Endeavour makes its final move

Los Angeles (CNN) — Calling Houston. Space shuttle Endeavour is navigating La La Land.

The retired shuttle is being wheeled through Southern California’s infamous roads and highways to its final resting place: the California Science Center.

The slow trek, which started early Friday from Los Angeles International Airport, will take about two days.

Officials for months planned the logistics of the urban splashdown: 12 miles of twists and turns through the Los Angeles and Inglewood street network. The removal of utility lines and streetlights and the controversial felling of some trees have made the journey possible.

Authorities hope Endeavour gets to the center, as one police commander said, “in one piece,” and they want to make sure there’s no damage along the way.

Science Center President and CEO Jeffrey Rudolph told reporters at a news conference that the move is “incredibly complex.”

“We’re off to a great start,” he said. “Everything is going to plan.”

The craft is making stops along the route, and officials encourage citizens to come out to take a look. But a top concern is civilian safety, and officials hope people trying to sneak a peek of the shuttle respect others’ private property.

Once at the science museum, the shuttle, which had its first launch in 1992, will be on display forever.

“Endeavour’s new mission is to inspire people of all ages,” Rudolph said, “to inspire the next generation of scientists, explorers and engineers.”

CNN iReporter Wes Smith and other space enthusiasts get a close-up view of the space shuttle Endeavour early Friday, October 12, as it makes its final journey from Los Angeles International Airport to the California Science Center. Smith says he saw the shuttle about 5 a.m. PT after waiting in a Los Angeles parking lot across from Endeavour’s overnight holding area.

Computer-controlled transporters help move Endeavour across Los Angeles International Airport early Friday. In a trek of about two days, the shuttle will negotiate 12 miles of Southern California’s roads and highways for its final resting place at the Los Angeles science museum, NASA officials say.

Spectators take pictures of the shuttle Friday at the Los Angeles airport. Once it reaches the science museum, the shuttle will be on display for posterity. It had its first launch in 1992.

Bystanders watch as Endeavour moves out of the Los Angeles airport and onto a public street.

Members of the crowd reach over a fence for a glimpse of the shuttle. Endeavour, along with Discovery, Enterprise and Atlantis, became a museum piece after NASA ended its 30-year shuttle program last year. All four shuttles have been permanently retired from service.

Firefighters and other spectators document the move early Friday.

Fan Vivian Robinson rides her bicycle covered in shuttle memorabilia, American flags and an alien doll outside the Los Angeles airport as she waits to see Endeavour.

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Photos: Space shuttle Endeavour’s last trip

Endeavour, along with Discovery, Enterprise and Atlantis, became a museum piece after NASA ended its 30-year shuttle program in July 2011. All four shuttles have been permanently retired from service.

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Named for the first ship commanded by British explorer James Cook, Endeavour rolled out of an assembly plant in Palmdale, California, in 1991 at a cost of $1.7 billion. It was the baby of the shuttle fleet, built as a replacement for Challenger, which had exploded shortly after its 10th launch.

Over the next 20 years, Endeavour flew some of the highest-profile shuttle missions, covering nearly 123 million miles in 25 flights. It flew a Spacelab mission and numerous International Space Station assembly missions and rendezvoused with Russia’s Mir Space Station.

The science museum is already trumpeting the arrival of the shuttle, saying on its website that it is building a new addition to its facility and plans to begin displaying Endeavor on October 30.

CNN’s Lateef Mungin and Joe Sterling contributed to this report

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Endeavour makes its final move