Given the media frenzy surrounding the recent shuttle mission and landing yesterday morning at Edwards Air Force Base in California, check out these cool NASA photos of the SCA (shuttle carrier aircraft) – i.e. an empty 747 with additional rear stabilizers to minimize turbulence caused by the brick shuttle on top.
Check out a decent Slate.com explainer on these flights. Some important details:
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•Number of 747s NASA owns: 2
•Codenames: NASA 905, NASA 911
•How the shuttle-747 combination comes together: the shuttle mate-demate device, or MDD (sounds kinky)
•Cost of a cross-country trip: $230,000
•Distance the unwieldy contraption can fly without refueling: 1,000 nautical miles
•Number of previous trips: 51, including a trip to the Paris Air Show
•What they do most of the time: sit at Edwards, waiting for wayward shuttles