The U.S. space shuttle Endeavour deploys
a parachute after touching down at Edwards Air Force Base in California
November 30, 2008. Endeavour landed safely in California Sunday afternoon
after a 16-day trip, as unfavorable weather conditions in Florida
prevented the shuttle from landing in its home base in Cape
Canaveral. (Xinhua/Reuters Photo) Photo Gallery>>>
LOS ANGELES, Nov. 30 (Xinhua) -- U.S. space shuttle
Endeavour landed safely in California Sunday afternoon after a 16-day trip, as
unfavorable weather conditions in Florida prevented the shuttle from landing in
its home base in Cape Canaveral.
Residents across Southern California heard two sonic
booms around 1:20 p.m. local time (2120 GMT), when Endeavour broke the sound
barrier under the sunny sky as it was gliding into local airspace en route to
Edwards Air Force Base, more than 150 kilometers north of Los Angeles.
At least one explosion call was received by the Los
Angeles Fire Department, when people reacted to the twin sonic booms created by
the space shuttle as it flew over the city.
Fire crews were sent to an apartment building near
Studio City north of downtown Los Angeles and checked out the apartment complex,
but concluded that residents had heard the shuttle, according to the Los Angeles
Fire Department.
NASA announced earlier in the day that it had to
reroute the space shuttle's landing in California after canceling two landing
attempts in Florida's Kennedy Space Center due to the high winds there. It will
cost the space agency over 1 million U.S. dollars to transport the shuttle back
to Florida by loading it atop a special Boeing 747.
Endeavour was the first space shuttle to land this
year in Edwards Air Force Base, which serves as NASA's backup landing site for
its space program.
The space shuttle and its 7-member crew were
returning from a successful trip which had helped upgrade the International
Space Station for housing bigger crews. Four spacewalks were also conducted
during the trip to repair the ISS's power system.
Endeavour's mission was the last by a U.S. space shuttle this year. The next NASA shuttle flight is scheduled for February to install the space station's last solar wing panel.
