of Los Angeles via Facebook)Įndeavour's transcontinental trip is short when compared to the 122,883,151 miles (197,761,262 kilometers) that the shuttle traveled while circling the Earth 4,671 times during its 299 days in space. Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa (at left) joined others on at the California Science Center to name the new and future home of NASA’s space shuttle Endeavour for the late Samuel Oschin, an entrepreneur, explorer and philanthropist. The carrier aircraft will fly near one last NASA center, the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena before performing flyovers over many Los Angeles landmarks on its way to a landing at LAX. 20, Endeavour, still on top of the SCA, will take off one last time, departing Dryden to fly over Northern California, passing above NASA's Ames Research Center at Moffett Field and various landmarks in multiple cities, including San Francisco and Sacramento, the state's capitol. White Sands also serviced the shuttles' thrusters between flights and Edwards' dry lakebed supported the orbiter's late 1970's approach and landing tests.įinally on the morning of Sept. 19, and after a brief refueling stop at Biggs Army Airfield in El Paso, Texas, will conduct low-level flyovers of White Sands Test Facility near Las Cruces, N.M., and Dryden Flight Research Center at Edwards Air Force Base in California, before landing around mid-day at Dryden.īoth White Sands and Edwards served as landing sites for the shuttle during the orbiters' 30 years returning from space. ![]() The orbiter and aircraft will take to the air again at sunrise on Sept. 18, providing Johnson employees and the Houston public an ample opportunity to see the shuttle. ![]() Weather permitting, the SCA and Endeavour will remain at Ellington for the remainder of the day and all day on Sept. ![]() Stennis tested the orbiter's main engines and Michoud is where the shuttle's iconic orange external fuel tank was constructed.Įndeavour will then continue westward, descending again to perform low passes over areas around Houston, Clear Lake and Galveston in Texas before making a landing at Ellington Field near NASA's Johnson Space Center. Endeavour is expected to fly south over Cocoa Beach and north over Merritt Island before heading west.Ĭoordinating with the Federal Aviation Administration, the SCA will perform low flyovers - as low as 1,500 feet (457 meters) - as it passes NASA's Stennis Space Center in Mississippi and the agency's Michoud Assembly Facility in New Orleans. 17, the aircraft and shuttle combo will take off and fly over the Space Coast, including Kennedy, Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex, Cape Canaveral Air Force Station and Patrick Air Force Base. The shuttle will then be lowered onto the SCA's back and secured for flight.Īt sunrise on Sept. Using a gantry-like steel structure called the Mate-Demate Device, Endeavour will be hoisted off the ground by crane so the jetliner can be positioned underneath it. Three days later, the orbiter will be rolled out to meet the SCA at the Shuttle Landing Facility (SLF), where Endeavour returned to Earth for its 25th and final time in the early morning hours of June 1, 2011. The carrier aircraft will arrive at Kennedy Space Center on Sept. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |