Earlier this week, NASA announced that its fleet of soon-to-be retired space shuttles would touch down at major tourist destinations across the country.

The Discovery, which flew its final mission in March, will soon head to the Smithsonian Air and Space Museum in Washington D.C. where it will be on permanent display at the Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center.

After completing its final voyage this month, The Endeavour will head to its new home at the California Science Center in Los Angeles.

The Atlantis, meanwhile, will remain in familiar territory at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida when it is retired later this year.

In all, twenty-one institutions across the country placed bids for the retired shuttles. Those who were not lucky enough to land one of the spacecraft could still receive other important shuttle memorabilia including full-size replicas used for training exercises.    

Source: AOL Travel