Just like every time a space shuttle lands at Edwards Air Force Base, the Los Angeles area is rocked by twin sonic booms. And every time, you can perk your ears up and listen to neighbors outside ask if it was an earthquake or big crash on the street. Luckily, the Los Angeles Fire Department, who faithfully warned the public through Twitter, reports no 911 calls, but someone did flag out an LAFD unit on the street to investigate. A search for the word "explosion" on Twitter still reveals many people who did not know what was going on, prompting the LAFDtalk account to sigh: "It's clear not everyone follows @LAFD." If you're a Twitter user, it's a really good idea to follow them (here's a good example illustrating why). Many others tweeted 9/11 references, which echoed this morning's alarming and freaky Coast Guard drill in Washington DC. "Hey @NASA, how about a lot more warning before sending the Shuttle and it's sonic boom over a large metropolitan area on Sept 11th?" huffed Dana Brunetti. @NASA unfortunately didn't tweet a warning and that's why we follow @LAFD. more ›

A training mission north of Edwards Air Force base has left one plane downed and the two crew members in unknown condition. The T-38 Talon went down nine miles north of the base around 1:15 p.m. In March, an F-22a fighter jet crashed killing the test pilot and in December, an F/A-18 crashed into a San Diego neighborhood, killing four members of a family. more ›

661 277 3517 dennis shoffner chief of civic outreach or airport spokespman--> more ›

10 days after bad weather in Florida forced Space Shuttle Endeavour to land at Edwards Air Force Base northeast of Los Angeles, it took off this morning atop a modified 747 carrier on its first leg back to Kennedy Space Center. The cross-country trip costs $1.8 million. more ›

As mentioned yesterday, there was a possibility that Space Shuttle Endeavour would land at Edwards Air Force Base, which is about 60 miles northeast of Los Angeles (as a bird flies), instead of Florida due to bad weather. The Los Angeles Fire Department warns that you should anticipate twin 'sonic booms' between at 1:20-1:25 p.m. today. And Sciencedude Gary Robbins reports that "Edwards officials said this morning that Endeavour will enter the West Coast above the Oxnard area, or much further south than the earlier plan to have the shuttle glide in over greater Santa Barbara." To see the flight landing path, click here. more ›