Yesterday the Space Shuttle Orbiter Atlantis was brought to the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex, where it will be exhibited permanently, according to schedule from July 2013, in a facility built for that purpose.
In August, the Space Shuttle Atlantis was temporarily moved to the Orbiter Processing Facility 2, one of the hangars where the Space Shuttle used to be kept, but the real moving operations from one part of the Kennedy Space Center to the other started only in recent days. On October 17, Atlantis was moved to the Vehicle Assembly Building, where it was temporarily put on display for the employees of the center.
The actual journey was only about 16 km (10 miles) but it took several hours because transportation was carried out on a 76-wheel vehicle that can only proceed at very low speed. Moving the Space Shuttle Atlantis recalled the last leg of the trip made last month by another Orbiter, the Endeavour, which traveled a slightly greater distance between the Los Angeles international airport and the California Science Center. The voyage of the Atlantis was easier because it was made within the Kennedy Space Center and not in urban areas.
Of course, in some places there were some problems with traffic signs and high voltage cables but they were minor problems compared to those addressed to move the Endeavour. The Atlantis was escorted along the road but there was no need of the support of hundreds of cops and firefighters.
During the journey, there was a ceremony to officially hand over the Space Shuttle Atlantis to the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex. NASA Administrator Charles Bolden said that Atlantis must henceforth be a source of inspiration and that the spirit that created the space shuttle program is still alive.
In the last leg of its journey, the Space Shuttle Atlantis was accompanied by 30 astronauts, some of which have flown on this spaceship but also others such as Buzz Aldrin. After spending the day on the road, aventually the Atlantis arrived at the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex.
In July 2011, the end of the last mission of the Space Shuttle Atlantis closed the Space Shuttles era. Therefore, it’s somehow fitting that the Atlantis is the last Orbiter moved to its final location to be displayed. NASA is developing its new Space Launch System and some private companies are developing their spacecraft but the Space Shuttles will still remain unsurpassed for a long time.
