The Shuttle Carrier Aircraft and its shuttle Atlantis lands on NASA Kennedy Space Center's Shuttle Landing Facility runway 15.

After a two-day trip from California, the Shuttle Carrier Aircraft, or SCA, and its piggyback passenger space shuttle Atlantis lands on NASA Kennedy Space Center's Shuttle Landing Facility runway 15. The SCA is a modified Boeing 747 jetliner. Visible on Atlantis is the tail cone, which protects the aft engine area and provides a more efficient aeronautical dimension during flight. Atlantis returned from California atop the SCA after its May 24 landing at Edwards Air Force Base, concluding mission STS-125. The ferry flight from Edwards Air Force Base began June 1. Touchdown at Kennedy was at 6:53 p.m. EDT. Photo credit: NASA/Jack Pfaller