HOUSTON — The space shuttle Endeavour took off atop a modified transport plane from a Houston airport Thursday, beginning its journey to retirement in California, where it will be put on permanent display in a museum.

Along the way, the Endeavor will pass low over several cities and places, including Tucson, Ariz., the home of the last person to fly a shuttle, retired astronaut Mark Kelly, and his wife, former Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords.

The couple recently moved back to Tucson from Houston, where Giffords was recovering from serious injuries she suffered in a 2011 attack in which a gunman killed six people and wounded Giffords and 12 others.