Shuttle Flying Piggyback on 747 to Florida

The Shuttle Carrier Aircraft takes off from Edwards Air Force Base, Calif., with space shuttle Endeavour on its back Wednesday morning. The flight is to carry Endeavour back to its home base at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. (Image credit: NASA)

The Space Shuttle Endeavour left California this morningriding piggy-back to Florida on a modified Boeing 747.

NASA released an image of the pair at takeoff, whichoccurred at 7 a.m. PST (10 a.m. EST), just after the sun rose over the WestCoast.

The 747, called a Shuttle Carrier Aircraft, and Endeavourare expected at NASA's Kennedy Space Center as early as Thursday afternoon, butFriday also is a possibility, the agency said in a statement. The exact timingand route depend on weather conditions along the way. The shuttle/aircraftcombo is enroute to Biggs Army Air Field in El Paso, Texas.

The flight will cost about $1.8 million. The effort is notexpected to have an impact on NASA's scheduled shuttle flights during 2009,including a planned May mission to workon the Hubble Space Telescope.

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