Discovery space shuttle takes final flight

The space shuttle Discovery made its final flight today piggybacked atop a modified Boeing 747 jet. It was en route from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida to Washington, D.C.

Many in Washington scanning the sky caught glimpse of the rare sight, including those on the National Mall, as the jet looped around the Capital during its final voyage. The retired shuttle will get a new home on display at the Smithsonian Institution’s National Air and Space Museum.

Discovery, one of NASA’s three remaining space shuttles, first flew in August 1984 and made its final spaceflight in March 2011.

The United States stopped its space shuttle program last year after finishing construction on the International Space Station.