14 DAY TRIAL // The first space shuttle prototype, Enterprise, is currently undergoing a 3-day journey, from the John F. Kennedy (JFK) International Airport to the Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum, in Manhattan. The trip began yesterday, June 3, when the vehicle was loaded on a large barge.
It is scheduled to arrive at the Intrepid on Tuesday, June 5, on account of a layover it makes in Bayonne, New Jersey, on its way up the river. Yesterday's leg of the journey saw the vehicle, which never actually flew to space, sail past Coney Island, Brooklyn.
Enterprise was delivered to JFK International Airport in late April, aboard the NASA 905 Shuttle Carrier Aircraft (SCA), the only airplane capable of ferrying shuttles across the country. Landing the test shuttle closer to its intended destination was not possible.
It's interesting to note that the vehicle's aquatic adventures put in accord with two of three themes at Intrepid. All that is missing is for Enterprise to make a journey into space, analysts comment.
The shuttle never carried out an actual mission to Earth's orbit. It was primarily used to test approaches and landings, in a series of drop tests conducted in the late 1970s. After that time, it was placed on display at the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum, in Washington, DC.
It remained there until the shuttle Discovery was brought in to replace it. At the end of 2011, NASA decided to send Enterprise to the Intrepid, Discovery to the Smithsonian, Endeavour to the California Science Center, in Los Angeles, and Atlantis to the Kennedy Space Center, in Florida, Space reports.
In order to transport Enterprise across the Hudson River, engineers decided to use an open-air flat-bed barge. A massive crane was used to place the 26-ton (57,000-pound) vehicle onto the ship on Saturday. The shuttle's trip could be observed from Queens, Staten Island and Brooklyn.
Tomorrow, it will pass by the Statue of Liberty, at around 9:50 am EDT and the World Trade Center at about 10:40 am EDT (1350 GMT and 1440 GMT, respectively), providing spectators with a unique photo opportunity.
After arriving at the Intrepid, the shuttle will be hoisted onto the aircraft carrier's flight decks, where a steel and fabric shelter featuring controlled climate is being built to house it. The pavilion will open to the general public on July 19, museum officials announced.