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NASA's 'Super Guppy' Plane Lands At Buckley

AURORA, Colo. (CBS4) - It's not an invasion. You did actually see a strange-looking plane flying over Aurora on Tuesday.

NASA's "Super Guppy" landed at Buckley Air Force Base a little after 3:00 p.m. on Tuesday. The crew delivered hardware from NASA's Space Launch System at Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama to Lockheed Martin in Lakewood.

The "Super Guppy" oversize cargo transport plane is used to transport oversized cargo to different locations. It's affectionately called the "Super Guppy" because of its fish-like appearance.

super guppy 2 (from @nasa_sls)
(credit: NASA/Twitter)

According to NASA's website, the plane has a hinged nose that opens 110 degrees to allow for full frontal cargo loading. A system of rails is used with pallets or other fixtures for specific cargo. Rollers move the cargo, and automatical hydraulic pins lock cargo into place.

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