Space shuttle Endeavour makes its way to the Southland

The space shuttle Endeavour has departed on its final flight, leaving Edwards Air Force Base for its farewell tour over California.

Massive crowds had already amassed in Palmdale, where the shuttle was assembled, and at the Griffith Observatory to see the flyover, which is expected sometime in the next couple of hours.

The shuttle, piggybacking on a modified NASA 747 jet, is scheduled to fly over the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in La Canada Flintridge and the observatory in Griffith Park on its way to other Southland landmarks Friday.

After it lands at LAX, the shuttle will be housed at a United Airlines hangar until Oct. 12, when it will begin a two-day celebratory trek through the city’s streets to the museum’s new Samuel Oschin display pavilion, according to the L.A. Times.

FULL COVERAGE: Endeavour: Final Journey

Don’t forget to tweet your photos and observations to City Editor Jason Wells: @jasonbretwells and @lanow with the hashtag #SpotTheShuttle or #Endeavour, and include where you are.

-- Jason Wells, Times Community News

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