Space Shuttle Discovery Lands a New Mission

Space Shuttle Discovery, mounted atop a NASA 747 Shuttle Carrier Aircraft (SCA), lands at Washington Dulles International Airport on Tuesday, April 17, in Sterling, Va.

Discovery, the first orbiter retired from NASA's shuttle fleet, completed 39 missions, spent 365 days in space, orbited the Earth 5,830 times, and traveled 148,221,675 miles.

NASA transferred space shuttle Discovery to the Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum during a ceremony Thursday, April 19, at the Stephen F. Udvar-Hazy Center in Chantilly, Va. There, it will begin its new mission to commemorate past achievements in space and to educate and inspire future generations of explorers.

Photo Credit: NASA/Sean Smith