spacetoday.net: Endeavour begins cross-country journey

Posted: Thu, Sep 20, 2012, 8:08 AM ET (1208 GMT)
Endeavour and 747 after takeoff on final ferry flight (NASA/KSC)

The space shuttle Endeavor began what will be its final trip, departing the Kennedy Space Center Wednesday atop a 747 bound for California. Endeavour and its 747 carrier left KSC shortly after 7 am EDT (1100 GMT) Wednesday. After making passes over the Space Coast, it flew east, flying over the Stennis Space Center in Mississippi and the Michoud Assembly Facility in New Orleans before arriving in the Houston area. The 747 carrying Endeavour landed at Ellington Field in Houston shortly before noon EDT (1600 GMT) after a series of passes over landmarks in the city. Endeavour will depart Thursday morning, making a refueling stop in El Paso before performing flybys over White Sands and the city of Tucson, landing later Thursday at Edwards Air Force Base in California. The vehicles will then criss-cross California on Friday before landing at Los Angeles International Airport. The ferry flight, the last of the shuttle program, is delivering Endeavour to its new home at the California Science Center in Los Angeles.