California Science Center

Space shuttle Endeavour's final 12-mile journey through the streets of South Los Angeles already promises to be a meticulously planned spectacle: a two-day parade, an overnight slumber party in Inglewood and enough hoopla to create a giant traffic mess. But for some residents in South L.A., the excitement of the shuttle rumbling through their neighborhoods quickly faded when they learned that 400 trees will be chopped down to make room for the behemoth. The California Science Center - Endeavour's final home - has agreed to replant twice as many trees along the route from the shuttle's docking place at Los Angeles International Airport to Exposition Park.

A NASA advance team took to the skies above Los Angeles on Saturday in preparation for next month's scheduled arrival of the space shuttle Endeavour. Two NASA jets, a T-38 trainer and an F-18 Hornet, circled low across the Southland for several hours, scouting possible routes - and backdrops - for a scenic flyover by Endeavor before its Sept. 20 touchdown in Los Angeles, officials said. NASA awarded the retired orbiter last year to the California Science Center in Exposition Park, where it will be put on permanent display.

In its 25 missions spanning nearly two decades, the space shuttle Endeavour circled the Earth more than 4,600 times, spending a total of 299 days in space. It carried the crews that assembled the first U.S. component of the International Space Station, and would go on to dock at the station a dozen times. By the time Endeavour completed its last mission a year ago, the shuttle had logged nearly 123 million miles beyond Earth. But the shuttle's final journey - a measly 12 miles - might just be its most memorable.

The California Science Center has received what officials describe as an "extraordinary" financial contribution to the new Air and Space Center that will house the space shuttle Endeavour. The gift, to be announced at a news conference Thursday, comes from a foundation chaired by Lynda Oschin, wife of the late Los Angeles businessman and philanthropist Samuel Oschin, whose name already graces the Griffith Observatory planetarium and the Cedars-Sinai Medical Center cancer institute stemming from charitable contributions there.

The California Science Center will soon begin construction of an aircraft hangar for the space shuttle Endeavour, the museum's president said. The hangar will be built northwest of the state-run museum, near downtown Los Angeles, Jeffrey N. Rudolph, president of the science center, said. Construction is scheduled to begin in a couple of weeks. The temporary climate-controlled home will allow the museum to make Endeavour available for public viewing within weeks of its arrival in the fall.

The California Science Center has won a new companion exhibit to the space shuttle Endeavour: the shuttle's external tank and twin solid rocket boosters. The tank –- the orange cylindrical structure affixed to the shuttle's belly at launch –- and twin solid rocket boosters had been displayed at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida. When the shuttle exhibit is assembled next year, it will be a challenge to ship the external tank from Florida. It is typically moved by barge, meaning it might have to be taken through the Panama Canal, said Science Center President Jeffrey N. Rudolph.

Trees, traffic lights and power lines will have to come down -- how else could you possibly move 180,000 pounds of metal along an L.A. street, especially when it measures 122 feet long and has a wingspan of 78 feet? That will be the next mission of the California Science Center, the state museum that on Tuesday was officially granted ownership of the retired space shuttle Endeavour. The ship won't arrive until the latter half of 2012, fortunately, because finding a clear path for it will be a gargantuan task.

MUSIC Glee Live! In Concert! The TV phenomenon that has given choir geeks a good name seems to know no bounds, spawning multiple albums and a live show that's making another successful round on tour. The exuberantly named concert stars 13 members of the television cast, including Lea Michele, Cory Monteith, Amber Riley, Chris Colfer and Kevin McHale. Staples Center, 1111 S. Figueroa St., L.A. 3 and 8 p.m. $49.50-$89.50. http://www.gleetour.com. MOVIES 'Arabia 3D' The first major production filmed entirely in Saudi Arabia explores the extraordinary 2,000-year history of Arabia through the eyes of three contemporary citizens.

The first major production filmed entirely in Saudi Arabia, "Arabia 3D" explores the extraordinary 2,000-year history of Arabia through the eyes of three contemporary citizens. The film features a mix of scenes from modern-day Arabian life and historical re-creations and is narrated by Academy Award-winning actress Helen Mirren. California Science Center, 700 Exposition Park Drive. Fri.-June 30. 10:30 a.m. and 12:30, 2:30 and 4:30 p.m. $8.25. http://www.californiasciencecenter.org