The Brief

The California Science Center started moving a large external space shuttle tank into the Endeavour’s permanent “Go For Stack” position Wednesday morning.

The 65,000-pound bright orange tank, known as ET-94, will be slowly and steadily transported through Exposition Park to the construction site for the Endeavour’s new home — the soon-to-be Samuel Oschin Air and Space Center.

About ET-94

Jeff Rudolph, the president and CEO of the California Science Center, told LAist this is the last flight-ready external tank left in the world.

ET-94 worked like your car’s gas tank, but for the space shuttle orbiter that's about 30 times heavier.

It carried all the propellants, such as liquid oxygen and liquid hydrogen, that flowed into the main engines to help push the space shuttle into orbit, according to the California Science Center.

The tank also worked as a structural support for the entire stack and is the only piece that was not reusable.

Each time a shuttle was sent out into space on a mission, its empty external tank would detach about 70 miles above the surface of the Earth. It would then fall back toward the ground on a planned path over the Pacific Ocean or the Indian Ocean, almost completely disintegrating on its way through the atmosphere.

Three types of tanks were used for the Space Shuttle Program: standard-weight tanks, lightweight tanks, and super lightweight tanks. They all look the same on the outside, but their internal construction and materials vary.

Larry Clark is a retired space shuttle engineer who worked on all 135 missions at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

He told LAist this tank is “very special” because it was built to fly to the International Space Station on the Columbia space shuttle, but it didn’t end up being used because those missions started requiring the newer super lightweight tanks. 

However, Columbia ended up being destroyed in 2003 on its return to Earth for its 28th and final flight. ET-94’s sister tank, ET-93, was involved with that mission.

Seven astronauts were killed, and ET-94 was studied extensively to try and figure out if it contributed to the disaster in any way, according to the California Science Center.

Many pieces ended up being removed from the tank, and the museum has had specialists doing restoration work so the tank will be ready for display at the Samuel Oschin Air and Space Center once construction is complete.

For example, most of the tank had been covered with a 1-inch thick layer of spray-on foam to protect it from the extreme heat of launch, but a lot of that foam was removed after the Columbia disaster.

California Science Center mold makers have been using silicone impressions to cast new pieces of foam that have been added to the areas that have a lot missing. Restoration specialists have also been painstakingly hand-sculpting the new pieces so they match the texture of the rest of ET-94.

Alyson Goodall, the chief advancement officer for the California Science Center, told LAist they weren’t sure if they’d be able to get this tank because NASA had other plans for the part. 

ET-94 did eventually make it to Exposition Park in 2017. Goodall said it made the journey by barge through the Panama Canal from a NASA facility in Louisiana.

California Science Center crews spraying foam on the external tank so it'll be ready for public display once construction is complete.

(

The California Science Center

)

What’s next

Now that ET-94 is put in place, the California Science Center will lift the enormous tank vertically with an even bigger crane late Thursday night.

Clark noted it’s going to be a slow and steady process because it fits directly between both of the solid rocket boosters. 

“It’s like choreographing and performing a difficult ballet,” he said. “Body position is just like the crane position.”

It's expected to take several hours into early Friday morning, weather, and wind permitting. Goodall said the safety of the people and the artifacts involved is their top priority, and just like a space shuttle launch, the lift could get scrubbed.

The 154-foot-tall tank is the largest piece of the space shuttle stack. Once this major milestone is complete and the external tank is set-up in the construction zone, crews will turn their focus towards the Endeavour.

The last piece of the “Go For Stack” puzzle will be moving the roughly 176,000 pound orbiter from its temporary home at the Samuel Oschin Pavilion, where it’s been on public display for more than a decade.

Toward the end of January, crews will carefully move the Endeavour east through the California Science Center’s property. The orbiter will then be lifted hundreds of feet into the air and installed with the rest of the stack.

Once complete, the Endeavour will be in its 20-story vertical “ready-to-launch” position in what will be the world’s only authentic space shuttle stack.

Lynda Oschin is chairperson of the Mr. and Mrs. Samuel Oschin Family Foundation. She told LAist it's a dream come true to watch these milestones for the space shuttle stack that will be housed in a building named after her late husband, Samuel Oschin. 

“It’s all about the things that my husband loved,” she said. “It’s inside that shuttle, everything that he loved and thought about and dreamed about.”

Oschin credits Clark and the Kennedy Space Center team for making the “Go For Stack” dream a reality. She said she wouldn’t have done it without them, and she means it.

In her contract with the California Science Center, Oschin said she included a stipulation that this specific team had to do the work, or else she wouldn’t be a part of it. She said it was very important for her that they would be able to bring their decades of knowledge, expertise, and passion to this project.

However, you’ll have to wait a while to see it again. The California Science Center still needs to finish building the rest of the Samuel Oschin Air and Space Center, which is expected to take at least another two years or so.

“Everyone from the foam restorers, to the engineers that figure out how to put the stack together, to the people operating the crane — everyone is committed to this absolutely one of a kind project,” Goodall said. “It will be a worldwide attraction right here in South L.A.” 

The California Science Center will livestream the tank's lift with commentary here from 10 p.m. on Thursday until the lift is complete.

Republican Sonja Shaw conceded the race for California Superintendent of Public Instruction to Democrat Richard Barrera late Wednesday evening.

“Last night voters made their choice. I would be lying if I said my heart wasn’t heavy,” Shaw said in a statement shared on social media. “As a mother and a protector of children, I feel deeply saddened for the kids. They are the ones who deserve so much better.”

In her social media post, which included a photo of Shaw locking hands with her husband and two daughters, Shaw said her kids had motivated her to run for state superintendent. Shaw won election to the Chino Valley Unified school board in 2022, fueled by support from conservative parents.

“The problem is that for decades, the same people have had their hands on our education system while our children have continued to fall behind,” Shaw said. “I believe we had an opportunity to change that.”

The office of California superintendent of public instruction is nonpartisan, with no party affiliation listed on the ballot. In past races, it was not unusual for two Democrats to advance to the November election. But this year, endorsements, campaign funding and campaigning broke largely along partisan lines.

Shaw, a Republican and board president of Chino Valley Unified, emerged as the top vote getter in a crowded June primary that featured several Democratic state lawmakers. But she contended in her statement that her race didn’t have the “money or machinery” that her opponent did in the November election.

Shaw trailed Barrera by nearly 15 percentage points, according to the latest election results Thursday morning. Shaw’s campaign raised about $595,000 compared to Barrera’s $812,000. However, the California Teachers Association, the state’s largest teachers union and a heavy spender in state superintendent races, also spent $8.4 million to support Barrera, the board president of San Diego Unified.

That pales in comparison to the combined $50 million raised in the 2018 state superintendent race Tony Thurmond won against Marshall Tuck in 2018. The 2026 state superintendent race had the distinction of featuring two local school board members.

Shaw said she’s not sure what her next steps will be.

“I don’t know exactly what God has next, but I know He isn’t finished,” she said.

Shaw will not be returning to the Chino Valley Unified school board where she began her political career. Her husband, Chris Shaw, ran for her open seat and is trailing his challenger by 11 points, according to the San Bernardino County Register of Voters.

This story was originally published by EdSource.

The Wallis Annenberg Wildlife Crossing over the 101 Freeway in Agoura Hills is set to officially open next month, but that hasn’t stopped some wildlife from already using it.

Cameras captured coyote footage twice — once last week and again on Thursday morning — making the mammal the first large animal species seen using the crossing.

“This is amazing — obviously, the wildlife are not waiting for our opening date,” said Beth Pratt, president of the Wildlife Crossing Fund. “The animals are already blessing this crossing and saying, ‘Yep, you got it right.’”

Construction of the expansive bridge began in 2022, aimed at giving wildlife safe passage between the Santa Monica Mountains and Simi Hills after years of research.

Pratt said it’s unclear whether the images of the coyote are of the same animal. The coyote in the most recent image from Thursday morning can be seen on the 101 structure holding a bone or a stick in its mouth.

“The coyote is validating that we got this designed right, and I think that there's something also about a coyote being first — kind of the L.A. mascot next to P-22,” Pratt said.

The National Park Service is installing more cameras along the crossing to document and study how animals use it. While images will be made publicly available, there will not be a livestream.

“We can't, for security reasons, because this is L.A., and if there's a mountain lion going across, somebody's gonna go try to pet it,” Pratt said.

Topline:

• How we got here: Roy held on to a strong lead over McKinney ever since polls closed and is currently ahead by more than twice as many votes. Roy will be a fresh face to the role after the incumbent city attorney, Hydee Feldstein Soto, was ousted in the June primary in a rare defeat of an elected city official. 

• What the candidates had to say: 
  
  • Roy said on social media Wednesday that election night was “a really good night for the people who believe that we should take care of one another, that we can stand up for our rights — even in what feels like an increasingly lawless world — and that we will achieve justice when we fight for it.”
  • McKinney posted on social media Thursday that he’s back in his old office at the Hall of Justice. “The run for City Attorney was an incredible journey, and I’m truly grateful for everyone who believed in me, supported me, and stood by my side,” McKinney wrote. "While I’m disappointed things didn’t turn out the way we hoped, I wouldn’t trade the experience for anything." He acknowledged Roy in a social media video earlier this week, describing her as a “hard worker” who put together a strong coalition of support. McKinney added that he would be “rooting for her.”
  • Neither campaign immediately responded to LAist’s requests for additional comment.
• What’s at stake: The city attorney runs an office of more than 550 lawyers representing L.A. in all legal matters, including filing lawsuits and defending against them. Roy, backed by powerful progressives like U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders, has vowed to take on the Trump administration in court.
• Go deeper: Read more about the city attorney's role and what's on the table for Roy's first term.

Construction of the green metal fence around MacArthur Park will begin Monday, Nov. 16, with work scheduled to continue through fall 2027.

The city announced the start date Nov. 4, saying crews will install an 8-foot fence around the park’s perimeter. Nearby residents and businesses can expect some noise, dust and vibration during construction, although the city said mitigation measures will be in place.

Crews will work Monday through Friday from 7 a.m. to 3:30 p.m., and the park will remain open while crews are working. 

The fence is the city’s latest attempt to tackle longstanding problems at MacArthur Park, including drug use, homelessness and crime.

The city first approved plans for the fence in October 2025, and the proposal has since drawn both support and criticism from residents and community groups.

Some say they hope the fence will make the park safer, while others question whether it will actually improve conditions there. Police and city officials say the fence will give them more control over the space and make it easier to enforce the law.

Ana Luz Vazquez, a street vendor near MacArthur Park, said her main concern about the fence is what will happen to the unhoused people who stay in the park throughout the day and whether the city plans to address that issue directly.

She is also concerned that construction during the day could affect her ability to work because of traffic, less parking availability and loud noise.

Vazquez said she would prefer construction to take place at night so it would have less of an impact on street vendors.

“If they’re working in the day then how are we supposed to come here and who is going to help us survive,” Vazquez said.

Construction will happen in two phases

Phase 1

• Alvarado St. from W. 6th St. to Wilshire Blvd.
• S. Park View St. from Wilshire Blvd. to W. 6th St.
• Wilshire Blvd. from Alvarado St. to S. Park View St.

Phase 2

• Alvarado St. from Wilshire Blvd. to W. 7th St.
• S. Park View St. from W. 7th St. to Wilshire Blvd.
• Wilshire Blvd. from S. Park View St. to Alvarado St.
• W. 7th St. from Alvarado St. to S. Park View St.

Existing trees will be protected and monitored during the work, according to the Department of Recreation and Parks. Traffic control measures will be in place during work hours, and crews will post temporary “No Parking” signs near active work areas in advance.

Services at the park are expected to remain the same throughout construction. The schedule could change because of weather or other unforeseen circumstances, according to the city.

The city has allocated $2.3 million for the project, but officials have not said whether that will cover the full cost.

After the fence is installed, the city plans a second phase focused on adding decorative elements. Officials have said residents will have an opportunity to provide input on the design.

Residents with questions or concerns about the project can contact Recreation and Parks at RAP.PublicInfo@lacity.org or 213-202-2700.

The post MacArthur Park fence construction to begin Nov. 16 appeared first on LA Local.