Towed from the Shuttle Landing Facility Atlantis heads for the Orbiter Processing Facility far right.

Towed from the Shuttle Landing Facility, Atlantis heads for the Orbiter Processing Facility (far right), accompanied by a KSC/CCAFS rescue vehicle. In view is the tail cone that orbiters use when being carried piggyback on ferry flights atop a Shuttle Carrier Aircraft. The tail cone protects the aft engine area and provides a more efficient aeronautical dimension during flight. Atlantis returned from California atop a Shuttle Carrier Aircraft after its Feb. 19 landing at Edwards Air Force Base, concluding mission STS-98. The ferry flight began March 1; unfavorable weather conditions kept it on the ground at Altus AFB, Okla., until it could return to Florida. In the Orbiter Processing Facility, Atlantis will be prepared for mission STS-104, the 10th construction flight to the International Space Station, scheduled to launch June 8