BABloggee Ryan Wilhelm tipped me off to a website which tracks the Space Shuttle Endeavour’s return flight to Florida from California, where it landed a few days ago. It’s riding home on the back of a 747, and the journey takes about a week. If you live along the flight path, maybe you’ll get a chance to see the ungainly pair flying by!
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| Path of Endeavour’s return, position as of 9:20 a.m. (MDT) Wed. December 10. |
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The original BA site (with the Moon Hoax debunking, movie reviews, and all that) can be found here.
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 | Bad Astronomy was chosen as one of Time.com's Best Blogs of 2009. |
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December 10th, 2008 at 9:27 am
A week? Geez, they could drive it there in that time.
Which would be so cool.
December 10th, 2008 at 9:33 am
Great site, Phil! It might go near Austin, huh? I wonder when I should alert my brother there…
Rich in Charlottesville
December 10th, 2008 at 9:40 am
Alright, that’s really cool…fun? Oh heck, you can track something from your desktop.
December 10th, 2008 at 10:26 am
Ungainly indeed – flying at around 2/3 of the speed and 1/2 of the altitude will be also ungainly on the fuel bills.
December 10th, 2008 at 10:28 am
Really nifty website, Phil.
December 10th, 2008 at 10:43 am
I was skydiving in AZ a few years ago when we got a call over the tannoy that the DZ’s operation was on hold… “BOO!!” because the shuttle was going to by flying over… “Oooohh!!”.
It was the same deal, flying back from Edwards on the 747. It was pretty cool to see it lumbering almost straight over us.
December 10th, 2008 at 10:53 am
I got to see one of these beasts landing at Cape Canaveral a few years back while I was driving around. I looked to the right and I see this 747 with the Shuttle on it’s back. I was able to screech to a halt and break out the camera before it roared overhead. Pretty impressive to see it so close to landing…
December 10th, 2008 at 11:18 am
I’ve read that it’s supposed to be back in Florida on Thursday or Friday, so it’s just a 2-3 day trip.
December 10th, 2008 at 11:25 am
I didn’t realise it took days to hitch a ride on a 747! I know, it’s a delicate operation, but still, days?
So, do they land every now and then, or do they fly extremely slowly?
December 10th, 2008 at 11:50 am
I came across some wonderful photo-galleries of the almost unbelievable shipyard-like crane assembly required to hoist and precisely hold the shuttle so that the 747 can be nudged in underneath…. though I can’t find them right now…
Also, I’m guessing this is a photoshop job, but funny.
http://img355.imageshack.us/img355/1418/orbiterprotipzg8.jpg
(Um, is there one of them manuals around, saying how to do URLs? I’m suddenly feeling old…)
December 10th, 2008 at 11:55 am
Dangerous idea…. Terrorists could see this and use it to launch an attack against the shuttle.
December 10th, 2008 at 12:28 pm
I got to see it on a trip back to Florida back in the first days of the shuttle when I lived in Texas. An awkward looking beast to be sure but still very cool.
December 10th, 2008 at 12:35 pm
Worth seeing. I got a chance years ago to see this ungainly combo upclose on a flightline, close enough to kick the 747′s tires. It’s impressive.
December 10th, 2008 at 1:37 pm
Every couple of years or so they land here in Longview, Texas(GGG). The airport gets very crowded then. I went down there once, but, I couldn’t get very close, so, I haven’t bothered since.
December 10th, 2008 at 2:41 pm
The trip normally takes one overnight, because they do not fly at night and must make at least two refueling stops. However, bad weather in Florida may push the destination to Friday instead of Thursday.
The device that lifts it atop the aircraft is the Mate-Demate Device, or MDD. There is one at Edwards and one at KSC.
And that’s not a photoshop job, it’s really there, but it is indeed a joke of course
December 10th, 2008 at 3:17 pm
From SpaceFlight Now:
I just love the name Mate-Demate Device.
December 10th, 2008 at 6:05 pm
Waaaaay back when I lived in Omaha (early-mid 80′s) I saw this spectacle when they did a low fly-over on the way to a refueling stop at the Offutt AFB. It’s one of those sights you never forget.
December 10th, 2008 at 6:59 pm
ALL flight plans in the US are public record, with a few very specific exceptions (e.g., Air Force 1). An aircraft in an unknown location is a safety hazard to other aircraft, and closing local airspace would kinda give away the “secret.”
That website publishes the flight plans for most commercial aircraft to and from the US as well. And transponder signals can be detected by anyone with an appropriate receiver. Once again, safety.
As for seeing the “crane,” if you know what it looks like, you can spot it from Highway 58 near North Edwards. But don’t get caught taking photos, as it’s REAL BAD to photograph the Edwards AFB flight line, and it’s right behind the crane….
And a pair of binoculars might look, well, suspicious, given the location.
December 10th, 2008 at 8:28 pm
Weather dont look good for a Thursday landing at KSC,Im in Melbourne,Fl about 30 miles south
December 10th, 2008 at 8:57 pm
STS-126 Mission Updatehttp://www.nasa.gov/shuttle en-us
The next leg of the ferry flight will depend on weather conditions between Ft. Worth and NASA’s Kennedy Space Center on the east coast of Florida.
]]> Wed, 10 Dec 2008 21:45:08 GMT El Paso, Texas. The aircraft and shuttle took off at 2:30 p.m. and will land at Naval Air Station Joint Reserve Base, formerly Carswell AFB, in Ft. Worth, Texas, where it will remain overnight. It is scheduled to arrive about 4:20 p.m. EST. The ferry flight began soon after sunrise in California as the Shuttle Carrier Aircraft with Endeavour bolted to its top took off from Edwards Air Force Base.
NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida is the ultimate destination for Endeavour during the ferry flight. Endeavour’s arrival there could occur as soon as Thursday, but the weather forecast suggests that is unlikely.]]> Wed, 10 Dec 2008 19:52:38 GMT ]]> Wed, 10 Dec 2008 18:02:41 GMT Florida spaceport it launched from Nov. 14. Bolted tight atop a modified 747, Endeavour lifted off a runway at Edwards Air Force Base in California at 7 a.m. PST (10 a.m. EST), just after the sun rose over the west coast.
The 747, called a Shuttle Carrier Aircraft, and Endeavour are expected at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center as early as Thursday afternoon, but Friday also is a possibility. The exact timing and route depend on weather conditions along the way. The shuttle/aircraft combo is enroute to Biggs Army Air Field in El Paso, Texas.
]]> Wed, 10 Dec 2008 15:11:48 GMT
A KSC arrival on Thursday is unlikely because of weather at the Shuttle Landing Facility.
The takeoff will be broadcast live on NASA TV.
]]> Wed, 10 Dec 2008 14:41:05 GMT California on the back of a modified 747 at 10 a.m. EST (7 a.m. PST) Wednesday to begin a cross-country trek back to NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The weather that kept Endeavour from beginning its flight earlier has improved along the proposed route, but the timing of the flight depends on observed conditions during the trip. NASA TV plans live coverage of the departure from Edwards.
]]> Tue, 09 Dec 2008 20:46:31 GMT California to Florida is scheduled to begin Wednesday at sunrise. The shuttle will ride on the back of a modified 747 as it takes off from Edwards Air Force Base in California. It could arrive at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida as early as Thursday depending on the weather along the route. Forecasters have been watching conditions associated with a slow-moving cold front as they plan Endeavour’s path back to Kennedy. The 747 and Endeavour are to take off at 9:29 a.m. EST, or 6:29 a.m. PST. Endeavour is poised at NASA’s Dryden Flight Research Center to be bolted to the 747 tonight. Dryden is adjacent to Edwards in the Mojave Desert northeast of Los Angeles.
]]> Mon, 08 Dec 2008 20:24:13 GMT ]]> Mon, 08 Dec 2008 14:10:37 GMT
]]> Sun, 07 Dec 2008 23:35:22 GMT
]]> Sat, 06 Dec 2008 23:56:59 GMT ]]> Fri, 05 Dec 2008 16:15:02 GMT ]]> Thu, 04 Dec 2008 19:55:54 GMT ]]> Thu, 04 Dec 2008 14:09:22 GMT ]]> Wed, 03 Dec 2008 13:58:43 GMT ]]> Tue, 02 Dec 2008 14:13:17 GMT ]]> Mon, 01 Dec 2008 18:20:46 GMT Sun, 30 Nov 2008 23:38:54 GMT Sun, 30 Nov 2008 23:15:36 GMT Sun, 30 Nov 2008 22:15:10 GMT Sun, 30 Nov 2008 21:57:53 GMT Sun, 30 Nov 2008 21:43:02 GMT ]]> Sun, 30 Nov 2008 21:29:16 GMT ]]> Sun, 30 Nov 2008 20:24:58 GMT ]]> Sun, 30 Nov 2008 20:00:19 GMT ]]> Sun, 30 Nov 2008 17:10:07 GMT ]]> Sun, 30 Nov 2008 16:18:14 GMT ]]> Sun, 30 Nov 2008 16:09:26 GMT ]]> Sun, 30 Nov 2008 15:57:03 GMT Entry Flight Director Bryan Lunney will look at tomorrow’s Florida forecast before deciding whether to use the two Edwards AFB landing opportunities today.
]]> Sun, 30 Nov 2008 15:19:42 GMT ]]> Sun, 30 Nov 2008 14:39:03 GMT The two landing opportunities at Kennedy Space Center, Fla., are for 1:19 p.m. and 2:54 p.m. Forecasts say rain, perhaps thunderstorms and crosswinds could prevent a landing there.
Two additional landing opportunities are available today at Edwards Air Force Base, Calif., at 4:25 p.m. and 6 p.m.
]]> Sun, 30 Nov 2008 10:20:12 GMT ]]> Sat, 29 Nov 2008 22:52:07 GMT ]]> Sat, 29 Nov 2008 17:58:04 GMT NASA will hold two news conferences today to brief reporters on the status of Endeavour and plans for Sunday’s landing. At 2:30 p.m. EST Space Shuttle Program Mission Management Team chair LeRoy Cain will discuss the status of Endeavour and the STS-126 mission. At 3:30 p.m. entry flight director Bryan Lunney will discuss the strategy for deorbit and landing.
]]> Sat, 29 Nov 2008 14:37:09 GMT The STS-126 crew members, Commander Chris Ferguson, Pilot Eric Boe and mission specialists Don Pettit, Steve Bowen, Heidemarie Stefanyshyn-Piper, Shane Kimbrough and Greg Chamitoff, were awakened today at 4:55 a.m. EST by “Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star.” That wake up song was played for Chamitoff.
]]> Sat, 29 Nov 2008 10:38:23 GMT The entry flight control team in Mission Control, Houston, will evaluate weather conditions at Kennedy Space Center, Fla., before permitting Endeavour to return to Earth. There are landing opportunities Sunday at Kennedy and at Edwards Air Force Base, Calif.
]]> Sat, 29 Nov 2008 00:03:01 GMT
]]> Fri, 28 Nov 2008 22:56:55 GMT ]]> Fri, 28 Nov 2008 19:07:03 GMT ]]> Fri, 28 Nov 2008 14:54:40 GMT Endeavour crew members, Commander Chris Ferguson, Pilot Eric Boe and Mission Specialists Don Pettit, Steve Bowen, Heidemarie Stefanyshyn-Piper, Shane Kimbrough and Greg Chamitoff were awakened at 5:55 a.m. this morning. The wake up music was “In the Meantime,” by Spacehog. It was played for Boe.
]]> Fri, 28 Nov 2008 11:14:53 GMT ]]> Fri, 28 Nov 2008 00:55:02 GMT The crews will have most of their morning off. After the free time shuttle crew members will talk with representatives of Space.com, KYW-TV in Philadelphia and KOIN-TV in Portland, Ore.
After Thanksgiving dinner with their hosts on the International Space Station, the Endeavour crew members will board their spacecraft, close its hatches and make final preparations for Friday’s departure.
]]> Thu, 27 Nov 2008 13:43:13 GMT ]]> Wed, 26 Nov 2008 23:25:50 GMT Endeavour crew members were awakened at 7:55 a.m.EST. The wake up song this morning was Jethro Tull’s “North Sea Oil,” played for Mission Specialist Steve Bowen.
]]> Wed, 26 Nov 2008 13:04:41 GMT ]]> Wed, 26 Nov 2008 01:06:15 GMT The Solar Alpha Rotary Joint appeared to function well after repairs during the four spacewalks by Endeavour astronauts, but it will be some time before results of this and subsequent tests are known.
The Urine Processor Assembly, part of the station’s new Water Recovery System, completed its second full run. It had shut down four times during earlier tests. After some fixes by station Commander Mike Fincke and shuttle Mission Specialist Don Pettit, it finished a full five-hour run Tuesday morning a little after midnight. After a scheduled three-hour cool-down period, a second run, begun at 3:19 a.m., was completed too.
]]> Tue, 25 Nov 2008 16:03:20 GMT ]]> Tue, 25 Nov 2008 03:45:28 GMT ]]> Tue, 25 Nov 2008 00:36:18 GMT Inside the International Space Station, the Urine Processor Assembly is being prepared to run a sample, after astronauts conducted maintenance on the system earlier today.
]]> Mon, 24 Nov 2008 23:29:53 GMT ]]> Mon, 24 Nov 2008 23:01:44 GMT ]]> Mon, 24 Nov 2008 20:50:50 GMT Meanwhile, inside the International Space Station, astronauts continue setting up a wireless instrumentation system to track vibrations of the Urine Processor Assembly (UPA). They also will add two additional bolts to hard-mount the distiller assembly section of the UPA in place, which may further reduce vibrations that engineers believe are causing the UPA to prematurely shut down.
]]> Mon, 24 Nov 2008 19:40:30 GMT ]]> Mon, 24 Nov 2008 18:32:12 GMT ]]> Mon, 24 Nov 2008 18:02:43 GMT ]]> Mon, 24 Nov 2008 16:20:28 GMT Sunday the astronauts removed six bolts and grommets holding the distillation assembly portion of the UPA in place. They reinstalled four bolts without the grommets, and the UPA ran for two hours and 53 minutes before prematurely shutting down, as it has repeatedly during its checkout. The system is designed to run four hours to complete processing a sample. Previously, the system ran close to two hours before shutting down.
At about 12:50 p.m. EST, space station Expedition 18 Commander Mike Fincke will install the remaining two bolts to hard-mount the distillation assembly in place, which will better balance the assembly and further reduce vibrations that engineers believe have caused the centrifuge inside the assembly to contact a speed sensor and shut the UPA down.
Meanwhile, spacewalkers Shane Kimbrough and Steve Bowen are scheduled to begin the mission’s final spacewalk at 1:45 p.m. EST, completing the installation of trundle bearing assemblies on the starboard Solar Alpha Rotary Joint (SARJ), cleaning and lubricating the port SARJ, installing a camera on the Port 1 truss and attaching a Global Positioning System antenna on the Japanese Experiment Module Pressurized Section.
]]> Mon, 24 Nov 2008 15:05:56 GMT Spacewalkers Steve Bowen and Shane Kimbrough are scheduled to leave the station’s Quest airlock at 1:45 p.m. Bowen will wear the all-white suit and Kimbrough’s suit will have broken red stripes.
]]> Mon, 24 Nov 2008 14:10:28 GMT ]]> Sun, 23 Nov 2008 23:55:45 GMT ]]> Sun, 23 Nov 2008 20:15:06 GMT Later today, astronauts Chris Ferguson, Eric Boe, Fincke and Sandra Magnus will discuss the status of the mission with reporters from ABC News, CBS News and NBC News.
]]> Sun, 23 Nov 2008 16:39:27 GMT Endeavour crew members, Commander Chris Ferguson, Pilot Eric Boe and mission specialists Don Pettit, Steve Bowen, Heidemarie Stefanyshyn-Piper, Shane Kimbrough and Greg Chamitoff, and the station crew, Commander Mike Fincke and flight engineers Yury Lonchakov and Sandra Magnus, got their wakeup music at 9:05 a.m. EST.
The wakeup music this morning was Frankie Valli’s “Can’t Take My Eyes Off of You,” played for Ferguson.
]]> Sun, 23 Nov 2008 14:12:10 GMT ]]> Sun, 23 Nov 2008 03:40:13 GMT ]]> Sun, 23 Nov 2008 01:00:18 GMT The start time for this evening’s mission status briefing has moved up to 9:30 p.m. EST. STS-126 lead space station flight director Ginger Kerrick and lead extravehicular activity officer John Ray will participate in the briefing.
]]> Sun, 23 Nov 2008 00:11:17 GMT ]]> Sat, 22 Nov 2008 22:11:02 GMT ]]> Sat, 22 Nov 2008 20:04:31 GMT ]]> Sat, 22 Nov 2008 18:05:43 GMT The Urine Processor Assembly (UPA) was restarted Saturday morning and ran for about 20 minutes before a sensor placed it in “standby” mode, believing the unit was processing too much liquid. The UPA was shut down and restarted, running for a brief time before sensors shut it down again do to a detected variance in the distillation chamber’s centrifuge motor speed. Ground experts will continue to troubleshoot the issue. The Water Processing Assembly, the second part of the new Water Recovery System (WRS), continues to perform well, processing condensate for a sample that will be returned to Earth by the STS-126 crew.
]]> Sat, 22 Nov 2008 17:39:09 GMT Meanwhile, ground experts continue to troubleshoot an issue with the station’s new Urine Processor Assembly (UPA), part of the Water Recovery System (WRS) that ultimately will process urine, perspiration and hygiene water into drinkable water. The system is mounted in the station’s Destiny Laboratory. A centrifuge motor inside the distillation assembly of the UPA has run at lower than expected speeds, while drawing more electrical current than expected. The UPA was activated again overnight to gather more data for experts to analyze. The Water Processing Assembly portion of the WRS is functioning as expected, processing condensate.
]]> Sat, 22 Nov 2008 15:59:23 GMT
]]> Sat, 22 Nov 2008 14:08:55 GMT Meanwhile, engineers are continuing to assess indications from sensors within the Water Recovery System that caused the Urine Processor Assembly to shut down during initial test operations Thursday and again Friday morning.
]]> Sat, 22 Nov 2008 01:44:04 GMT The system is in the early phases of testing, and the astronauts are standing by to perform the next steps, once they are determined by Mission Control.
The Urine Processor Assembly is part of the Water Recovery System that ultimately will process urine, perspiration and hygiene water into drinkable water. The system is mounted in the station’s Destiny Laboratory.
]]> Fri, 21 Nov 2008 19:13:21 GMT ]]> Fri, 21 Nov 2008 17:49:27 GMT Today’s schedule also includes a reboost of the station by Endeavour at 12:10 p.m. EST and a news conference with all 10 shuttle and station crew members at 3:05 p.m.
]]> Fri, 21 Nov 2008 14:30:03 GMT ]]> Fri, 21 Nov 2008 04:02:55 GMT ]]> Fri, 21 Nov 2008 00:48:28 GMT ]]> Thu, 20 Nov 2008 22:54:34 GMT ]]> Thu, 20 Nov 2008 20:39:26 GMT During the approximately 6.5-hour journey outside the International Space Station, Piper, Kimbrough and their crewmates will relocate a Crew Equipment Translation Aid cart from the starboard one truss to the port one truss. Once that’s done, Kimbrough will lubricate the space station’s robotic arm Latching End Effector snare while Piper resumes inspecting, cleaning and lubricating the starboard Solar Alpha Rotary Joint race ring and replacing 11 of its 12 trundle bearings. One trundle bearing was replaced in June during STS-124′s visit to the station. The bearings will be returned to Earth for inspection and additional failure analysis. When Kimbrough finishes lubricating the snare, he will join Piper in the SARJ activities.
]]> Thu, 20 Nov 2008 18:04:43 GMT ]]> Thu, 20 Nov 2008 17:39:26 GMT Spacewalkers Piper and Kimbrough are scheduled to leave the station’s Quest airlock at 1:45 p.m.
]]> Thu, 20 Nov 2008 14:07:33 GMT ]]> Thu, 20 Nov 2008 01:39:43 GMT At 3:50 p.m. EST, Heidemarie Stefanyshyn-Piper and Steve Bowen will participate in media interviews with the Associated Press, KMSP-TV from Minneapolis and WCVB-TV from Boston. At 4:30 p.m., station lead Flight Director Ginger Kerrick will participate in a Mission Status Briefing from the Johnson Space Center, Houston.
]]> Wed, 19 Nov 2008 19:14:38 GMT Shortly after the crew wake up call, a smoke alarm went off in the Russian segment of the International Space Station. The crew reported no sign of smoke. As a result, Mission Control Center Moscow determined that it was a false alarm.
Moving of supplies and equipment between Endeavour and the International Space Station and installation of station equipment are on today’s agenda for the crews. They also will begin preparations for the second of four mission spacewalks, set for Thursday.
]]> Wed, 19 Nov 2008 14:13:35 GMT ]]> Wed, 19 Nov 2008 01:09:06 GMT ]]> Tue, 18 Nov 2008 21:08:33 GMT ]]> Tue, 18 Nov 2008 18:13:06 GMT ]]> Tue, 18 Nov 2008 17:34:26 GMT ]]> Tue, 18 Nov 2008 17:04:18 GMT ]]> Tue, 18 Nov 2008 13:58:58 GMT ]]> Tue, 18 Nov 2008 01:37:19 GMT ]]> Mon, 17 Nov 2008 23:44:23 GMT ]]> Mon, 17 Nov 2008 18:23:58 GMT Mon, 17 Nov 2008 17:53:42 GMT ]]> Mon, 17 Nov 2008 15:50:10 GMT ]]> Mon, 17 Nov 2008 03:31:35 GMT ]]> Mon, 17 Nov 2008 00:18:00 GMT ]]> Sun, 16 Nov 2008 22:01:55 GMT ]]> Sun, 16 Nov 2008 21:21:53 GMT ]]> Sun, 16 Nov 2008 21:08:45 GMT About an hour before docking, Ferguson will guide the shuttle through a nine-minute backflip to allow the station crew to take high resolution photos of the shuttle’s heat shield.
]]> Sun, 16 Nov 2008 20:18:07 GMT
The seven members of shuttle Endeavour’s crew, Commander Chris Ferguson, Pilot Eric Boe and mission specialists Don Pettit, Steve Bowen, Heidemarie Stefanyshyn-Piper, Shane Kimbrough and Sandra Magnus, were awakened at 9:25 a.m. EST for rendezvous and docking day. The wakeup music was “Start Me Up” by the Rolling Stones.
]]> Sun, 16 Nov 2008 14:53:00 GMT ]]> Sun, 16 Nov 2008 02:04:28 GMT ]]> Sat, 15 Nov 2008 23:07:10 GMT They also will prepare for Sunday afternoon’s docking with the station by installing the Orbiter Docking System centerline camera and extending the system’s docking ring. A checkout of the spacesuits to be used during the four spacewalks by Endeavour crewmembers outside the International Space Station also is on the agenda.
]]> Sat, 15 Nov 2008 18:15:11 GMT Sat, 15 Nov 2008 01:09:23 GMT Sat, 15 Nov 2008 01:07:21 GMT Sat, 15 Nov 2008 00:46:20 GMT Sat, 15 Nov 2008 00:08:08 GMT Fri, 14 Nov 2008 23:42:01 GMT Fri, 14 Nov 2008 23:23:23 GMT Fri, 14 Nov 2008 23:01:03 GMT Fri, 14 Nov 2008 22:26:47 GMT Fri, 14 Nov 2008 21:49:24 GMT Fri, 14 Nov 2008 21:25:08 GMT Fri, 14 Nov 2008 21:06:54 GMT Fri, 14 Nov 2008 20:42:32 GMT Fri, 14 Nov 2008 20:33:22 GMT Fri, 14 Nov 2008 19:31:29 GMT
Loading of Endeavour’s orange external tank with 500,000 gallons of super-cold liquid oxygen and hydrogen began this morning and was completed at 1:31 p.m. EST. The “topping off” of propellants into the tank will continue until Endeavour’s launch. All systems aboard the space shuttle are functioning normally and are ready for launch.
Weather continues to be acceptable for a 7:55 p.m. launch time and no technical issues are being reported at this time.]]> Fri, 14 Nov 2008 18:40:46 GMT ]]> Fri, 14 Nov 2008 16:18:51 GMT
Filling the external tank flight load of liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen propellants will start at about 10:30 a.m. Fueling should be complete at approximately 1:30 p.m.
]]> Fri, 14 Nov 2008 12:47:32 GMT The L-1 Webcast highlighting the goals of STS-126 is available for viewing on-demand.
]]> Thu, 13 Nov 2008 18:01:05 GMT The L-1 Webcast showcasing Endeavour’s mission will air today at 11:30 a.m. EST.
]]> Thu, 13 Nov 2008 15:41:34 GMT ]]> Thu, 13 Nov 2008 12:54:06 GMT ]]> Wed, 12 Nov 2008 21:11:07 GMT ]]> Wed, 12 Nov 2008 16:11:25 GMT ]]> Wed, 12 Nov 2008 14:58:37 GMT Wed, 12 Nov 2008 03:44:10 GMT ]]> Tue, 11 Nov 2008 23:27:32 GMT Mon, 10 Nov 2008 21:43:41 GMT Mon, 10 Nov 2008 19:48:13 GMT Fri, 07 Nov 2008 15:15:30 GMT
Shuttle Ferry Flight Lands in Texas for Overnight Stop
Wed, 10 Dec 2008 04:45:08 PM EST
Space shuttle Endeavour is in Ft. Worth, Texas, after completing the first day of a trek across the country from California to Florida. Endeavour, riding atop a modified 747, left Edwards Air Force Base in California on Wednesday morning at 10 a.m. EST. The aircraft and shuttle made a refueling stop at Biggs Army Air Field in El Paso, Texas, before taking off for the Naval Air Station Joint Reserve Base, formerly Carswell AFB in Ft. Worth Texas. The flight landed there at about 4:12 p.m. EST.
The next leg of the ferry flight will depend on weather conditions between Ft. Worth and NASA’s Kennedy Space Center on the east coast of Florida.
December 10th, 2008 at 10:41 pm
I saw the mated Enterprise on her first airshow ferrying trip across the pond:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Space_shuttle_goose_bay.jpg
December 11th, 2008 at 12:40 am
My wife surprised me in the car this afternoon with images of the combo flying overhead in route to landing in Fort Worth. She is going to take our boys tomorrow to watch it take off. The 3-year-old’s pronouncements of, “Daddy, we saw the spaceship landing,” will forever make me smile, as will the soon to be 5-year-old’s correction, “no it’s the space shuttle, not a space ship!” What a birthday present for the older one tomorrow; he gets to watch the contraption take off.
December 11th, 2008 at 6:41 am
Sorry,didnt mean to put that LONG piece up,I’d delete it if I could.
December 11th, 2008 at 9:08 am
I work across the runway from NAS/JRB in Ft Worth and got to see it land yesterday, very impressive. No word yet on a takeoff time, but it is still sitting over at the base.
You can tell I work with a bunch of engineers, we all cut meetings short and ran outside to watch. No matter how many unique airplanes we see take off (including ones we design/build), everyone still gets excited watching planes fly.
December 11th, 2008 at 9:19 am
Just heard an update, they will try to take off here at 11:10 CT and will land at Barksdale to refuel.
December 11th, 2008 at 11:22 am
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