The final move comes more than a decade after Endeavour rolled through the streets of Los Angeles. The external fuel tank move, however, was delayed by winds and needed 14 hours over two days to complete. It took about six hours to install the rockets, nearly the same time needed to complete Endeavor’s soft mate. The rockets, external tank and orbiter were installed over a seven-month period, with the twin 149-feet solid rocket boosters assembled between July and November, the external tank in early January and the orbiter on Tuesday. Scaffolding was constructed, removed and adjusted throughout various parts of the positioning. The stacking process at the Los Angeles site presented challenges to engineers who were used to multiple cranes and platforms used at the Kennedy Space Center. Read more: A successful liftoff: Space shuttle Endeavour's rockets are installed It will be a few years before the shuttle will be accessible to the public as the space museum and its other exhibits are constructed. The covering is not expected to be removed until construction of the 20-story Oschin Center, which will be built around the full-stack display, is complete. The orbiter was enclosed to protect it from work site pollution and the elements. (Ringo Chiu / For The Times)Įngineers shrink-wrapped the shuttle a week earlier, “using a great big heat gun fueled by a propane tank,” according to Clark. Piers Brinkley, right, and Clare David take photos as the space shuttle Endeavour is prepared to be lifted at the California Science Center. "Where Endeavour is positioned now is basically where it's going to be," Rudolph said. During that time, the crane’s sling will be removed, the space shuttle will stand without assistance and all of its parts will be bolted into place. The “hard mate” may happen as early as Tuesday evening, but it could take a couple of days, Rudolph said. The giant orange tube is the last such tank in existence. The second part will be the “capture” - the process of attaching Endeavour to the 15-story external fuel tank dubbed ET-94. The first part of the move, which began Monday night and finished Tuesday morning, was known as the “soft mate” and consists of the orbiter’s hoisting and lowering near the external fuel tank and rockets. Read more: Space shuttle Endeavour's giant orange external tank begins final journey “Once the crane gets the orbiter within about 4 inches of where it needs to be, will take over lowering the rest of the way with micro-inch capability,” Clark said. Workers and engineers tossed electric cables and ropes from scaffolding as the final few feet of movement were handled by a hydraulic Hydra-Set mounted control box operator. Please check our pricing table to compare plans and features.Crew members watch as the space shuttle Endeavour is placed into position at the future Samuel Oschin Air and Space Center at the California Science Center. To start creating virtuals tours like those, please visit and sign up! Creating virtual tours with us is fast and easy!Ĭreate and share stunning virtual tours with Kuula, starting at only $20/month! Get Kuula PRO Get Kuula BUSINESS His varied experiences have included living a year at the South Pole, documenting earthquake disaster recovery projects in Nepal, researching Hawaiian monk seals in the Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument, and many more. If you would like to see more of Jon's work, please visit his website at. Space Shuttle Endeavour in the California Science Centerįollowing its final launch in 2011, Space Shuttle Endeavour was flown to Los Angeles and is now on display in the Samuel Oschin Pavilion at the California Science Center. This two-year project also allowed him to follow each orbiter to their new homes in Los Angeles, Washington DC, and at the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex. Please enjoy! Space Shuttle at Kennedy Space Center, FloridaĪfter the final space shuttle mission in July of 2011, Jon had the opportunity to shoot gigapixel panoramas for National Geographic of all three orbiters during their decommissioning at the Kennedy Space Center. You can follow Jon on Kuula and Instagram. Today we would like to share with you some of his amazing 360-degree work, virtual tours of spacecrafts that are on display at Kennedy Space Center and California Science Center. Jon specializes in telling humanitarian and environmental stories, often in geographically isolated locations. He has created interactive tours of inside the space shuttles, around the ruins of Chernobyl, in all rooms of Elvis Presley's Graceland, and on the isolated beaches of Midway Atoll surrounded by endangered species and marine debris. Starting in 2011, Jon's experience has expanded to include Virtual Reality (VR) and other immersive 360-degree storytelling platforms. Today, we're happy to share with you a couple of great virtual tours from inside NASA Space Shuttles created by Jon Brack, a freelance photographer based out of Washington DC.