August 22, 2005—After successfully navigating 5.8 million miles (9.3 million kilometers) in orbit, the space shuttle Discovery hitched a ride across the country for the last leg of its journey home.

In this photo taken August 19, Discovery sits bolted on top of a modified Boeing 747 aircraft during its eastbound flight. NASA's jumbo jet carried the shuttle from Edwards Air Force Base in California to Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The piggybacked craft made pit stops in Oklahoma and Louisiana before arriving home yesterday morning.

Discovery was initially set to touch down at Kennedy two weeks ago following its 14-day test mission. But storms over Florida forced NASA to divert the landing to the California air base. Moving the shuttle across country cost NASA an extra million dollars (U.S.).

—Victoria Gilman

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