NASA Launch Operations

Scenes from NASA's Kennedy Space Center showcasing vehicle assemblies, launch complex structures, and space shuttle preparations.

The first and second stages of a Titan IV launch vehicle are transported past a space shuttle launch pad at Kennedy Space Center while en route to a storage facility for an official acceptance and dedication ceremony. The launch vehicle was built by Marti. Base: Cape Canaveral State: Florida (FL) Country: United States Of America (USA)

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - External tank 134 is towed toward the Vehicle Assembly Building, or VAB, at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The Pegasus barge, carrying the fuel tank, arrived in Florida after an ocean voyage towed by a solid rocket booster retrieval ship from NASA's Michoud Assembly Facility near New Orleans. Next, the tank will be transported into the VAB where it will be stored until needed.ET-134 will be used to launch space shuttle Endeavour on the STS-130 mission to the International Space Station. Launch is targeted for Feb. 4, 2010.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- Space shuttle Atlantis is slowly towed from the Shuttle Landing Facility runway to Orbiter Processing Facility-2 for the last time. Atlantis' final return to Earth on Runway 15 at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida occurred at 5:57 a.m. EDT July 21, 2011. Securing the space shuttle fleet's place in history, Atlantis marks the 26th nighttime landing of NASA's Space Shuttle Program and the 78th landing at Kennedy. Atlantis and its crew delivered to the International Space Station the Raffaello multi-purpose logistics module packed with more than 9,400 pounds of spare parts, equipment and supplies that will sustain station operations for the next year. STS-135 is the 33rd and final flight for Atlantis and the final mission of the Space Shuttle Program.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - The Ares I-X aft center booster segment is transported from the Rotation, Processing and Surge Facility to the Vehicle Assembly Building at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The Ares I-X launch vehicle segments are being stacked in the VAB. Part of the Constellation Program, the Ares I-X is the test vehicle for the Ares I, which is the essential core of a space transportation system that eventually will carry crewed missions back to the moon, on to Mars and out into the solar system. Launch is targeted for no earlier than Aug. 30 from Launch Pad 39B.

Exterior view of Launch Complex 39A

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- At Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida, the first stage of a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket has arrived at Launch Complex 41. NASA's Juno spacecraft is scheduled to launch aboard an 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.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - A long transporter moves past the Vehicle Assembly toward the turn basin in the Launch Complex 39 Area of NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The vehicle will be used to offload a girder for a new mobile launcher from the barge docked at the turn basin. The new mobile launcher will be the base for the Ares rockets to launch the Orion crew exploration vehicle and the cargo vehicle. The base is being made lighter than space shuttle mobile launcher platforms so the crawler-transporter can pick up the added load of the 345-foot tower and taller rocket. When the structural portion of the new mobile launcher is complete, umbilicals, access arms, communications equipment and command/control equipment will be installed.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - Space shuttle Endeavour, mounted atop NASA's Shuttle Carrier Aircraft or SCA, takes off from the Shuttle Landing Facility at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. 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.

The first and second stages of a Titan IV launch vehicle are transported past a space shuttle launch pad at Kennedy Space Center while en route to a storage facility for an official acceptance and dedication ceremony. The launch vehicle was built by Marti. Base: Cape Canaveral State: Florida (FL) Country: United States Of America (USA)

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - The second of two Solid Rocket Boosters (SRBs) is transported from the Receipt Inspection Storage building to Launch Complex 37 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. At the pad, the SRB sill be attached to the Boeing Delta IV rocket. The Boeing Delta IV is the launch vehicle for the GOES-N satellite, the first of three for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration that will provide continuous monitoring necessary for intensive data analysis. GOES-N will provide a constant vigil for the atmospheric triggers of severe weather conditions such as tornadoes, flash floods, hail storms and hurricanes. When these conditions develop, GOES-N will be able to monitor storm development and track their movements. NASAs Goddard Space Flight Center is responsible for development of the satellite and testing of the spacecraft and its instruments. GOES-N is scheduled for launch on May 4.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - At the Shuttle Landing Facility at NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida, space shuttle Discovery rolls past a Shuttle Carrier Aircraft, or SCA, toward the mate-demate device, or MDD. A tail cone has been installed over its three replica shuttle main engines to reduce aerodynamic drag and turbulence during its upcoming ferry flight.The MDD is a large gantry-like steel structure used to hoist a shuttle off the ground and position it onto the back of an 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 St

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- The Liberty Star retrieval ship ushers a tugboat pulling the Pegasus Barge toward the Turn Basin at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The barge is carrying the Space Shuttle Program's last external fuel tank, ET-122. The tank traveled 900 miles by sea from NASA's Michoud Assembly Facility in New Orleans. Next, the tank will be offloaded and moved to the Vehicle Assembly Building where it eventually will be attached to space shuttle Endeavour for the STS-134 mission to the International Space Station. STS-134, targeted to launch in Feb. 2011, currently is scheduled to be the last mission in the Space Shuttle Program. The tank, which is the largest element of the space shuttle stack, was damaged during Hurricane Katrina in August 2005 and restored to flight configuration by Lockheed Martin Space Systems Company employees.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - At the turn basin at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, external fuel tank ET-131 has been moved out of the Pegasus barge. The tank, which will be used on the STS-127 mission, will be transported to a high bay in the Vehicle Assembly Building for checkout. The Japanese Experiment Module's Experiment Logistics Module-Exposed Section, or ELM-ES, is part of the payload on the STS-127 mission, targeted for launch in June.

Aerials - STS-133 Discovery on Pad 39A, LEED Bldg., VAB

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - A flatbed truck departs from the Orbiter Processing Facility-3 engine shop at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida transporting the last Pratt and Whitney Rocketdyne space shuttle main engine, or SSME, to NASA's Stennis Space Center in Mississippi.The first two groups of engines were shipped from Kennedy to Stennis in November 2011 and January 2012 the remaining engines departed today. Altogether, 15 shuttle-era engines will be stored at Stennis for reuse on NASAs Space Launch System heavy-lift rocket, under development.

In this distant view, STS-31 Discovery, Orbiter Vehicle (OV) 103, is seen as it heads skyward after liftoff from Kennedy Space Center (KSC) Launch Complex (LC) Pad 39B at 8 33 51.0492 am (Eastern Daylight Time (EDT)). OV-103's silhouette atop the external tank (ET) appears above the glow of the solid rocket booster (SRB) and space shuttle main engine (SSME) firings. An exhaust plume trails behind and covers the launch pad area below the orbiter. A nearby waterway reflects the SRB/SSME glow in the foreground. At the far right and barely discernible is KSC LC Pad 39A and the Sound Supression Water System tower. Columbia, OV-102, is on LC Pad 39A which is separated by a distance of 1.6 miles. This was the first time since January 1986 that there was a shuttle on each pad.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - Under a Florida sunrise at the Shuttle Landing Facility at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, the space shuttle Endeavour, mounted atop NASA's Shuttle Carrier Aircraft, or SCA, is prepared to roll back from the mate-demate 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.

USA, Florida, Kennedy Space Center, KSC Rocket Garden with Saturn 1B in right foreground

NASAs Pegasus barge, with the 212-foot-long Space Launch System (SLS) rocket core stage pathfinder secured inside, departs the Launch Complex 39 turn basin wharf at NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Oct. 31, 2019. The core stage pathfinder is a full-scale mock-up of the rocket's core stage. It was used by the Exploration Ground Systems Program and their contractor, Jacobs, to practice offloading, moving and stacking maneuvers inside the Vehicle Assembly Building, using important ground support equipment to train employees and certify all the equipment works properly. The pathfinder was at Kennedy for about a month. The barge with the pathfinder will make the trek back to NASA's Michoud Assembly Facility in Louisiana.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- The newly arrived external tank heads for the open door of the Vehicle Assembly Building (background) where the tank will await stacking for a future Shuttle mission. External tanks are built by the NASA Michoud Assembly Facility in New Orleans and transported by barge to Cape Canaveral and then to the turn basin in the Launch Complex 39 Area

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- A tugboat pulls the Pegasus Barge carrying the Space Shuttle Program's last external fuel tank, ET-122, toward the Turn Basin at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The tank traveled 900 miles by sea from NASA's Michoud Assembly Facility in New Orleans. Next, the tank will be offloaded and moved to the Vehicle Assembly Building where it eventually will be attached to space shuttle Endeavour for the STS-134 mission to the International Space Station. STS-134, targeted to launch in Feb. 2011, currently is scheduled to be the last mission in the Space Shuttle Program. The tank, which is the largest element of the space shuttle stack, was damaged during Hurricane Katrina in August 2005 and restored to flight configuration by Lockheed Martin Space Systems Company employees.

Sky colors over Space Shuttle Sky colors over Space Shuttle, U.S.A. Copyright: xZoonar.com/GiovannixGagliardix 4957466

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - Two tugboats maneuver the Pegasus barge toward the dock in the turn basin at the Launch Complex 39 Area at NASA's Kennedy Space Center. The barge contains the external fuel tank for space shuttle Endeavour's STS-126 mission to the International Space Station. The tank will be offloaded at the turn basin near the Vehicle Assembly Building and transported to the VAB. There it 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.

A Northrop Grumman Antares rocket arrives at launch Pad-0A, Tuesday, Oct. 29, 2019, at NASA's Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia. Northrop Grummans 12th contracted cargo resupply mission with NASA to the International Space Station will deliver about 8,200 pounds of science and research, crew supplies and vehicle hardware to the orbital laboratory and its crew. Launch is scheduled for 9:59 a.m. EDT Saturday, Nov. 2.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. --- External tank No. 128 makes the turn toward the Vehicle Assembly Building, in the background. Once inside the building, the tank will be raised to vertical, lifted and moved into a checkout cell. The tank is scheduled for space shuttle Discovery's STS-124 mission. On the STS-124 mission, Discovery will transport the Kibo Japanese Experiment Module - Pressurized Module and the Japanese Remote Manipulator System to the International Space Station. Discovery is targeted for launch on May 25.

The ML is put onto Crawler Transporter in Preparation for Move to Pad 39B

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - At NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, space shuttle Atlantis is towed from the Shuttle Landing Facility toward the 525-foot-tall Vehicle Assembly Building in the background. Atlantis touched down on Runway 33 after 11 days in space, completing the 4.5-million mile STS-129 mission to the International Space Station on orbit 171. Once Atlantis arrives in Orbiter Processing Facility-1, processing will begin for its next mission, designated STS-132.The 34th shuttle mission to the International Space Station, Atlantis will deliver an Integrated Cargo Carrier and Russian-built Mini Research Module, or MRM, to the orbiting laboratory on STS-132. The second in a series of new pressurized components for Russia, the MRM will be permanently attached to the bottom port of the Zarya module. The Russian module also will carry U.S. pressurized cargo. Three spacewalks are planned to stage spare components outside the station, including six spare batteries, a boom asse

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - Rolling back from Launch Pad 39B, Space Shuttle Discovery, atop a Mobile Launcher Platform, makes its way slowly toward the Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB) at NASAs Kennedy Space Center. The view is across the Turn Basin from an area near the NASA News Center. In the foreground is the mission countdown clock that tracks the time from before launch to landing.Once inside the VAB, Discovery will be demated from its External Tank and lifted into the transfer aisle. On or about June 7, Discovery will be lifted and attached to its new tank and Solid Rocket Boosters, which are already in the VAB. Only the 15th rollback in Space Shuttle Program history, the 4.2-mile journey allows additional modifications to be made to the External Tank prior to a safe Return to Flight. Discovery is expected to be rolled back to the launch pad in mid-June for Return to Flight mission STS-114. The launch window extends from July 13 to July 31.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- At NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, launch pad 39A looks much like it did after the liftoff of STS-135, the final space shuttle mission, on July 8, 2011. Both launch pad 39A and 39B pad 39A was originally built for the Apollo/Saturn V rockets that launched American astronauts on their historic journeys to the moon and later modified to support the 30-year shuttle program.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - Space Shuttle Discovery, atop a Mobile Launcher Platform, rolls into high bay 1 in the Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB) at NASAs Kennedy Space Center. The Shuttle is being rolled back from Launch Pad 39B. Once inside the VAB, Discovery will be demated from its External Tank and lifted into the transfer aisle. On or about June 7, Discovery will be lifted and attached to its new tank and Solid Rocket Boosters, which are already in the VAB. Only the 15th rollback in Space Shuttle Program history, the 4.2-mile journey allows additional modifications to be made to the External Tank prior to a safe Return to Flight. Discovery is expected to be rolled back to the launch pad in mid-June for Return to Flight mission STS-114. The launch window extends from July 13 to July 31.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- At NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, a crawler-transporter moves a mobile launcher platform with two solid rocket boosters perched on top from the Vehicle Assembly Building's (VAB) High Bay 1 to High Bay 3.Inside the VAB, the boosters will be joined to an external fuel tank next month in preparation for space shuttle Endeavour's STS-134 mission to the International Space Station targeted to launch in February, 2011.

A Northrop Grumman Antares rocket carrying a Cygnus resupply spacecraft is seen as it is rolled out of the Horizontal Integration Facility to the Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceports Pad-0A, Saturday, September 26, 2020, at NASA's Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia. Northrop Grummans 14th contracted cargo resupply mission with NASA to the International Space Station will deliver about 8,000 pounds of science and research, crew supplies and vehicle hardware to the orbital laboratory and its crew. The CRS-14 Cygnus spacecraft is named after the first female astronaut of Indian descent, Kaplana Chawla, and is scheduled to launch at 10:27 p.m., Tuesday, September 29, 2020 EDT.

Exterior view of Launch Complex 39A

SDO ATLAS V ROLLOUT FROM VIF TO PAD 41

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - Viewed across the turn basin in the Launch Complex 39 Area, the crawler transporter slowly moves the Mobile Launcher Platform (MLP), carrying a set of twin solid rocket boosters, away from the Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB). The journey is in support of engineering analysis vibration tests on the crawler and MLP. The water on the right of the crawlerway is the Banana River. The crawler is moving at various speeds up to 1 mph in an effort to achieve vibration data gathering goals as it leaves the VAB and then returns. The boosters are braced at the top for stability. The primary purpose of these rollout tests is to gather data to develop future maintenance requirements on the transport equipment and the flight hardware. Various parts of the MLP and crawler transporter have been instrumented with vibration data collection equipment.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- The Pegasus Barge carrying the Space Shuttle Program's last external fuel tank, ET-122, arrives at the Turn Basin at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The tank traveled 900 miles by sea from NASA's Michoud Assembly Facility in New Orleans. Next, the tank will be offloaded and moved to the Vehicle Assembly Building where it eventually will be attached to space shuttle Endeavour for the STS-134 mission to the International Space Station. STS-134, targeted to launch in Feb. 2011, currently is scheduled to be the last mission in the Space Shuttle Program. The tank, which is the largest element of the space shuttle stack, was damaged during Hurricane Katrina in August 2005 and restored to flight configuration by Lockheed Martin Space Systems Company employees.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - In a pond near Launch Pad 39B, an alligator lurks near the tall grass on the lower right side. In the background is Space Shuttle Discovery, in full launch configuration after rollback of the Rotating Service Structure (RSS). Rollback of the RSS is a major preflight milestone, typically occurring during the T-11-hour hold on L-1 (the day before launch). Discovery is scheduled to lift off on the historic Return to Flight mission STS-114 at 10 39 a.m. EDT July 26 with a crew of seven.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- Space Shuttle Atlantis (right) inches its way at 1 mph atop the crawler-transporter back to the Vehicle Assembly Building from Launch Pad 39A (upper left). A panorama view from the top of the VAB shows the proximity of the pad to the Atlantic Ocean (background) plus the 3.4-mile crawlerway leading from the pad to the VAB. The water areas on both sides of the crawlerway are part of the Banana River. In the VAB workers will conduct inspections, make continuity checks and conduct X-ray analysis on the 36 solid rocket booster cables located inside each boosters external system tunnel. An extensive evaluation of NASAs SRB cable inventory revealed conductor damage in four (of about 200) cables on the shelf. Shuttle managers decided to prove the integrity of the system tunnel cables already on Atlantis before launching. The launch has been re

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- The Pegasus barge, at right, is towed toward the landing dock in the Launch Complex 39 Area. The barge carries external tank No. 120, to be used for launching Space Shuttle Discovery on mission STS-120 in October. At left is the Vehicle Assembly Building. The barge has carried the tank from the Michoud Assembly Facility near New Orleans, making the journey around the Florida peninsula in tow by the JA Bisso II tugboat, to Port Canaveral and Kennedy Space Center. After the tank is offloaded, it will be towed to the Vehicle Assembly Building for lifting into a checkout cell. NASA/Amanda Diller

The Northrop Grumman Antares rocket is seen a few hours after arriving at launch Pad-0A, Tuesday, Oct. 29, 2019, at NASA's Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia. Northrop Grummans 12th contracted cargo resupply mission with NASA to the International Space Station will deliver about 8,200 pounds of science and research, crew supplies and vehicle hardware to the orbital laboratory and its crew. Launch is scheduled for 9:59 a.m. EDT Saturday, Nov. 2.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - A tugboat pulls NASA's Pegasus Barge through the Port Canaveral lock in Florida. The 266-foot-long and 50-foot-wide barge will be towed by NASA's Freedom Star ship to deliver space shuttle main engine (SSME) ground support equipment to Stennis Space Center near Bay St. Louis, Miss. Since being delivered to NASA in 1999, Pegasus sailed 41 times and transported 31 shuttle external fuel tanks from Michoud Assembly Facility near New Orleans to Kennedy Space Center. The barge is leaving Kennedy, perhaps for the final time. Both the barge and shuttle equipment will remain in storage until their specific future uses are determined. The SSMEs themselves will be transported to Stennis separately for use with the agency's new heavy-lift rocket, the Space Launch System. The work is part of the Space Shuttle Programs transition and retirement processing.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - A tugboat pulls the barge transporting the high-fidelity space shuttle model out of the turn basin at NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida on its way to Space Center Houston, NASA Johnson Space Centers official visitor center. The turn basin is in the heart of Launch Complex 39 where the shuttles were processed and launched. Kennedys Launch Control Center and the Vehicle Assembly Building are prominent in the background. At the far right is NASAs new mobile launcher.The model was built in Apopka, Fla., by Guard-Lee and installed at the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex in 1993. The model is expected to arrive June 1 in Houston and to be transported June 3 to Space Center Houston, its final destination, where it will become part of a unique display telling the story of the space shuttles achievements and the nationwide team that made them possible.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- A United States military Apache H64A helicopter patrols Kennedy Space Center airspace near the Vehicle Assembly Building as the launch of Space Shuttle Endeavour on mission STS-108 to the International Space Station approaches. Launch is scheduled for 7:41 p.m. EST on Nov. 29

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - The Pegasus barge carrying the external fuel tank for space shuttle Atlantis' STS-125 mission to NASA's Hubble Space Telescope is towed into the turn basin in the Launch Complex 39 Area at NASA's Kennedy Space Center. The tank will be offloaded and moved to the Vehicle Assembly Building. Once inside the building, the tank will be raised to vertical, lifted and moved into a checkout cell. Stacking of the tank and solid rocket boosters is planned to start Aug. 7. Atlantis is targeted to launch Oct. 8.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- Orbiter Endeavour appears to head toward the Vehicle Assembly Building (background) as it approaches touchdown on Runway 15 at the KSC Shuttle Landing Facility, completing mission STS-108. After a mission-elapsed time of 11 days, 19 hours and 35 minutes, the landing is the 57th at KSC in the history of the program. Main gear touchdown occurred at 12 55 10 p.m. EST (17 55 10 GMT), nose gear touchdown at 12 55 23 p.m. (17 55 23 GMT) , wheel stop at 12 56 13 p.m. (17 56 13 GMT). STS-108 was the 12th mission to the International Space Station. This mission was the 107th flight in the Shuttle program and the 17th flight for the orbiter. Endeavour carries both the mission crew and the Expedition 3 crew - Commander Frank Culbertson and cosmonauts Vladimir Dezhurov and Mikhail Tyurin - who are returning to Earth after 129 days in space on the Space Station

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - At the Shuttle Landing Facility at NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida, a sling is attached to space shuttle Discovery to lift it onto the top of a Shuttle Carrier Aircraft with the aid of 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. 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. --- After offloading external tank No. 128 from the Pegasus barge in the Launch Complex 39 Area at NASA's Kennedy Space Center, the tow vehicle begins moving it to the Vehicle Assembly Building, in the background. The tank is scheduled for space shuttle Discovery's STS-124 mission. On the STS-124 mission, Discovery will transport the Kibo Japanese Experiment Module - Pressurized Module and the Japanese Remote Manipulator System to the International Space Station. Discovery is targeted for launch on May 25.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- Towed by tugboats, the Pegasus barge with its cargo of external tank 130 nears the dock in the turn basis near the Vehicle Assembly Building, or VAB, at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Pegasus arrived in Florida after an ocean voyage towed by a solid rocket booster retrieval ship from NASA's Michoud Assembly Facility near New Orleans. After the Pegasus docks, the fuel tank will be offloaded and transported to the VAB. External tank 130 is the one designated for space shuttle Endeavour on the STS-127 mission targeted for launch on May 15.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- At NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, the payload canister with the Hubble Space Telescope equipment heads for Launch Pad 39A. In the foreground, a bobcat runs across the road. On the pad, the Hubble equipment will be transferred to space shuttle Atlantis' payload bay. Atlantis' 11-day STS-125 mission to service Hubble is targeted for launch May 12. The flight will include five spacewalks in which astronauts will refurbish and upgrade the telescope with state-of-the-art science instruments. As a result, Hubble's capabilities will be expanded and its operational lifespan extended through at least 2014.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- Seen from Launch Pad 39A at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida is the silver Astrovan transporting the STS-135 crew members to the pad to participate in a launch countdown simulation exercise. As part of the Terminal Countdown Demonstration Test (TCDT), the crew members are strapped into their seats on Atlantis to practice the steps that will be taken on launch day. Shuttle Atlantis and its crew are targeted to lift off July 8, taking with them the Raffaello multi-purpose logistics module packed with supplies and spare parts to the International Space Station. The STS-135 mission also will fly a system to investigate the potential for robotically refueling existing satellites and return a failed ammonia pump module to help NASA better understand the failure mechanism and improve pump designs for future systems. STS-135 will be the 33rd flight of Atlantis, the 37th shuttle mission to the space station, and the 135th and final mission of NASA's Space Shut

Airport, plane and tractor for luggage, cargo or logistics for flight with transportation on runway. Airplane, truck and trailer for baggage, space or sunset sky for international travel with vehicle

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- At NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, space shuttle Endeavour backs out of Orbiter Processing Facility-1 (OPF-1) into public view. Endeavour is switching places with shuttle Discovery which temporarily has been housed 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. - The barge transporting the high-fidelity space shuttle model travels through the shallow waters of Port Canaveral, Fla., during the first leg of their journey from NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida to Johnson Space Center's visitor center in Houston. The model was built in Apopka, Fla., by Guard-Lee and installed at Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex in 1993.The model has been parked at the turn basin the past five months to allow the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex to begin building a new facility to display space shuttle Atlantis in 2013.

The Orbital Sciences Corporation Antares rocket is seen as it launches from Pad-0A of the Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport (MARS) at the NASA Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia, Sunday, April 21, 2013. The test launch marked the first flight of Antares and the first rocket launch from Pad-0A. The Antares rocket delivered the equivalent mass of a spacecraft, a so-called mass simulated payload, into Earth's orbit.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - Space shuttle Endeavour is towed to the Mate-Demate Device, or MDD, at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida after being backed out of the Vehicle Assembly Building. The MDD is located at the Shuttle Landing Facility at Kennedy. The shuttle will be lifted and connected to the top of NASA's Shuttle Carrier Aircraft SCA, a modified 747 jetliner. The shuttle has been fitted with an aerodynamic tailcone for its flight aboard the SCA to Los Angeles where it will be placed on public display.

NASA's Pegasus Barge makes its way along the intercoastal waterway to its destination at the Kennedy Space Center Launch Complex 39 turn basin wharf, to make its first delivery to Kennedy in support of the agency's Artemis missions. The upgraded 310-foot-long barge arrived Sept. 27, 2019, ferrying the 212-foot-long Space Launch System rocket core stage pathfinder. The pathfinder is a full-scale mock-up of the rocket's core stage. The pathfinder will be used by the Exploration Ground Systems Program and their contractor, Jacobs, to practice offloading, moving and stacking maneuvers, using important ground support equipment to train employees and certify all the equipment works properly. The pathfinder will stay at Kennedy for approximately one month before trekking back to NASA's Michoud Assembly Facility in Louisiana.

The Soyuz rocket is rolled out by train to the launch pad, Monday, March 19, 2018 at the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. Expedition 55 crewmembers Ricky Arnold and Drew Feustel of NASA and Oleg Artemyev of Roscosmos are scheduled to launch at 1:44 p.m. Eastern time (11:44 p.m. Baikonur time) on March 21 and will spend the next five months living and working aboard the International Space Station.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - At the right side of this aerial photo, near the horizon, the Shuttle Carrier Aircraft transporting space shuttle Discovery to its new home flies past the 525-foot-tall Vehicle Assembly Building at NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The duo took off from Kennedys Shuttle Landing Facility at 7 a.m. EDT.The aircraft, known as an SCA, is a Boeing 747 jet, originally manufactured for commercial use, which was modified by NASA to transport the shuttles between destinations on Earth. This 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 today, 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. - In the Turn Basin in the Launch Complex 39 area at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, the Vehicle Assembly Building and Mobile Launcher are reflected in the water beside where a tugboat and the Pegasus Barge are moored. The 266-foot-long and 50-foot-wide barge will be towed by NASA's Freedom Star ship to deliver space shuttle main engine (SSME) ground support equipment to Stennis Space Center near Bay St. Louis, Miss. Since being delivered to NASA in 1999, Pegasus sailed 41 times and transported 31 shuttle external fuel tanks from Michoud Assembly Facility near New Orleans to Kennedy. The barge will leave Kennedy, perhaps for the final time. Both the barge and shuttle equipment will remain in storage until their specific future uses are determined. The SSMEs themselves will be transported to Stennis separately for use with the agencys new heavy-lift rocket, the Space Launch System. The work is part of the Space Shuttle Programs transition and retirement

The Launch Vehicle Stage Adapter for the Space Launch System rocket arrived at the barge at Kennedy Space Center for ground processing and integration for the launch of Artemis I.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - A barge carrying a new External Tank (ET) arrives at the Turn Basin in the Launch Complex 39 Area. Designated ET-119, the tank will be used on a future Space Shuttle launch. After being offloaded, the tank will be transported to the Vehicle Assembly Building. The barge was towed on a 900-mile journey at sea from the Michoud Assembly Facility in New Orleans by one of NASAs Solid Rocket Booster Retrieval Ships.

A Northrop Grumman Antares rocket carrying a Cygnus resupply spacecraft is seen as it is rolled out of the Horizontal Integration Facility to the Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceports Pad-0A, Saturday, September 26, 2020, at NASA's Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia. Northrop Grummans 14th contracted cargo resupply mission with NASA to the International Space Station will deliver about 8,000 pounds of science and research, crew supplies and vehicle hardware to the orbital laboratory and its crew. The CRS-14 Cygnus spacecraft is named after the first female astronaut of Indian descent, Kaplana Chawla, and is scheduled to launch at 10:27 p.m., Tuesday, September 29, 2020 EDT.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - Crawler-transporter (CT) number 2 nears the launch pad with a Mobile Launcher Platform (MLP) on top. After recent modifications to the cab and muffler system, the CT was taken on a test run. The CT moves Space Shuttle vehicles, situated on the MLP, between the VAB and launch pad. Moving on four double-tracked crawlers, the CT uses a laser guidance system and a leveling system for the journey that keeps the top of a Space Shuttle vertical within plus- or minus-10 minutes of arc. The system enables the CT-MLP-Shuttle to negotiate the ramp leading to the launch pads and keep the load level. Unloaded, the CT weighs 6 million pounds. Seen on top of the MLP are two tail service masts that support the fluid, gas and electrical requirements of the orbiters liquid oxygen and liquid hydrogen aft umbilicals.

An aerial view of the control tower at the KSC Shuttle Landing Facility.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - Space shuttle Endeavour appears to hover above NASA's Shuttle Carrier Aircraft, or SCA, positioned beneath it in the mate-demate device at the Shuttle Landing Facility at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The shuttle will be lowered and connected to the top of the SCA with the aid of the device. The shuttle has been fitted with an aerodynamic tailcone for its upcoming ferry flight.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.

USA, Florida, Everglades National Park, former Nike missile base built after the Cuban Missile Crisis of 1962, missile hangar.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- Space Shuttle Discovery nears touchdown on an illuminated Runway 15 at NASA Kennedy Space Center's Shuttle Landing Facility as the sun sets on the shortest day of the year, concluding mission STS-116. Aboard are Commander Mark Polansky, Pilot William Oefelein, and Mission Specialists Robert Curbeam, Joan Higginbotham, Nicholas Patrick and Christer Fuglesang, who represents the European Space Agency, as well as Thomas Reiter, who is returning from a 6-month stay on the International Space Station. During the mission, three spacewalks attached the P5 integrated truss structure to the station, and completed the rewiring of the orbiting laboratorys power system. A fourth spacewalk retracted a stubborn solar array. Main gear touchdown was at 5:32 p.m. EST. Nose gear touchdown was at 5:32:12 p.m. and wheel stop was at 5:32:52 p.m. At touchdown -- nominally about 2,500 ft. beyond the runway threshold -- the orbiter is traveling at a speed ranging from 213 to 22

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. --

VANDENBERG AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. - The second stage for NASA's Orbiting Carbon Observatory-2 mission, or OCO-2, is being towed to the Horizontal Processing Facility at Space Launch Complex 2 from the Building 836 hangar on Vandenberg Air Force Base in California. OCO-2 is scheduled to launch aboard a United Launch Alliance Delta II rocket in July. The rocket's second stage will insert OCO-2 into a polar Earth orbit. OCO-2 will collect precise global measurements of carbon dioxide in the Earth's atmosphere and provide scientists with a better idea of the chemical compound's impacts on climate change. Scientists will analyze this data to improve our understanding of the natural processes and human activities that regulate the abundance and distribution of this important atmospheric gas.

A United Launch Alliance Atlas V booster is transported to Space Launch Complex 3 at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California. The rocket will launch NASA's Interior Exploration using Seismic Investigations, Geodesy and Heat Transport, or InSight, mission to land on Mars. InSight is the first mission to explore the Red Planet's deep interior. It will investigate processes that shaped the rocky planets of the inner solar system including Earth. Liftoff is scheduled for May 5, 2018.

NASAs Super Guppy cargo transport aircraft parked on the ramp in front of NASAs Armstrong Flight Research Center Building 703.

The Saturn V S-IC-T stage (static testing stage) was enroute from the Manufacturing Engineering Laboratory to the newly-built S-1C Static Test Stand at the Marshall Space Flight Center west test area. Known as S-IC-T, the stage was a static test vehicle not intended for flight. It was ground tested repeatedly over a period of many months proving the vehicle's propulsion system.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- Aboard a transporter, external tank No. 120 moves past the NASA News Center parking lot in the Launch Complex 39 Area to the Vehicle Assembly Building, at right. There it will be lifted into a checkout cell. The tank arrived from the Michoud Assembly Facility near New Orleans, making the journey around the Florida peninsula in tow by the JA Bisso II tugboat. ET-120 will be used for launching Space Shuttle Discovery on mission STS-120 in October. NASA/Amanda Diller

S69-27916 (11 March 1969) --- Aerial view at Launch Complex 39, Kennedy Space Center, showing the Apollo 10 (Spacecraft 106/Lunar Module-4/Saturn 505) space vehicle on its way to Pad B. The Saturn V stack and its mobile launch tower are atop a huge crawler-transporter. The Apollo 10 flight is scheduled as a lunar orbit mission. The Apollo 10 crew will be astronauts Thomas P. Stafford, commander; John W. Young, command module pilot; and Eugene A. Cernan, lunar module pilot.

Artemis CTVs Delivery to KSC. Three specially designed, fully electric, environmentally friendly crew transportation vehicles for Artemis missions arrived at NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida on July 11, 2023. One of the zero-emission vehicles is shown here at Launch Pad 39B. The fleet, which will carry astronauts to Launch Complex 39B for Artemis missions, was delivered by the manufacturer, Canoo Technologies Inc. of Torrance, California.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- At NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, space shuttle Discovery rolls out of the Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB) where it temporarily has been stored. Discovery is switching places with shuttle Endeavour which has been undergoing decommissioning in Orbiter Processing Facility-1 (OPF-1). 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.The image was taken from the top of 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.

Orion sits atop a transport vehicle as it departs from its home at the Neil Armstrong Operations and Checkout Building at NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Jan.16, 2021. Orions next stop will be the Multi-Payload Processing Facility where it will undergo ground processing with the Exploration Ground Systems team taking over ground processing ahead of the Artemis I launch.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - At NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, the shuttle convoy vehicles are in position near the Shuttle Landing Facility awaiting the return of space shuttle Discovery. The convoy is made up of about 40 vehicles, including 25 specially designed vehicles, and a team of trained personnel who 'safe' the shuttle, prepare it for towing, assist the crew in leaving the shuttle, and finally, tow the shuttle to its hangar. Discovery landed at Kennedy after 15 days in space, completing the more than 6.2-million-mile STS-131 mission on orbit 238. Main gear touchdown was at 9 08 35 a.m. EDT followed by nose gear touchdown at 9 08 47 a.m. and wheelstop at 9 09 33 a.m. Aboard are Commander Alan Poindexter; Pilot James P. Dutton Jr.; and Mission Specialists Rick Mastracchio, Clayton Anderson, Dorothy Metcalf-Lindenburger, Stephanie Wilson and Naoko Yamazaki of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency. The seven-member STS-131 crew carried the multi-purpose logistics module Leonar

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - At the Shuttle Landing Facility at NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida, space shuttle Discovery is lowered onto the Shuttle Carrier Aircraft in the mate-demate device during mating operations.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. -- As the sun was rising over NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, an early morning rain shower caused a meteorological and optical rainbow show next to the Vehicle Assembly Building.Florida's Space Coast often is the scene of showers and thunderstorms during the summer months.

A mock up of the Orion Crew Module is seen, Monday, March 30, 2009, during a news conference on the National Mall in Washington. Orion is the flagship of NASA's programs for space exploration beyond low Earth orbit and a key element of NASA's Constellation Program to explore the Moon, Mars and beyond.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - Space shuttle Atlantis' drag chute slows the vehicle at it rolls to a stop on Runway 33 at the Shuttle Landing Facility at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Landing was at 8:48 a.m. EDT, completing the 12-day STS-132 mission to the International Space Station. The six-member STS-132 crew carried the Russian-built Mini Research Module-1 to the space station. STS-132 is the 34th shuttle mission to the station, the 132nd shuttle mission overall and the last planned flight for Atlantis.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- Blue sky and blue water sandwich Endeavour as it rolls to a stop with the aid of a drag chute on runway 15 at NASA's Kennedy Space Center. The landing completes mission STS-118 to the International Space Station. The mission began Aug. 8 and installed a new gyroscope, an external spare parts platform and another truss segment to the expanding station. Endeavour's main gear touched down at 12:32:16 p.m. EDT. Nose gear touchdown was at 12:32:29 p.m. and wheel stop was at 12:33:20 p.m. Endeavour traveled nearly 5.3 million miles, landing on orbit 201. STS-118 was the 119th space shuttle flight, the 22nd flight to the station, the 20th flight for Endeavour and the second of four missions planned for 2007. This was the 65th landing of an orbiter at Kennedy.

STS-132 WATER ON CRAWLERWAY PROHIBITING ROLLOUT

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - The high-fidelity space shuttle model that was on display at the NASA Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex in Florida nears the intersection of NASA Causeway and Kennedy Parkway. It is standard procedure for large payloads and equipment to travel against the normal flow of traffic under the supervision of a move crew when being transported on or off center property. The model is being moved from the visitor complex to NASA Kennedy Space Center's Launch Complex 39 turn basin.The shuttle was part of a display at the visitor complex that also included an external tank and two solid rocket boosters that were used to show visitors the size of actual space shuttle components. The full-scale shuttle model is being transferred from Kennedy to Space Center Houston, NASA Johnson Space Center's visitor center. The model will stay at the turn basin for a few months until it is ready to be transported to Texas via barge. The move also helps clear the way for the Kennedy Spa

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- External tank No. 117 makes the turn from the parking area at NASA's Vehicle Assembly Building. It is heading for the barge waiting at the Turn Basin in the Launch Complex 39 Area. The tank is being shipped to NASAs Michoud Assembly Facility in Louisiana for modifications. The barge will be moved to Port Canaveral where one of NASAs solid rocket booster retrieval ships will take it and tow it around the Florida peninsula to Michoud.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - Framed by palm trees and backdropped by the Banana River, the United Launch Alliance Atlas V first stage booster for NASA's Radiation Belt Storm Probes mission arrives at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida. The booster was delivered by barge to nearby Port Canaveral.The Radiation Belt Storm Probes, or RBSP, mission will help us understand the suns influence on Earth and near-Earth space by studying the Earths radiation belts on various scales of space and time.

Slidewire Baskets are Released for the Last Time

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. The Virgin Atlantic GlobalFlyer aircraft is on display for employees at NASA's Kennedy Space Center, Fla. Steve Fossett will pilot the GlobalFlyer on a record-breaking attempt by flying solo, non-stop without refueling, to surpass the current record for the longest flight of any aircraft. Final preparations are being made at Kennedy before taking off on its record-setting flight, as early as Feb. 1, from Kennedy's Space Shuttle Landing Facility.

The front of NASA's Super Guppy aircraft has been opened at the Shuttle Landing Facility at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The Orion Exploration Mission-1 (EM-1) structural test article, secured inside its transport container, will be loaded into the Super Guppy for transport 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.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - At NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, a crowd gathers around space shuttle Atlantis as it moves through Space Florida's Exploration Park during its 10-mile journey from the Vehicle Assembly Building to the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex. Atlantis will stop in the park for a viewing opportunity for visitor complex guests before completing the trip to its new home. As part of transition and retirement of the Space Shuttle Program, Atlantis will be displayed in a new exhibit hall at the visitor complex beginning in the summer of 2013. Over the course of its 26-year career, Atlantis traveled 125,935,769 miles, completing 33 missions during 307 days in space.

NASAs Pegasus barge, seen off toward the right, prepares to depart from the agencys Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Aug. 4, 2020, for its trip to NASAs Michoud Assembly Facility in Louisiana. The Pegasus barge arrived at Kennedy on July 29, delivering the launch vehicle stage adapter (LVSA) for the agencys Space Launch System (SLS) rocket - the most powerful rocket NASA has ever built, providing the muscle necessary to get to the Moon and eventually to Mars. The LVSA - now undergoing processing inside the Vehicle Assembly Building - will connect the core stage of the rocket to the upper stage. The next time the Pegasus barge returns to Kennedy, it will be carrying the SLS core stage - the final piece of the rocket that needs to be delivered ahead of the Artemis I launch.

Enclosed in its payload fairing, NOAA's Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite (GOES-R) departs from the Astrotech payload processing facility in Titusville, Florida, near NASA's Kennedy Space Center. GOES-R will be transported to the Vertical Integration Facility at Space Launch Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. The satellite will launch aboard a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket in November. GOES-R is the first satellite in a series of next-generation NOAA GOES Satellites.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - In a parking lot near the Vehicle Assembly Building (background), this car lost its rear window to the category 3 Hurricane Jeanne that barreled through Central Florida Sept. 25-26. Behind it is a fence mangled by the storm. Hurricane Jeanne was the fourth hurricane in 6 weeks to batter the state.

The Eleven Radio Telescopes, located in Westerbork, the Netherlands, in a row, with a maintenance cart near the odd one out.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- The newly arrived external tank turns toward the door of the Vehicle Assembly Building (background) where the tank will await stacking for a future Shuttle mission. External tanks are built by the NASA Michoud Assembly Facility in New Orleans and transported by barge to Cape Canaveral and then to the turn basin in the Launch Complex 39 Area

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