KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FL - With afternoon sunlight glinting off its windows and white upper body, space shuttle Endeavour returned to Florida today, completing a 2.000 mile cross-country journey from California where it landed almost two weeks ago following the successful STS-126 mission to the International Space Station. The shuttle, riding the back of a Boeing 747, provided quite the spectacle for thousands of Space Coast residents as the duo flew over the Atlantic Ocean beaches before turning to Kennedy Space Center for landing.
VIDEO: ENDEAVOUR LANDS AT KSC ON NASA TV VIDEO: THE 747/ENDEAVOUR COMBO IS TOWED TO THE MATE DEMATE DEVICE AFTER LANDING VIDEO: OUR VIEW OF THE 747 LANDING AT KSC WITH ENDEAVOUR VIDEO: THE 747 AND ENDEAVOUR MAKE A LOW-ALTITUDE PASS OVER THE RUNWAY VIDEO: THE AIR FORCE C-17 PATHFINDER SUPPORT PLANE LANDS AT KSC VIDEO: THE C-17 SUPPORT PLANE MAKE MAKES A LOW-ALTITUDE PASS OVER THE RUNWAY ALL-ACCESS SUBSCRIBERS: COMPLETE NASA TV COVERAGE OF ENDEAVOUR'S HOMECOMING (1200 KBPS VIDEO) ALL-ACCESS SUBSCRIBERS: COMPLETE NASA TV COVERAGE OF ENDEAVOUR'S RETURN (150 KBPS VIDEO) NASA diverted Endeavour to its alternate landing facility on November 30 when dismal weather and an equally dismal forecast prevented the shuttle from returning to its home port At Kennedy Space Center. Since then, technicians worked to prepare the engineless ship for the 2,225 mile trip across the southern United States, being transported by NASA's Shuttle Carrier Aircraft, a specially modified Boeing 747. Departure from Edwards Air Force Base was originally set for Sunday, but was delayed when workers encountered difficulty attaching the aerodynamic tailcone on Endeavour's aft end. The tailcone covers the three main engines and Orbital Manuevering System engine pods to create a smooth flow of air over the craft as it flies through atmosphere. Endeavour was grounded Monday and Tuesday to await the passage of a strong cold front over the southwestern U.S. The aircraft/spacecraft pair finally took to the skies at 10 a.m. EST Wendesday morning. Endeavour landed at Biggs Army Air Field in El Paso, Texas, for refueling at 12:15 pm EST. The aircraft and shuttle took off at 2:30 p.m. and headed to Naval Air Station Joint Reserve Base, formerly Carswell AFB, in Ft. Worth, Texas for an overnight stop. The same cold front that stalled the shuttle's California departure moved through the Georgia and Florida region on Thursday. NASA decided to wait out the system's passage before sending Endeavour on the final leg home. The Shuttle Carrier Aircraft took off from Ft. Worth at 12:08 p.m. EST landed at Barksdale Air Force Base in Loousiana for the night. After refueling, NASA gave the go-ahead for Endeavour's Florida homecoming today. The carrier plae and shuttle took off from Barksdale at noon to begin the southeastward flight to Kennedy Space Center. The 747 and Endeavour flew over Tallahassee, Florida and turned southward toward Ocala, Gainesville and Orlando before heading east just south of Patrick A.F.B. about 30 miles south of the space center. The carrier aircraft then turned north and flew just off the coastline of Brevard County's beaches, giving local residents, many of whome have ties to the space program, a unique view of the shuttle as it flew 1,500 feet above the water on its way home. The rare sight provided afternoon excitement among residents and tourists alike as many people left their hotels and offices to head down to the beach and greet Endeavour on her return home. While NASA prefers to land shuttle's at KSC because of the cost and risk associated with ferrying the 100-ton orbiter cross-country, the ferry flights give the space agency a chance to do a sort of goodwill tour of the shuttle on the way back. After the beach flyover, the 747 carrier aircraft made a low-altitude pass northward over the the Shuttle Landing Facility, both to aid the pilots to prepare for landing and to use the sound of the 747's huge jet engines to help scare away birds and other wildlife from the vicinity. The aircraft then turned to the west over the Indian River and Titusville and then turned back west and north to line up with Kennedy Space Center's Runway 33, the center's south-to-north landing strip. The 3-mile-long runway is the same one used by shuttles when they return from space. The 747 touched down at 2:44 p.m. EST. Endeavour was taken to the gantry-like Mate-Demate Device where it will be removed from the top of the 747. Then Endeavour will be towed to the Orbiter Processing Facility where it will be readied for it's next flight. (Space Media Corporation / SpaceflightNews.net)
RETURN TO THE SPACEARIUM HOMEPAGE |
| Copyright © 2008, Space Media Corporation and The Spacearium, All Rights Reserved. All trademarks and copyrights on this page are owned by their respective owners. Space Media Corporation is a wholly owned company of the Aerospace Research & Engineering Systems Institute, Inc. |
