posted 12-05-2023 02:30 PM               

Nose cones top off work to stand-up solid rocket boosters for Endeavour exhibit

he work to stand up two rockets for the launchpad-like exhibit of NASA's retired space shuttle Endeavour has been capped — literally and figuratively — with the addition of two nose cones.

As the California Science Center prepares to take Endeavour off of public display for the next few years, the first major components for the orbiter's vertical exhibit are now complete at the construction site for the new Samuel Oschin Air and Space Center in Los Angeles. Just one month after crane operators hoisted into place the large segments for the two solid rocket boosters (SRBs), they were back in motion this week topping off the towering rockets with the forward assemblies.

posted 12-31-2023 08:00 AM               

End of year, end of exhibit: Space shuttle Endeavour goes off view for a few years

With the end of 2023 comes the end of an endeavor — or rather Endeavour — as the retired NASA space shuttle goes off public view for the next few years.

The last visitors to see Endeavour on exhibit will be those who leave the science center when it closes on Sunday (Dec. 31) at 5:00 p.m. PST.

posted 01-02-2024 05:00 AM               

Up next for Endeavour L.A. exhibit: Tank lift and shuttle shrink wrap

The science center announced on Tuesday (Jan. 2) that is targeting Wednesday, Jan. 10 to begin the tank's move. The largest component of the space shuttle stack, the 154-foot-long (47-meter) orange tank will be loaded onto a self-propelled modular transporter for its relatively short trip from beside the California Science Center to the work site for the new air and space center.

The 65,000-pound (29,500-kilogram) tank will then be hoisted by crane above the partially erected walls of the museum and then lowered between the exhibit's two solid rocket boosters, which were similarly installed in December. Unlike the boosters, though, the tank's lift will be conducted overnight, with first motion slated for sometime after 10 p.m. PST on Jan. 11 (12 a.m. EST or 0500 GMT Jan. 12), pending acceptable weather conditions and other safety concerns.

posted 01-13-2024 06:00 AM               

Last built-for-flight external tank lifted into place for space shuttle Endeavour exhibit

NASA's last-remaining, built-for-flight space shuttle external tank finally took to the sky, albeit for only two brief hops above Los Angeles.

In what was originally planned as an overnight move but extended into a two-day process due to wind concerns and added caution, External Tank-94 (ET-94) was taken aloft by two large cranes and lowered in front of and then between two solid rocket boosters such that together with the soon-to-follow orbiter Endeavour, the stack will form the world's only fully-authentic, upright space shuttle.

posted 01-19-2024 05:22 PM               

The orbiter will begin its short but momentous journey on Jan. 26, with work to stack and hard mate it to its external tank and solid rocket boosters expected to be completed by Jan. 29.

posted 01-26-2024 01:15 PM               

Final preparations are underway to install Endeavour no earlier than Jan. 29. Endeavour's lift will be livestreamed. More details to come.

Due to safety precautions and space constraints, there will be no public viewing on the Samuel Oschin Air and Space Center construction site.

posted 01-29-2024 09:45 PM               

Tune in tonight, Jan. 29, as we go live for Endeavour's lift and installation into the future Samuel Oschin Air and Space Center. Space shuttle lift to begin no earlier than 10:00 p.m. PST. Schedule subject to change.

posted 01-30-2024 06:07 AM               

Endeavour lifted onto space shuttle stack for California Science Center exhibit

A complete space shuttle is standing upright for the first time in more than a decade.

Overnight Monday into the early hours of Tuesday (Jan. 29-30), two large cranes carefully lifted NASA's retired winged orbiter Endeavour off a Los Angeles side street into the air and then lowered it onto an already-standing external tank with twin solid rocket boosters.

posted 01-31-2024 09:39 PM               

Endeavour points to stars once more.

The Science Center has completed the world's only authentic, ready-to-launch space shuttle system display. Endeavour's installation in the Samuel Oschin Air and Space Center is the grand finale of the unprecedented Go for Stack process.

posted 05-19-2024 11:38 AM               

Essentially all of the structural concrete is complete for the future Samuel Oschin Air and Space Center!

posted 05-22-2024 01:44 PM               

You may have noticed that space shuttle Endeavour is a bit more covered up while the construction of its home, the future Samuel Oschin Air and Space Center, continues. Well, work on the structure of the Shuttle Gallery's roof will be commencing!

While this will be a lengthy process, plywood has been added to the scaffolding around Endeavour to protect it during this process. A "dance floor" of plywood has also been added on top of a maze of scaffolding to allow workers more convenient access to the first layer of the diagrid structure that will support the roof of the building and to install various electrical and other systems in the Shuttle Gallery.

The space shuttle stack will remain covered by scaffolding and additional plywood and ballistic fabric throughout the duration of the Air and Space Center construction process.

posted 06-27-2024 10:57 AM               

The space shuttle is in "ready-to-launch" position, but our team is still hard at work!

Remaining foam work for ET-94 continues, including touch-ups to the forward intertank stringers (top two photos) and installing close-out foam on the aft longeron area (bottom two photos).

posted 07-11-2024 01:44 PM               

Space shuttle gantry installed!

An iconic structure on the launch pad, the gantry provided various fluid, gas, and electrical connections to the shuttle stack, as well as several work platforms. Our gantry in the Samuel Oschin Air and Space Center will be different. Once open, two sleek glass elevators will take guests to multiple platforms to experience different views of Endeavour, including a platform with a glass floor, so you'll have a dramatic perspective of the shuttle stack from above.

The gantry is 158 feet tall! You can currently see our gantry from neighboring streets and the upper level of our parking structure — at least until the Samuel Oschin Air and Space Center’s rooftop is complete.

We are thrilled to bring this up-close experience with Endeavour, providing access to vantage points previously granted only to astronauts and others working on launches when the space shuttle program was active.

posted 07-20-2024 10:59 AM               

Behind-the-scenes look at a space artifact that will be on display in the future Samuel Oschin Air and Space Center!

Three solid rocket motor case sections that will be displayed for a walkthrough solid rocket booster exhibit. Check out the exhibit in the rendering!

posted 09-06-2024 11:01 AM               

Fly with us around the future Samuel Oschin Air and Space Center...

posted 10-10-2024 09:30 AM               

Signed steel beams 'top off' L.A. home for space shuttle Endeavour

The new home of NASA's retired space shuttle Endeavour has reached new heights and the California Science Center is celebrating with a "topping off" ceremony.

Now just over a year since the science center began stacking the solid rocket boosters that went on to form the world's only vertical, launchpad-like exhibit of a winged orbiter, the new Samuel Oschin Air and Space Center is ready for its highest installed parts. On Thursday (Oct. 10), three steel beams are being raised nearly 200 feet (61 m) above the ground to crown the building's diagrid structure.