About three weeks ago the Space Shuttle Orbiter Endeavour arrived in Los Angeles. Thursday evenings there was the start of the operations to transport it to the California Science Center to be exhibited at the Samuel Oschin Space Shuttle Endeavour Display Pavilion. Between the international airport it left from and its destination there are less than 20 km (about 12 miles) but the transport went on very slowly.
The Over Land Transporter (OVL), an 80-wheel vehicle, carried the Space Shuttle Endeavour on the streets ot a speed so low that define it a crawl is exaggerated. Of course the traffic was blocked along the way and many trees had to be cut and several lampposts and street signs have been removed. The route was carefully examined because a load of about 85 tons was too much for some of the roads so large metal plates were installed to reinforce them at various points.
Despite these preparations, on several occasions the Space Shuttle Endeavour passed a few inches from any building or other obstacles and in these cases the progress has been really incredibly slow. The arrival at the California Science Center was planned for Saturday evening but the transition at critical points required many more hours than previously thought.
A vehicle traveling at thousands of miles per hour has finished its last journey moving at times even a few inches per second. Sunday, the last part of the journey has become even slower so the Endeavour arrived at its destination when in Los Angeles it was already afternoon.
This great slowness gave way to turn the last voyage of the Space Shuttle Endeavour into a long parade that rivals that of the Los Angeles Lakers when they win the NBA title. The delays if nothing else allowed to continue this journey for the whole weekend and therefore for even more people to go to admire it.
At the California Science Center, the Space Shuttle Endeavour will be displayed in a horizontal position but the intention of the museum is to build a new section called Air and Space Center where the Endeavour will be displayed in its vertical launch position. The opening is scheduled to happen in about five years.
