NASA Space Shuttle Operations

Images depicting NASA's space shuttle processing, showcasing large aircraft and preparations for launches, emphasizing space exploration's technical aspects.

STS-131 DISCOVERY ROLLOVER FROM OPF-3 TO VAB

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- Atlantis arrives at the Orbiter Processing Facility from the Shuttle Landing Facility at Kennedy Space Center. The orbiter will undergo processing for its next launch, mission STS-122 in December. Visible on Atlantis is the tail cone that covers and protects the main engines during the ferry flight. Atlantis arrived at Kennedy Space Center atop the SCA on July 3 after a three-day, cross-country flight due to fuel stops and weather delays. Touchdown was at 8:27 a.m. EDT. Atlantis landed at Edwards Air Force Base in California on June 22 to end mission STS-117.

A fit check of the Orion Crew and Service Module Horizontal Transporter (CHT) with NASA's Super Guppy aircraft began March 12, 2019, at NASA Kennedy Space Centers Shuttle Landing Facility in Florida, operated by Space Florida. In this photo, the Super Guppys payload bay is opened as the CHT, secured on the U.S. Air Force aircraft loader, is moved inside the aircrafts payload bay. The fit check is being performed to confirm loading operations, ensure that the CHT fits inside the Super Guppy and test the electrical interface to aircraft power. The Orion crew and service modules will be readied for a trip to NASAs Plum Brook Station in Sandusky, Ohio, for full thermal vacuum testing. In this unique facility, the crew and service modules will be put through extensive testing to ensure they can survive the rigors of launch, space travel, re-entry and splashdown. The Orion spacecraft will launch atop the agency's Space Launch System rocket on Exploration Mission-1.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - At the Shuttle Landing Facility at NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida, a crane lifts space shuttle Discovery off the ground inside the mate-demate device. Operations are under way to position Discovery on top of a Shuttle Carrier Aircraft.The device, known as the MDD, is a large gantry-like steel structure used to hoist a shuttle off the ground and position it onto the back of the aircraft, or SCA. The SCA is a Boeing 747 jet, originally manufactured for commercial use, which was modified by NASA to transport the shuttles between destinations on Earth. The SCA designated NASA 905 is assigned to the remaining ferry missions, delivering the shuttles to their permanent public display sites. NASA 905 is scheduled to ferry Discovery to the Washington Dulles International Airport in Virginia on April 17, after which the shuttle will be placed on display in the Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - At the Shuttle Landing Facility at NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida, space shuttle Discovery is suspended 60 feet off the ground inside the mate-demate device in preparation for the arrival of the Shuttle Carrier Aircraft, in the background. The device, known as the MDD, is a large gantry-like steel structure used to hoist a shuttle off the ground and position it onto the back of the aircraft, or SCA. The SCA is a Boeing 747 jet, originally manufactured for commercial use, which was modified by NASA to transport the shuttles between destinations on Earth. The SCA designated NASA 905 is assigned to the remaining ferry missions, delivering the shuttles to their permanent public display sites. NASA 905 is scheduled to ferry Discovery to the Washington Dulles International Airport in Virginia on April 17, after which the shuttle will be placed on display in the Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- The orbiter Endeavour is towed into bay 2 of the Orbiter Processing Facility, known as the OPF. Endeavour returned to Earth Aug. 21 from mission STS-118, landing at Kennedy at 12:32 p.m. EDT. In the OPF bay 2, Endeavour will incur thermal protection system inspections and numerous other post-flight inspections before processing starts for its next voyage into space. Endeavour will next fly on mission STS-123 targeted for Feb. 14, 2008.

STS-131 DISCOVERY ROLLOVER FROM OPF-3 TO VAB

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - The space shuttle Atlantis meets sister shuttle Endeavour in the background for a brief photo opportunity at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Endeavour moved from Bay 2 of the Orbiter Processing Facility to switch places with Atlantis which had been in Vehicle Assembly Building VAB. In the VAB, Endeavour will undergo final preparations for its cross-country ferry flight targeted for mid-September. The work is part of Transition and Retirement of the remaining space shuttles, Endeavour and Atlantis. Endeavour is being prepared for public display at the California Science Center in Los Angeles. Endeavour was the last space shuttle added to NASAs orbiter fleet. Over the course of its 19-year career, Endeavour spent 299 days in space during 25 missions.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - Space shuttle Discovery rolls into NASA Kennedy Space Center's Orbiter Processing Facility 3. In the OPF, turnaround processing procedures on Discovery will include various post-flight deservicing and maintenance functions, which are carried out in parallel with payload removal and the installation of equipment needed for the next mission. Discovery returned to Kennedy atop a Shuttle Carrier Aircraft Sept. 21 after a two-day ferry flight. The piggybacked shuttle and aircraft touched down on the Shuttle Landing Facility's runway 33 at 12:05 p.m. EDT and the shuttle later was demated from the aircraft. Discovery landed at Edwards Air Force Base in California on Sept. 11 after the 13-day STS-128 mission to the International Space Station. Landings at Kennedy were waved off on two days due to inclement weather, leading to the landing at Edwards.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- Before dawn, at the Shuttle Landing Facility, or SLF, at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, space shuttle Endeavour is lowered toward the ground by the sling in the mate/demate device. After Endeavour is on the ground, it will be towed via the two-mile tow-way from the SLF by a diesel-powered tractor to the Orbiter Processing Facility where it will begin preparations for its next mission, STS-127, targeted for May 2009.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - At the Shuttle Landing Facility at NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida, space shuttle Discovery is suspended 60 feet off the ground inside the mate-demate device as the Shuttle Carrier Aircraft, in the background, is towed toward it. The device, known as the MDD, is a large gantry-like steel structure used to hoist a shuttle off the ground and position it onto the back of the aircraft, or SCA. The SCA is a Boeing 747 jet, originally manufactured for commercial use, which was modified by NASA to transport the shuttles between destinations on Earth. The SCA designated NASA 905 is assigned to the remaining ferry missions, delivering the shuttles to their permanent public display sites. NASA 905 is scheduled to ferry Discovery to the Washington Dulles International Airport in Virginia on April 17, after which the shuttle will be placed on display in the Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center.

Interior view of Saturn V Exhibit

NASA's Super Guppy aircraft arrives to the U.S. Armys Redstone Airfield in Huntsville, Alabama, April 2, to pick up flight hardware for NASAs Space Launch System - its new, deep-space rocket that will enable astronauts to begin their journey to explore destinations far into the solar system. The Guppy will depart on Tuesday, April 3 to deliver the Orion stage adapter to NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida for flight preparations. On Exploration Mission-1, the first integrated flight of the SLS and the Orion spacecraft, the adapter will connect Orion to the rocket and carry 13 CubeSats as secondary payloads.

EDWARDS AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. -- (ED09-0253-16) This unusual overhead view shows Space Shuttle Discovery enclosed by the Mate-Demate Device gantry and work platforms at NASAs Dryden Flight Research Center prior to the initiation of processing for its ferry flight back to NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. NASA photo / Tony Landis

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - At NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida, space shuttle Discovery is backed out of Orbiter Processing Facility-1 for its move to the Vehicle Assembly Building VAB. The aft view of Discovery reveals the tail cone that covers the three replica shuttle main engines.The work is part of the Space Shuttle Programs transition and retirement processing of shuttle Discovery, which is being prepared for display at Smithsonians National Air and Space Museum, Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center in Chantilly, Va. Discovery will remain in high bay 4 of the VAB until its scheduled transport atop a NASA Shuttle Carrier Aircraft modified 747 jet to Dulles International Airport in Virginia on April 17. Discovery will then be transported to the Smithsonian on April 19.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- In the Vehicle Assembly Building transfer aisle at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, space shuttle Discovery is lifted from its transporter by an overhead crane. The shuttle will be raised to a vertical position and lifted into high bay 3 where it will be mated with its external fuel tank and solid rocket boosters on the mobile launcher platform. After additional preparations are made, the shuttle will be rolled out to Launch Pad 39A for a targeted launch on Feb. 12. Discovery will carry the final starboard truss (S6) in the assembly of the International Space Station.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- Inside the Orbiter Processing Facility bay 2, Endeavour is prepared for its transfer to the Vehicle Assembly Building. In the VAB it will be stacked with its solid rocket boosters and external tank atop the Mobile Launcher Platform. Endeavour is scheduled to launch April 19 on mission STS-100, the ninth flight to the International Space Station

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- Space Shuttle Atlantis sits under the Mate/Demate Device at Kennedy Space Centers Shuttle Landing Facility, where it will be lifted and mated to the Shuttle Carrier Aircraft. Atlantis is being prepared for its ferry flight to California for its Orbiter Maintenance Down Period at Palmdale's Orbiter Assembly Facility where it will remain until August 1998. At Palmdale, modifications and structural inspections will be conducted in preparation for Atlantis' future missions to support International Space Station assembly activities. Atlantis' next flight into space is scheduled to be Space Shuttle mission STS-92, targeted for launch from KSC in January 1999

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- Rolling out of NASA's Super Guppy aircraft aboard a payload transporter is a port-side P3 truss, a component for the International Space Station (ISS). The truss is scheduled to be added to the ISS on mission STS-115 in 2002 aboard Space Shuttle Atlantis. The second port truss segment, P3 will be attached to the first port truss segment (P1). The P3 truss will be taken to the Operations and Checkout Building.

A C-5 Galaxy crew member out of Travis Air Force Base, California, marshals a power truck from a C-5 Galaxy aircraft as it arrives at Andersen Air Force Base, Guam, to deliver power trucks from Hawaii. The trucks will aid the Guam Power Authority in restoring power to the island after Typhoon Paka. Base: Andersen Air Base State: Guam (GU) Country: United States Of America (USA)

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - In the transfer aisle of the Vehicle Assembly Building at NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida, space shuttle Atlantis appears to hover over the transporter from which it has been released.Next, Atlantis will be rotated to a vertical position, lifted over a transom and lowered onto a mobile launch platform in high bay 1. It then will be attached to an external fuel tank and pair of solid rocket boosters already secured to the platform. Rollout of the completed shuttle stack to Kennedys Launch Pad 39A, a significant milestone in launch processing activities, is planned for Oct. 13. Liftoff of Atlantis on its STS-129 mission to the International Space Station is targeted for 4:04 p.m. EST Nov. 12 during a 10-minute launch window.

NASA's Super Guppy aircraft arrives to the U.S. Armys Redstone Airfield in Huntsville, Alabama, April 2, to pick up flight hardware for NASAs Space Launch System - its new, deep-space rocket that will enable astronauts to begin their journey to explore destinations far into the solar system. The Guppy will depart on Tuesday, April 3 to deliver the Orion stage adapter to NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida for flight preparations. On Exploration Mission-1, the first integrated flight of the SLS and the Orion spacecraft, the adapter will connect Orion to the rocket and carry 13 CubeSats as secondary payloads.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - At Hangar AF at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida, two spent solid rocket boosters move into the washing bay for a cleaning and rinsing. The boosters are from space shuttle Endeavour, which launched Nov. 14 on the STS-126 mission. The space shuttles solid rocket booster casings and associated flight hardware are recovered at sea. The boosters impact the Atlantic Ocean approximately seven minutes after liftoff. The splashdown area is a square of about six by nine nautical miles located about 140 nautical miles downrange from the launch pad. The retrieval ships are stationed approximately 8 to 10 nautical miles from the impact area at the time of splashdown. As soon as the boosters enter the water, the ships accelerate to a speed of 15 knots and quickly close on the boosters. The pilot chutes and main parachutes are the first items to be brought on board. With the chutes and frustum recovered, attention turns to the boosters. The ships tow line is con

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - At the Shuttle Landing Facility at NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida, the Shuttle Carrier Aircraft moves into position under space shuttle Discovery suspended 60 feet off the ground in the mate-demate device. The device, known as the MDD, is a large gantry-like steel structure used to hoist a shuttle off the ground and position it onto the back of the aircraft, or SCA. This SCA, designated NASA 905, is a Boeing 747 jet originally manufactured for commercial use, which was modified by NASA to transport the shuttles between destinations on Earth. NASA 905 is assigned to the remaining ferry missions, delivering the shuttles to their permanent public display sites. Discoverys new home will be the Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center in Chantilly, Va.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- In the Vehicle Assembly Building at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, space shuttle Discovery is lifted into the upper levels for transfer to high bay 3. The shuttle will then be lowered onto the mobile launcher platform for mating with its external fuel tank and solid rocket boosters. After additional preparations are made, the shuttle will be rolled out to Launch Pad 39A for a targeted launch on Feb. 12. Discovery will carry the final starboard truss (S6) in the assembly of the International Space Station.

The Orion team prepares the parachute test vehicle for the final drop test which will qualify Orion's parachutes for human flight on Sept. 10, 2018...On September 12, 2018 an Orion test capsule will be dropped from a C-17 aircraft at an altitude of more than six miles to verify the spacecrafts complex system of 11 parachutes, cannon-like mortars, and pyrotechnic devices work in sequence to slow the capsules descent for a safe landing on Earth.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- At NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, space shuttle Endeavour vacates the work platforms of Orbiter Processing Facility-1 (OPF-1) to make way for shuttle Discovery. Endeavour is switching places with Discovery which temporarily has been stored in the Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB). Both shuttles will stop briefly outside OPF-3 for a "nose-to-nose" photo opportunity. Discovery then will be rolled into OPF-1 and Endeavour into the VAB.In OPF-1, Discovery will undergo further preparations for public display at the Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center in Virginia. Endeavour will be stored in the VAB until October when it will be moved into OPF-2 for further work to get it ready for public display at the California Science Center in Los Angeles.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - Sunrise at the Shuttle Landing Facility at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida finds space shuttle Endeavour secured atop NASA's Shuttle Carrier Aircraft, or SCA. Preparations are under way to roll them away from the mate-demate device surrounding them.The SCA, a modified 747 jetliner, will fly Endeavour to Los Angeles where it will be placed on public display at the California Science Center. This is the final ferry flight scheduled in the Space Shuttle Program era.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - In Orbiter Processing Facility Bay 2 at NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida, the tail cone has been placed in position surrounding the replica main engines on the space shuttle Endeavour. The tail cone covers the main engines in the aft providing aerodynamic stability during the cross-country ferry flight.The work is part of Transition and Retirement of the remaining space shuttles, Endeavour and Atlantis. Endeavour is being prepared for public display at the California Science Center in Los Angeles. Its ferry flight to California is targeted for mid-September. Endeavour was the last space shuttle added to NASAs orbiter fleet. Over the course of its 19-year career, Endeavour spent 299 days in space during 25 missions.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - At Edwards Air Force Base in California, a sling in the mate/demate device hoists space shuttle Atlantis from the ground. A Shuttle Carrier Aircraft, or SCA, will be moved underneath and Atlantis bolted to the top of the modified Boeing 747. Atlantis landed at Edwards on May 24, which concluded mission STS-125, after two landing opportunities at Kennedy were waved off due to weather concerns. Atlantis is being returned to Florida on a ferry flight on the SCA. Atlantis' next assignment is the STS-129 mission, targeted to launch in November 2009.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - In the transfer aisle of the Vehicle Assembly Building at NASA's Kennedy Space Center, Fla., space shuttle Discovery is lifted from its transporter. The shuttle will be raised to vertical and lifted into High Bay 1. The first motion of the shuttle out of Orbiter Processing Facility 3 was at 7:22 a.m. EDT. Discovery will be mated to the external fuel tank and solid rocket boosters already installed on the mobile launcher platform. The shuttle is scheduled to roll out to Launch Pad 39A the first week of August to prepare for the STS-128 mission to the International Space Station. Discovery will carry the Leonardo Multi-Purpose Logistics Module containing life support racks and science racks and the Lightweight Multi-Purpose Experiment Support Structure Carrier in its payload bay. Launch of Discovery is targeted for late August.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- The STS-118 payload canister transporter exits the Space Station Processing Facility with a full load. Inside are the SPACEHAB module, the S5 truss and the external stowage platform 3. The canister is being moved to the Canister Rotation Facility where it will be raised to a vertical position for delivery to Launch Pad 39A. Endeavour is targeted for launch on Aug. 9 to the International Space Station. The mission will continue space station construction with installation of the truss.

Rear View of X-38 in Hanger

Airbus Beluga XL Transporter, 22. 06. 2005. ILA International Aerospace Exhibition Berlin, Schoenefeld, Brandenburg, Germany, Europe

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - Space shuttle Atlantis rolls into the transfer aisle of the Vehicle Assembly Building at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. First motion was at 11:30 a.m. EDT. From the transfer aisle, Atlantis will be lifted into High Bay 3 and mated to the solid rocket booster-external fuel tank already installed on the mobile launcher platform. Atlantis is targeted to launch May 12 for the STS-125 Hubble servicing mission.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- At the Shuttle Landing Facility, the newly arrived S1 truss, a segment of the International Space Station (ISS), is offloaded from NASA's Super Guppy aircraft. Manufactured by the Boeing Co. in Huntington Beach, Calif., this component of the ISS is the first starboard (right-side) truss segment, whose main job is providing structural support for the orbiting research facility's radiator panels that cool the Space Station's complex power system. The S1 truss segment also will house communications systems, external experiment positions and other subsystems. Primarily constructed of aluminum, the truss segment is 45 feet long, 15 feet wide and 6 feet tall. When fully outfitted, it will weigh 31,137 pounds. The truss is slated for flight in 2001. The Super Guppy, with its 25-foot diameter fuselage designed to handle oversized loads, is well prepared to transport the truss and other ISS segments. Loading the Guppy is easy because of the unique "fold-away" nose

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - The mated Pegasus XL and Galaxy Evolution Explorer (GALEX) satellite are moved into position under the Orbital Sciences L-1011 aircraft at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. The GALEX, to be launched April 28 from the L-1011, will carry into space an orbiting telescope that will observe a million galaxies across 10 billion years of cosmic history to help astronomers determine when the stars and elements we see today had their origins. The spacecraft will sweep the skies for 28 months using state-of-the-art ultraviolet detectors to single out galaxies dominated by young, hot, short-lived stars that give off a great deal of energy at that wavelength. These galaxies are actively creating stars, and therefore provide a window into the history and causes of star formation in galaxies.

IRIS/Pegasus Motor Arrival

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - A barge arrives at the U.S. Army Outpost wharf at Port Canaveral in Florida, carrying two of the three United Launch Alliance Delta IV heavy boosters for NASAs upcoming Exploration Flight Test-1, or EFT-1, mission with the Orion spacecraft. The core booster and starboard booster will be offloaded and then transported to the Horizontal Integration Facility, or HIF, at Space Launch Complex 37 on Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. The port booster and the upper stage are planned to be shipped to Cape Canaveral in April. At the HIF, all three boosters will be processed and checked out before being moved to the nearby launch pad and hoisted into position. During the EFT-1 mission, Orion will travel farther into space than any human spacecraft has gone in more than 40 years. The data gathered during the flight will influence design decisions, validate existing computer models and innovative new approaches to space systems development, as well as reduce overall mission

Orion Spacecraft Arrives in Ohio Aboard the Super Guppy at Mansfield Lahm Airport

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - In Orbiter Processing Facility Bay 2 at NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida, United Space Alliance technicians monitor progress as the tail cone is fitted to the space shuttle Endeavour. The tail cone covers the engines in the aft providing aerodynamic stability during the cross-country ferry flight.The work is part of Transition and Retirement of the remaining space shuttles, Endeavour and Atlantis. Endeavour is being prepared for public display at the California Science Center in Los Angeles. Its ferry flight to California is targeted for mid-September. Endeavour was the last space shuttle added to NASAs orbiter fleet. Over the course of its 19-year career, Endeavour spent 299 days in space during 25 missions.

T&R Atlantis Move from OPF-1 to VAB HB

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - United Space Alliance technicians manually close the doors on space shuttle Endeavour's nose gear as it is lifted into the mate-demate device at the Shuttle Landing Facility at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The shuttle will be positioned and connected to the top of NASA's Shuttle Carrier Aircraft, or SCA, with the aid of the device. The SCA, a modified 747 jetliner, will fly Endeavour to Los Angeles where it will be placed on public display at the California Science Center. This is the final ferry flight scheduled in the Space Shuttle Program era.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- At the KSC Shuttle Landing Facility, other components of the remote manipulator system for the Japanese Experiment Module are offloaded from the Antonov 124 aircraft onto a truck bed. The RMS will be transported to the Space Station Processing Facility. The JEM, named "Kibo" (Hope), is Japan's primary contribution to the International Space Station. It will enhance the unique research capabilities of the orbiting complex by providing an additional environment for astronauts to conduct science experiments. The Japanese Aerospace Exploration Agency developed the laboratory. Both the JEM and RMS are targeted for mission STS-124, to launch in early 2008.

Boeing 747-8 engine with open cowling

Super Guppy arrival and (MBB) Multi-Bay Box Delivery ; Super Guppy arrival and MBB Delivery: super Guppy arrival at NASA Langley hangar, and unloading of (MBB) multi-bay box, transport of MBB to COLTS and move into building 1256.

History Art Architecture Technology Aviation War Symbolical Image Peace 29 12 2024 DUXFORD, Cambridgeshire Great Britain Imperial War Museum Duxford Military Museum on the Site of a Former Military Air

NASAs Super Guppy aircraft, carrying the Orion crew module structural test article, arrived at the Shuttle Landing Facility operated by Space Florida at NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The unique aircraft has been opened and the container holding the STA is being offloaded. The test article will be transported to the Neil Armstrong Operations and Checkout Building high bay for further testing. The Orion spacecraft will launch atop NASAs Space Launch System rocket on EM-1, its first deep space mission, in late 2018.

Workers supervise the off-loading of segments of a Lockheed Martin Atlas II rocket from a Russian Antonov AN-124 aircraft at the Skid Strip at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station.; The rocket will be used to launch the Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite-M (GOES-M), the latest in the current series of advanced geostationary weather satellites in service.; GOES-M is being prepared for launch at the Astrotech Space Operations facility located in the Spaceport Florida Industrial Park in Titusville, Fla. The launch is scheduled for July 15 from Pad 36-A, Cape Canaveral Air Force Station

DF-ST-90-00416. Base: Dyess Air Force Base State: Texas (TX) Country: United States Of America (USA)

The record-setting AeroVironment/NASA Pathfinder-Plus solar-electric flying wing is enshrined in the National Air & Space Museum's Udvar-Hazy Center in Virginia.

1990s AIRPLANE MAINTENANCE MD 11 F McDONNELL DOUGLAS LONG BEACH, CA

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - The orbiter Atlantis rolls out of the Vehicle Assembly Building for transfer back to the Orbiter Processing Facility. Atlantis spent 10 days in the VAB to allow work to be performed in the OPF that can only be accomplished while the bay is empty. Work included annual validation of the bay's cranes, work platforms, lifting mechanisms and jack stands. Work resumes to prepare Atlantis for launch in September 2004 on the first return-to-flight mission, STS-114.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- On the Skid Strip at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida, workers unload the Centaur upper stage of the United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket slated to launch NASA's Juno spacecraft from a Volga-Dnepr Antonov AN-124-100, a Ukranian/Russian cargo aircraft.NASA's Juno spacecraft is scheduled to launch aboard the Atlas V from Cape Canaveral, Fla. Aug. 5.The solar-powered spacecraft will orbit Jupiter's poles 33 times to find out more about the gas giant's origins, structure, atmosphere and magnetosphere and investigate the existence of a solid planetary core.

DF-ST-85-11481. Base: Little Rock Air Force Base State: Arkansas (AR) Country: United States Of America (USA)

Tail unit of an Airbus A320-200 in the parking position at Munich Airport

The trailer carrying the deep submergence rescue vehicle AVALON (DSRV-2) goes up the ramp of an Air Force C-5A Galaxy aircraft from the 60th Military Airlift Wing (MAW-60). The AVALON is en route to Hawaii as part of a DSRV fly-away exercise to train personnel in the handling and operation of the vehicle. Base: Naval Air Station, North Island State: California (CA) Country: United States Of America (USA)

A C-5C Super Galaxy awaits cargo loading before a flight at Vandenberg Space Force Base, California, Oct. 17, 2022. The C-5C has space container modified doors that allow for oversized loads such as the Surface Water and Ocean Topography (SWOT) satellite that the 22nd Airlift Squadron transported in support of the joint SWOT mission.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - The newly arrived Shuttle Carrier Aircraft is framed by a grappling fixture on the mate-demate device at the Shuttle Landing Facility at NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida.The aircraft, known as an SCA, arrived at 5:35 p.m. EDT to prepare for shuttle Discoverys ferry flight to the Washington Dulles International Airport in Sterling, Va., on April 17. This SCA, designated NASA 905, is a modified Boeing 747 jet airliner, originally manufactured for commercial use. One of two SCAs employed over the course of the Space Shuttle Program, NASA 905 is assigned to the remaining ferry missions, delivering the shuttles to their permanent public display sites. NASA 911 was decommissioned at the NASA Dryden Flight Research Center in California in February. Discovery will be placed on permanent public display in the Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center in Chantilly, Va.

Lockheed Martin delivering the Atlas V rocket to Cape Canaveral in July of 2005. After going through a series of tests to ensure its readiness to send Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter to the red planet, lift-off occurred on August 12, 2005.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - Space shuttle Atlantis moves into the Vehicle Assembly Building from Orbiter Processing Facility-2 at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Atlantis will be moved to the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex in November where it will be placed on public display.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - Preparations to tow space shuttle Discovery from the Vehicle Assembly Building, or VAB, to the Shuttle Landing Facility, or SLF, are under way at NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida. A tail cone has been installed over its three replica shuttle main engines to reduce aerodynamic drag and turbulence during its upcoming ferry flight.Discovery was in storage in the VABs high bay 4 awaiting departure from Kennedys Launch Complex 39 area for the final time. At the SLF, Discovery will be hoisted onto a Shuttle Carrier Aircraft, or SCA, with the aid of a mate-demate device. The SCA, a modified Boeing 747 jet airliner, is scheduled to transport Discovery to the Washington Dulles International Airport in Virginia on April 17, after which the shuttle will be placed on permanent public display in the Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center.

Two Jet Engines, Each Showing Turbine Blades, Side-by-Side

Seattle. McDonnell Mercury Capsule. Project Mercury launched the first Americans into space when Alan Shepard Jr. made the first American sub-orbital flight on May 5, 1961. The Museum of Flight. (Large format sizes available)

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - At the Shuttle Landing Facility at NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida, workers at the mate-demate device make final preparations to lift and mate space shuttle Discovery to a Shuttle Carrier Aircraft.The device, known as the MDD, is a large gantry-like steel structure used to hoist a shuttle off the ground and position it onto the back of the aircraft, or SCA. The SCA is a Boeing 747 jet, originally manufactured for commercial use, which was modified by NASA to transport the shuttles between destinations on Earth. The SCA designated NASA 905 is assigned to the remaining ferry missions, delivering the shuttles to their permanent public display sites. NASA 905 is scheduled to ferry Discovery to the Washington Dulles International Airport in Virginia on April 17, after which the shuttle will be placed on display in the Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center.

Super Guppy arrival and (MBB) Multi-Bay Box Delivery ; Super Guppy arrival and MBB Delivery: super Guppy arrival at NASA Langley hangar, and unloading of (MBB) multi-bay box, transport of MBB to COLTS and move into building 1256.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - The external fuel tank, ET- 132, designated for use with space shuttle Discovery on the STS-128 mission is being offloaded from the Pegasus barge at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. It will be transported to a high bay in the Vehicle Assembly Building for checkout. On the STS-128 mission, Discovery will carry science and storage racks to the International Space Station. Launch of Discovery is targeted for Aug. 6.

The Artemis I Orion crew module pressure vessel is loaded on NASA's Super Guppy plane in New Orleans for transport to Kennedy Space Center on Feb. 1, 2016. Part of Batch image transfer from Flickr.

airport plane outdoors technology

An X-48C experimental aircraft is mounted in a full-scale wind tunnel on Aug. 31, 2009 at Langley Air Force Base, Va. Old Dominion University operates the tunnel, which was built in 1930, for clients including NASA, Boeing Co. and the U.S. Air Force. The tunnel measures 30x60 feet and is the largest university operated wind tunnel in the world. The tunnel provides a controlled test environment to measure aerodynamic forces on vehicles. ODU will cease wind tunnel testing on Sept. 4, and NASA's Langley Research Center will later dismantle the building because it is no longer strategically important to NASAÕs aeronautical research.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- Discovery (shown here) has been inactive since its last mission that ended Aug. 22, 2001. The orbiter has spent a year awaiting the start of its Orbiter Major Modification (OMM) period that is scheduled to begin at the Kennedy Space Center late this summer.

MODEL RELEASED. Aeroplane mechanics by aircraft.

Cf-101 Voodoo Interceptor Aircraft Operated By The Royal Canadian Air Force On Display At The Lebreton Gallery - The Military Technology Collection Of The Canadian War Museum, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada

T&R Enterprise Demated from SCA

Three classic sailing yachts are seen inside a boat shed during the final stage of their restoration.

The Soyuz TMA-8 capsule was mated Monday, March 27, 2006, to its booster in preparation for the launch on March 30, 2006 carrying Expedition 13 crew members, Jeffrey N. Williams, Science Officer and Flight Engineer; Pavel V. Vinogradov, Russias Federal Space Agency International Space Station Commander; and Marcos Pontes, Brazilian Space Agency Soyuz crew member. Baikonur Cosmodrome in Baikonur, Kazakhstan.

Germany, Offenbach, Bottom side of aircraft, close up

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - Inside Orbiter Processing Facility-2 at NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida, all three replica shuttle main engines, or RSMEs, including RSME 2, have been installed on space shuttle Endeavour. The orbiter is surrounded by work platforms allowing access to all areas of the spacecraft.The work is part of Transition and Retirement of the remaining space shuttles, Endeavour and Atlantis. Endeavour is being prepared for public display at the California Science Center in Los Angeles. Its ferry flight to California is targeted for mid-September. Endeavour was the last space shuttle added to NASAs orbiter fleet. Over the course of its 19-year career, Endeavour spent 299 days in space during 25 missions.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - Enclosed by the work platforms, Discovery rests inside the Orbiter Processing Facility bay 3. Discovery was returned to NASA Kennedy Space Center on a ferry flight atop the Shuttle Carrier Aircraft (SCA) from Edwards Air Force Base in California, arriving Aug. 21. Discovery will be towed to the Orbiter Processing Facility where the Multi-Purpose Logistics Module Raffaello still inside will be removed from the payload bay and transferred to the Space Station Processing Facility. The orbiter will then begin processing for the second Return to Flight mission, STS-121, scheduled for launch no earlier than March 2006.

USA, Florida, Titusville, Kennedy Space Center, Apollo/Saturn V center, NASA, Saturn V.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - The external fuel tank for space shuttle Endeavour's STS-126 mission to the International Space Station comes to rest in the transfer aisle of the Vehicle Assembly Building at NASA's Kennedy Space Center. The tank arrived earlier after a six-day ocean voyage towed by a solid rocket booster retrieval ship from the Michoud Assembly Facility near New Orleans. The tank will be lifted and lowered into a checkout cell. The STS-126 mission will deliver a Multi-Purpose Logistics Module to the International Space Station. Launch is targeted for Nov. 10.

Super Guppy arrival and (MBB) Multi-Bay Box Delivery ; Super Guppy arrival and MBB Delivery: super Guppy arrival at NASA Langley hangar, and unloading of (MBB) multi-bay box, transport of MBB to COLTS and move into building 1256.

Italy, Italia, Tirrenia, Ferry, Lifeboat, Saremar, Europe

Sweden, Vastragotland and Bohuslan, Gothenburg, The Aeroseum, former underground jet fighter base built during the Cold War under rock, SAAB J29 Tunnan, 1950's-era jet fighter

The United Launch Alliance Mariner arrives at Port Canaveral's Army Warf carrying the third Delta IV Heavy common booster core and second stage for NASA's upcoming Parker Solar Probe spacecraft. The mission will perform the closest-ever observations of a star when it travels through the Sun's atmosphere, called the corona. The probe will rely on measurements and imaging to revolutionize our understanding of the corona and the Sun-Earth connection. Liftoff atop the Delta IV Heavy rocket is scheduled to take place from Cape Canaveral's Space Launch Complex 37 in summer 2018.

Soyuz rocket boosters in assembly hall at Baikonur Cosmodrome, Kazakhstan

Houston, USA, January 26, 2013: Saturn V rocket on display at Houston Space Center in Texas, USA, North America

Reception of Ukrainian refugees at the border post of Isaccea - Romania

Lufthansa Airbus A380-800 with docked passenger boarding bridges at check-in position, Munich Airport, Upper Bavaria, Bavaria, Germany, Europe

Loading with cable drums, Antonow An-225, Cologne Bonn Airport, Cologne, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany, Europe

The Orion Exploration Mission-1 (EM-1) structural test article, secured inside its transport container, is lifted up by crane from its transport vehicle at the Shuttle Landing Facility at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The test article will be loaded into NASA's Super Guppy aircraft, in view at left, and transported to Lockheed Martin's Denver facility for testing. The Orion spacecraft will launch atop NASAs Space Launch System rocket on EM-1, its first deep space mission.

The Soyuz TMA-14M spacecraft is rolled out to the launch pad by train on Tuesday, Sept. 23, 2014 at the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. Launch of the Soyuz rocket is scheduled for Sept. 26 and will carry Expedition 41 Soyuz Commander Alexander Samokutyaev of the Russian Federal Space Agency (Roscosmos), Flight Engineer Barry Wilmore of NASA, and Flight Engineer Elena Serova of Roscosmos into orbit to begin their five and a half month mission on the International Space Station.

West Virginia National Guards Company C, 2-104th General Support Aviation Battalion, Aeromedical Evacuation Company (MEDEVAC), received its first of six new HH-60M Mike model Black Hawk helicopters at the Army Aviation Support Facility 1, Wood County Airport (KPKB), Williamstown, West Virginia, April 12, 2022. Built by Sikorsky Aircraft for the US Army, the HH-60M-model is specifically designed to provide aerial medical support and ambulatory patient transport services under difficult weather conditions, during day and night.

Workers monitor the lift of the space shuttle Discovery from the top of the NASA 747 Shuttle Carrier Aircraft (SCA) at Washington Dulles International Airport, Thursday, April 19, 2012, in Sterling, VA. Discovery, the first orbiter retired from NASAs shuttle fleet, completed 39 missions, spent 365 days in space, orbited the Earth 5,830 times, and traveled 148,221,675 miles. NASA will transfer Discovery to the National Air and Space Museum to begin its new mission to commemorate past achievements in space and to educate and inspire future generations of explorers.

Torpedo in front of a torpedo shaft in a submarine in Kiel, Schleswig-Holstein, Germany, Europe

The Artemis I Orion crew module pressure vessel is loaded on NASA's Super Guppy plane in New Orleans for transport to Kennedy Space Center on Feb. 1, 2016. Part of Batch image transfer from Flickr.

During a practice run, crawler-transporter 2 (CT-2) is being driven to the Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB) at NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida on May 1, 2019. CT-2 entered High Bay 2, and picked up the space shuttle-era mobile launch platform-3 (MLP-3). The VAB is getting its first commercial tenant. Northrop Grumman signed a Reimbursable Space Act Agreement with NASA for use of the facilities. The company will assemble and test its new OmegA rocket inside the massive facilitys High Bay 2. The company also will modify MLP-3 to serve as the launch vehicles assembly and launch platform. Northrop Grumman is developing the OmegA rocket, an intermediate/heavy-class launch vehicle, as part of a launch services agreement with the U.S. Air Force.

Riverside, Calif., Nov. 1, 2012 A fleet of more than 70 Southern California Edison utility trucks is being prepared for transport to the East Coast to help restore power in areas devastated by Hurricane Sandy. The U.S. Air Force will use six C-5 and eight C-17 aircraft to transport the vehicles from March Air Reserve Base in Riverside County.. Photographs Relating to Disasters and Emergency Management Programs, Activities, and Officials

050125-F-9322C-004. Base: Scott Air Force Base State: Illinois (IL) Country: United States Of America (USA)

The Artemis I Orion crew module pressure vessel is loaded on NASA's Super Guppy plane in New Orleans for transport to Kennedy Space Center on Feb. 1, 2016. Part of Batch image transfer from Flickr.

Wright Flyer Replica Test-40-0047 40 x 80 ft. Wind Tunnel.

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