Shuttle Discovery moved from its processing hangar, Orbiter Processing Facility-1 (OPF-1) and parked while Atlantis was moved out of the Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB) to take Discovery's place in OPF-1. The two shuttles passed each other while en route to their new locations.
The move was scheduled to be the final time that Discovery will roll out of an OPF. Discovery will remain temporarily in the VAB until mid-April. Discovery is set to be transported atop a modified 747 jet to Dulles International Airport in Virginia on April 17. It then will be moved on April 19 to the Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum Udvar-Hazy Center near Dulles for permanent public display.
In OPF-1, Atlantis will undergo preparations for public display at the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex and is scheduled to roll over to the complex in November. The visitor complex plans to open its display of Atlantis in July 2013.