NASA Operations and Equipment

Images showing NASA facility activities, including equipment handling, spacecraft assembly, and preparations for missions.

The crew and service module for Artemis I continue preparations for mating inside the Operations and Checkout (O&C) Building High Bay at Kennedy Space Center on March 21, 2019. Alongside, the pressure vessel for Artemis II is undergoing install of its secondary structure.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - In the Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility, or PHSF, at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, workers remove the Super Lightweight Interchangeable Carrier, or SLIC, from the payload canister which transported the Hubble Space Telescope equipment back to the clean room from Launch Pad 39A. The payload for Hubble servicing mission 4 comprises four carriers holding various equipment for the mission. In the PHSF, the carriers will be stored until a new target launch date in 2009 can be set for Atlantis STS-125 mission. Atlantis October target launch date was delayed after a device on board Hubble, used in the storage and transmission of science data to Earth, shut down on Sept. 27. Replacing the broken device will be added to Atlantis servicing mission to the telescope.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - At Astrotech Space Operations in Titusville, Fla., STS-121 Mission Specialist Lisa Nowak looks at an orbital replacement unit sitting on the Integrated Cargo Carrier. She and other crew members are at KSC to take part in Crew Equipment Interface Test activities, which provide hands-on experience with equipment they will use on-orbit. STS-121, the second Return to Flight mission, is targeted for launch in a lighted planning window of Sept. 9 to Sept. 25.

The crew and service module for Artemis I continue preparations for mating inside the Operations and Checkout (O&C) Building High Bay at Kennedy Space Center on March 21, 2019. Alongside, the pressure vessel for Artemis II is undergoing install of its secondary structure.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- Inside a high bay in the Space Station Processing Facility (SSPF), the Multi-Purpose Logistics Module (MPLM) called Raffaello is lifted out of its canister by an overhead crane. It will be moved to a workstand to undergo testing. Raffaello joins the first Italian-built MPLM, Leonardo, in the SSPF. One of Italy's major contributions to the ISS program, the MPLM is a reusable logistics carrier and the primary delivery system used to resupply and return station cargo requiring a pressurized environment. Weighing nearly 4.5 tons, the Raffaello measures 21 feet long and 15 feet in diameter. Raffaello is scheduled to be launched on mission STS-100 July 27, 2000

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- In the Space Station Processing Facility at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, the Permanent Multipurpose Module, or PMM, is being transferred by overhead crane towards a payload canister.The canister will then be transported to Launch Pad 39A and installed into space shuttle Discovery's payload bay. Discovery and its STS-133 crew will deliver the PMM, packed with supplies and critical spare parts, as well as Robonaut 2, the dexterous humanoid astronaut helper, to the International Space Station. Launch is targeted for 4:40 p.m. EDT, Nov. 1.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - Inside the Operations and Checkout Building high bay at NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida, technicians monitor the progress as a crane begins to lift the spacecraft adapter cone for the Orion vehicle from the static load test tool and transfer it to a work stand. Orion is the exploration spacecraft designed to carry astronauts to destinations not yet explored by humans, including an asteroid and Mars. It will have emergency abort capability, sustain the crew during space travel and provide safe re-entry from deep space return velocities. The first unpiloted test flight of the Orion is scheduled to launch in 2014 atop a Delta IV rocket and in 2017 on NASAs Space Launch System rocket.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- Inside the Space Station Processing Facility, technicians use an overhead crane to lower the P1 Truss Segment into the payload canister. The P1 truss is the primary payload for Mission STS-113. It is the first port truss segment which will be attached to the Stations central truss segment, S0. Once delivered, the P1 truss will remain stowed until flight 12A.1. The mission will also deliver the Expedition 6 crew to the Station and return Expedition 5 to Earth. Space Shuttle Endeavour is scheduled to launch no earlier than Nov. 10 on the 11-day mission.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - In NASA's Space Station Processing Facility, the Integrated Cargo Carrier (ICC) is seen inside the payload canister. The ICC is part of the payload on mission STS-121 to the International Space Station. The carrier holds the mobile transporter reel assembly that the astronauts will replace on the station and a spare pump module. The carrier and its cargo will be placed in Space Shuttle Discovery's payload bay at the pad. Discovery is scheduled to launch on mission STS-121 from Launch Pad 39B in a window that opens July 1 and extends to July 19.

STS-132 CREW CEIT IN SSPF & SPACEHAB

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- In the high bay of the Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility (PHSF) at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, the multi-mission radioisotope thermoelectric generator (MMRTG) for NASA's Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) mission is installed onto the aft of the Curiosity rover for a fit check. In view are the MMRTG's cooling fins which function like the radiator on a car and will reflect any excess heat generated by the MMRTG to prevent interference with the rover's electronics. Next, the MMRTG will be removed and later installed on the rover for launch at the pad.The MMRTG will generate the power needed for the mission from the natural decay of plutonium-238, a non-weapons-grade form of the radioisotope. Heat given off by this natural decay will provide constant power through the day and night during all seasons. Curiosity, MSL's car-sized rover, has 10 science instruments designed to search for signs of life, including methane, and help determine if the gas is fro

At Astrotech, Titusville, Fla., the GOES-M (Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite) satellite is tilted on a workstand so that workers can remove part of the protective cover. The GOES-M provides weather imagery and quantitative sounding data used to support weather forecasting, severe storm tracking and meteorological research. The satellite will undergo testing at Astrotech before its scheduled launch July 12 on an Atlas-IIA booster, Centaur upper stage from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - In the Space Station Processing Facility at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida technicians use an overhead crane to move the Lightweight Multi-Purpose Experiment Support Structure Carrier, or LMC, to a payload canister. The canister then will be installed into Atlantis' payload bay.Commander Chris Ferguson, Pilot Doug Hurley and Mission Specialists Sandra Magnus and Rex Walheim are targeted to lift off on July 8, taking with them the Raffaello multi-purpose logistics module packed with supplies, logistics and spare parts. The STS-135 mission also will fly a system to investigate the potential for robotically refueling existing spacecraft and return a failed ammonia pump module to help NASA better understand the failure mechanism and improve pump designs for future systems. STS-135 will be the 33rd flight of Atlantis, the 37th shuttle mission to the space station, and the 135th and final mission of NASA's Space Shuttle Program.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. --CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- In the high bay of the Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility at NASA's Kennedy Space Center, three carriers are undergoing processing for space shuttle Atlantis' STS-125 mission to service the Hubble Space Telescope. From left are the Flight Support System or FSS, the Orbital Replacement Unit Carrier or ORUC, and the Super Lightweight Interchangeable Carrier or SLIC.The Multi-Use Lightweight Equipment carrier will be delivered in early August. The carriers will be prepared for the integration of telescope science instruments, both internal and external replacement components, as well as the flight support equipment to be used by the astronauts during the Hubble servicing mission, targeted for launch Oct. 8.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - At the Astrotech payload processing facility in Titusville, Fla., workers remove covers around the mated SV1 and SV2 spacecraft before center of gravity testing, weighing and balancing. The two spacecraft are known as the Space Tracking and Surveillance System - Demonstrators, or STSS Demo, which is a space-based sensor component of a layered Ballistic Missile Defense System designed for the overall mission of detecting, tracking and discriminating ballistic missiles. STSS is capable of tracking objects after boost phase and provides trajectory information to other sensors. It will be launched by NASA for the Missile Defense Agency between 8 and 8:58 a.m. EDT Sept. 18. Approved for Public Release 09-MDA-04886 (10 SEPT 09)

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - In the Space Station Processing Facility at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, the payload transportation canister containing the International Space Station's Node 3, named Tranquility, is lowered onto a transporter for its move to Launch Pad 39A.The primary payload for space shuttle Endeavour's STS-130 mission, Tranquility is a pressurized module that will provide room for many of the space station's life support systems. Attached to one end of Tranquility is a cupola, a unique work area with six windows on its sides and one on top. The cupola resembles a circular bay window and will provide a vastly improved view of the station's exterior. The multi-directional view will allow the crew to monitor spacewalks and docking operations, as well as provide a spectacular view of Earth and other celestial objects. The module was built in Turin, Italy, by Thales Alenia Space for the European Space Agency. Launch of STS-130 is targeted for Feb. 7.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- In the Space Station Processing Facility at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, the Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer-2 (AMS) sits in its cargo element work stand, where more processing will take place. AMS is designed to operate as an external experiment on the International Space Station. It will use the unique environment of space to study the universe and its origin by searching for dark matter. AMS will fly to the station aboard space shuttle Endeavour's STS-134 mission targeted to launch Feb. 27, 2011.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - This close-up shows some of the components of the Materials Science Research Rack-1, or MSRR-1, which arrived at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida for final flight preparations. The size of a large refrigerator, MSRR-1 is 6 feet high, 3.5 feet wide and 40 inches deep and weighs about 1 ton. MSRR-1 is the payload for the STS-128 mission targeted to launch in August. The rack will be installed in the Leonardo Multi-Purpose Logistics Module for transport to the International Space Station . After arriving at the station, the rack will be housed in the U.S. Destiny laboratory. MSRR-1 will allow for study of a variety of materials including metals, ceramics, semiconductor crystals and glasses onboard the orbiting laboratory.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - An overhead crane in the Space Station Processing Facility lifts the U.S. Node 2 out of its shipping container. The node will be moved to a workstand. The second of three connecting modules on the International Space Station, the Italian-built Node 2 attaches to the end of the U.S. Lab and provides attach locations for the Japanese laboratory, European laboratory, the Centrifuge Accommodation Module and, later, Multipurpose Logistics Modules. It will provide the primary docking location for the Shuttle when a pressurized mating adapter is attached to Node 2. Installation of the module will complete the U.S. Core of the ISS. Node 2 is the designated payload for mission STS-120. No orbiter or launch date has been determined yet.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - The first set of two Ogive panels for the Orion Launch Abort System was uncrated inside the Launch Abort System Facility, or LASF, at NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida. One of the panels has been lifted by crane and technicians are preparing it for the move to a storage stand at the other end of the facility. During processing, the panels will be secured around the Orion crew module and attached to the Launch Abort System.Orion is the exploration spacecraft designed to carry astronauts to destinations not yet explored by humans, including an asteroid and Mars. It will have emergency abort capability, sustain the crew during space travel and provide safe re-entry from deep space return velocities. The first unpiloted test flight of Orion is scheduled to launch in 2014 atop a Delta IV rocket and in 2017 on NASAs Space Launch System rocket.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - In NASA Kennedy Space Centers Space Station Processing Facility, a worker lowers a storage rack taken from inside the multi-purpose logistics module Raffaello, which flew on return to flight mission STS-114. During the mission, the crews of Discovery and Expedition 11 transferred more than a ton of material from the International Space Station to be returned to Earth.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - At the Astrotech payload processing facility in Titusville, Fla., workers begin center of gravity testing, weighing and balancing on the SV1-SV2 spacecraft. The two spacecraft are known as the Space Tracking and Surveillance System - Demonstrators, or STSS Demo, which is a space-based sensor component of a layered Ballistic Missile Defense System designed for the overall mission of detecting, tracking and discriminating ballistic missiles. STSS is capable of tracking objects after boost phase and provides trajectory information to other sensors. It will be launched by NASA for the Missile Defense Agency between 8 and 8:58 a.m. EDT Sept. 18. Approved for Public Release 09-MDA-04886 (10 SEPT 09)

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - Inside the Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, engineers and technicians test deploy the twin solar arrays on the Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution, or MAVEN, spacecraft.MAVEN is being prepared for its scheduled launch in November from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Fla. atop a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket. Positioned in an orbit above the Red Planet, MAVEN will study the upper atmosphere of Mars in unprecedented detail.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- In the Space Station Processing Facility at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, an overhead crane lifts the Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer, or AMS, so it can be placed onto a work stand and processed for launch. AMS, a state-of-the-art particle physics detector, is designed to operate as an external module on the International Space Station. It will use the unique environment of space to study the universe and its origin by searching for dark matter. AMS will fly to the International Space Station aboard space shuttle Endeavour's STS-134 mission targeted to launch Feb. 26, 2011.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - On Launch Pad 39A at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, workers close one of space shuttle Atlantis' payload bay doors around the hardware for the STS-125 mission to service NASA's Hubble Space Telescope. Partially concealed from view at the bottom are the Flight Support System with the Soft Capture mechanism and Multi-Use Lightweight Equipment Carrier with the Science Instrument Command and Data Handling Unit, or SIC&DH. At center is the Orbital Replacement Unit Carrier with the Cosmic Origins Spectrograph, or COS, and an IMAX 3D camera. At top is the Super Lightweight Interchangeable Carrier with the Wide Field Camera 3. Atlantis' crew will service NASA's Hubble Space Telescope for the fifth and final time. The flight will include five spacewalks during which astronauts will refurbish and upgrade the telescope with state-of-the-art science instruments. As a result, Hubble's capabilities will be expanded and its operational lifespan extended through at lea

In the Space Station Processing Facility, Solar Array Wing-3, a component of the International Space Station, is installed in the Integrated Electronic Assembly where it will be tested. The solar array is scheduled to be launched on STS-97 in late November along with the P6 truss. The Stations electrical power system (EPS) will use eight photovoltaic solar arrays to convert sunlight to electricity. Each of the eight solar arrays will be 112 feet long by 39 feet wide. The solar arrays are mounted on a “blanket” that can be folded like an accordion for delivery. Once in orbit, astronauts will deploy the blankets to their full size. Gimbals will be used to rotate the arrays so that they will face the Sun to provide maximum power to the Space Station

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - Installation of four Ogive panels on Orion's Launch Abort System continues inside the Launch Abort System Facility at NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The panels will smooth the airflow over the conical spacecraft to limit sound and vibration, which will make for a much smoother ride for the astronauts who will ride inside Orion in the future. The work marked the final major assembly steps for the spacecraft before it is transported to Space Launch Complex 37 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in November.Orion is the exploration spacecraft designed to carry astronauts to destinations not yet explored by humans, including an asteroid and Mars. It will have emergency abort capability, sustain the crew during space travel and provide safe re-entry from deep space return velocities. The first unpiloted flight test of Orion is scheduled to launch in December 2014 atop a United Launch Alliance Delta IV Heavy rocket, and in 2018 on NASAs Space Launch System

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - In the Space Station Processing Facility, modules and equipment are being covered in plastic in preparation for the expected impact of Hurricane Frances on Saturday. KSC workers also have powered down the Space Shuttle orbiters, closed their payload bay doors and stowed the landing gear. They are also taking precautions against flooding by moving spacecraft hardware off the ground and sandbagging facilities. The SSPF can withstand sustained winds of 110 mph and wind gusts up to 132 mph. The Orbiter Processing Facility is constructed of concrete and steel and was designed to withstand winds of 105 mph. The Vehicle Assembly Building is constructed of concrete and steel and was designed to withstand winds of 125 mph. Other payload and flight hardware support facilities can endure winds of 110 mph. Launch pads and the Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility can withstand 125-mph winds.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- A canister, carrying the Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer-2 AMS and Express Logistics Carrier-3 for space shuttle Endeavour's STS-134 mission, is rotated from a horizontal to vertical position in the Canister Rotation Facility at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Endeavour and its six-member STS-134 crew are targeted to lift off April 19 at 7:48 p.m. EDT to deliver the payload to the International Space Station.

VANDENBERG AIR FORCE BASE, CALIF. - Inside the Astrotech Payload Processing Facility on Vandenberg Air Force Base in California, the CALIPSO spacecraft waits to be weighed. CALIPSO stands for Cloud-Aerosol Lidar and Infrared Pathfinder Satellite Observation. It will fly in combination with the CloudSat satellite to provide never-before-seen 3-D perspectives of how clouds and aerosols form, evolve, and affect weather and climate. CALIPSO and CloudSat will join three other satellites in orbit to enhance understanding of climate systems. The two satellites will launch aboard a Boeing Delta II rocket no earlier than Oct. 1 from Space Launch Complex 2 at Vandenberg.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - At the Astrotech payload processing facility in Titusville, Fla., the top of the canister is lifted for a move to the unfinished canister at left. The canister surrounding NASA's Kepler spacecraft provides protection during the spacecraft's transport to the pad. The liftoff of Kepler aboard a Delta II rocket is currently targeted for 10:48 p.m. EST March 5 from Pad 17-B. Kepler is designed to survey more than 100,000 stars in our galaxy to determine the number of sun-like stars that have Earth-size and larger planets, including those that lie in a star's "habitable zone," a region where liquid water, and perhaps life, could exist. If these Earth-size worlds do exist around stars like our sun, Kepler is expected to be the first to find them and the first to measure how common they are.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - Inside the Operations and Checkout Building high bay at NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida, the spacecraft adapter cone for the Orion vehicle sits in a static load test tool. Preparations are underway to transfer the adapter cone to a work stand. Orion is the exploration spacecraft designed to carry astronauts to destinations not yet explored by humans, including an asteroid and Mars. It will have emergency abort capability, sustain the crew during space travel and provide safe re-entry from deep space return velocities. The first unpiloted test flight of the Orion is scheduled to launch in 2014 atop a Delta IV rocket and in 2017 on NASAs Space Launch System rocket.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - At the Astrotech Space Operations facility in Titusville, Fla., workers attach a crane to the vertically positioned Solar Dynamics Observatory, or SDO, for its move onto a test stand during preparations for propulsion system testing and leak checks.SDO is the first space weather research network mission in NASA's Living With a Star Program. The spacecraft's long-term measurements will give solar scientists in-depth information about changes in the sun's magnetic field and insight into how they affect Earth. Liftoff on an Atlas V rocket is scheduled for Feb. 3, 2010.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - In the Space Station Processing Facility at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, operations are under way to place the International Space Station's Node 3, named Tranquility, into a payload transportation canister for its move to Launch Pad 39A. Here, workers prepare to lift Tranquility from its workstand.The primary payload for the space shuttle Endeavour's STS-130 mission, Tranquility is a pressurized module that will provide room for many of the space station's life support systems. Attached to one end of Tranquility is a cupola, a unique work area with six windows on its sides and one on top. The cupola resembles a circular bay window and will provide a vastly improved view of the station's exterior. The multi-directional view will allow the crew to monitor spacewalks and docking operations, as well as provide a spectacular view of Earth and other celestial objects. The module was built in Turin, Italy, by Thales Alenia Space for the European Space Ag

In a clean room at Astrotech Space Operations in Titusville, Florida, technicians and engineers monitor progress as NOAA's Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite-S, or GOES-S, is encapsulated in its payload fairing. It soon will be moved to Space Launch Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station for mounting atop the Atlas V rocket that will boost the satellite to orbit. GOES-S is the second in a series of four advanced geostationary weather satellites that will significantly improve the detection and observation of environmental phenomena that directly affect public safety, protection of property and the nation's economic health and prosperity. GOES-S is slated to launch March 1, 2018 aboard a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - In the Astrotech payload processing facility in Titusville, Fla. , the STSS Demonstrator SV-1 spacecraft is lowered to the orbital insertion system. The spacecraft is a midcourse tracking technology demonstrator, part of an evolving ballistic missile defense system. STSS is capable of tracking objects after boost phase and provides trajectory information to other sensors. It will be launched by NASA for the Missile Defense Agency in late summer.

VANDENBERG AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. -- In Space Systems International's Payload Processing Facility at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California, technicians extend a solar array on the Aquarius/SAC-D spacecraft to test the release mechanism sequence for the array using signal commands. Following final tests, the spacecraft will be integrated to a United Launch Alliance Delta II rocket in preparation for the targeted June launch. Aquarius, the NASA-built primary instrument on the SAC-D spacecraft, will provide new insights into how variations in ocean surface salinity relate to fundamental climate processes on its three-year mission.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - The Mars Exploration Rover 1 (MER-1) lander (below) is mated to the cruise stage, seen above the lander. NASA's twin Mars Exploration Rovers are designed to study the history of water on Mars. These robotic geologists are equipped with a robotic arm, a drilling tool, three spectrometers, and four pairs of cameras that allow them to have a human-like, 3D view of the terrain. Each rover could travel as far as 100 meters in one day to act as Mars scientists' eyes and hands, exploring an environment where humans can't yet go. MER-1 is scheduled to launch June 25 as MER-B aboard a Delta II rocket from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- In the Space Station Processing Facility at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, cargo bags are secured on a resupply stowage platform and await installation inside the Raffaello multi-purpose logistics module, in the background at right, for space shuttle Atlantis' flight to the International Space Station.Atlantis and its payload are being prepared for the STS-135 mission, which will deliver Raffaello packed with supplies and spare parts to the station. STS-135, targeted to launch June 28, will be the 33rd flight of Atlantis, the 37th shuttle mission to the space station, and the 135th and final mission of NASA's Space Shuttle Program.

In the Space Station Processing Facility at NASA's Kennedy Space Center, workers prepare to connect cables that will recharge the battery for the S6 integrated truss. The final starboard truss in the assembly of the International Space Station, the S6 is scheduled to fly on space shuttle mission STS-119, whose launch date is not yet determined.

The launch abort system is lowered by crane for installation on the Orion spacecraft for Exploration Flight Test-1 inside the Launch Abort System Facility, or LASF, at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The completed crew and service modules will be tested and verified together with the launch abort system. Orion will remain inside the LASF until mid-November, when the United Launch Alliance Delta IV Heavy rocket is ready for integration with the spacecraft. Orion is the exploration spacecraft designed to carry astronauts to destinations not yet explored by humans, including an asteroid and Mars. It will have emergency abort capability, sustain the crew during space travel and provide safe re-entry from deep space return velocities. The first unpiloted test flight of the Orion is scheduled to launch in December atop the Delta IV Heavy rocket from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida to an altitude of 3,600 miles above the Earth's surface. The two-orbit, four-hour flight tes

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- In the Space Station Processing Facility at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, the suspended Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency's Kibo Exposed Facility, or EF, is moved over a workstand. When it is installed on the Kibo laboratory, the EF will provide a multipurpose platform where science experiments can be deployed and operated in the exposed environment. The payloads attached to the EF can be exchanged or retrieved by Kibo's robotic arm, the JEM Remote Manipulator System. The EF, along with the Experiment Logistics Module Exposed Section, will be carried aboard space shuttle Endeavour on the STS-127 mission targeted for launch June 13, 2009.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- The Long Spacer, a component of the International Space Station, arrives and is moved to its test stand in the northeast corner of the high bay in KSC's Space Station Processing Facility. The Long Spacer provides structural support for the outboard Photovoltaic Modules that supply power to the station. Now just a structure, the Long Spacer will have attached to it as part of processing a heat dissipation radiator and two Pump and Flow Control subassemblies that circulate ammonia to cool the solar array electronics. Also to be mounted are ammonia fluid lines as part of the cooling system and the cabling necessary for power and control of the station. The Long Spacer becomes an integral part of a station truss segment when it is mated with the Integrated Equipment Assembly, which stores the electrical power generated by the solar arrays for use by the station modules. The Long Spacer is being processed in preparation for STS-97, currently planned for launch

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- In the Space Station Processing Facility, an overhead crane lifts the Spacehab module from its stand to place it in the payload canister at right. The module is part of the payload on mission STS-118 and will be loaded into Space Shuttle Endeavour's payload bay at the pad. Endeavour is targeted for launch on Aug. 9 to the International Space Station. The mission will continue space station construction by delivering a third starboard truss segment, S5, as well as carrying the external stowage platform 3 and Spacehab module.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - At NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, the doors of the payload canister are opened inside a clean room of the Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility, or PHSF. The canister contains the Hubble Space Telescope equipment. The payload comprises four carriers holding various equipment for the mission. The canister maintains a controlled environment. In the PHSF, the carriers will be stored until a new target launch date can be set for Atlantis STS-125 mission in 2009. Atlantis October target launch date was delayed after a device on board Hubble used in the storage and transmission of science data to Earth shut down on Sept. 27. Replacing the broken device will be added to Atlantis servicing mission to the telescope.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- Inside the Operations and Checkout Building high bay at NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida, technicians monitor the progress as the service module bulkhead for the Orion spacecraft is lifted by crane from a work stand. The service module will be mated to the spacecraft adapter cone for testing.Orion is the exploration spacecraft designed to carry astronauts to destinations not yet explored by humans, including an asteroid and Mars. It will have emergency abort capability, sustain the crew during space travel and provide safe re-entry from deep space return velocities. The first unpiloted test flight of the Orion is scheduled to launch in 2014 atop a Delta IV rocket and in 2017 on NASAs Space Launch System rocket.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - Raffaello, the MPLM scheduled to fly on the STS-114 Return to Flight mission, is lifted from its stand. The module is being moved from a cargo element work stand to an element rotation stand formerly used by the Leonardo MPLM. The latter allows the module to be rotated around its x-axis to facilitate better access to the MPLM during final pre-flight processing operations. STS-114 is a logistics flight (LF1) that will carry the External Stowage Platform plus supplies and equipment to the International Space Station. The planning window for launch is May 12 to June 3, 2005.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - The STEREO observatories are the focus of attention at a media viewing held at Astrotech Space Operations in Titusville, Fla. The two observatories were mated for launch but will separate into different orbits for their mission. STEREO stands for Solar Terrestrial Relations Observatory. The STEREO mission is the first to take measurements of the sun and solar wind in 3-dimension. This new view will improve our understanding of space weather and its impact on the Earth. STEREO is expected to lift off on Aug. 31, from Launch Pad 17-B on Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida.

VANDENBERG AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. -- Technicians wheel the payload fairing for the Glory mission into the East High Bay at the Astrotech payload processing facility at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California. The payload fairing will cover the Glory spacecraft and be placed at the top of a Taurus XL rocket slated to lift the spacecraft into orbit. The payload fairing will protect the Glory spacecraft from aerodynamic pressures and heating during the first part of its climb into orbit. Once Glory reaches orbit, it will collect data on the properties of aerosols and black carbon. It also will help scientists understand how the sun's irradiance affects Earth's climate. Launch is scheduled for 5:09 a.m. EST Feb. 23. For information, visit www.nasa.gov/glory.

In the Space Station Processing Facility, Solar Array Wing-3, an element of the International Space Station, is lifted from a work stand to move it to the Integrated Electronic Assembly for testing. The solar array is scheduled to be launched on STS-97 in late November along with the P6 truss. The Stations electrical power system (EPS) will use eight photovoltaic solar arrays to convert sunlight to electricity. Each of the eight solar arrays will be 112 feet long by 39 feet wide. The solar arrays are mounted on a “blanket” that can be folded like an accordion for delivery. Once in orbit, astronauts will deploy the blankets to their full size. Gimbals will be used to rotate the arrays so that they will face the Sun to provide maximum power to the Space Station

Inside the high bay of the Space Station Processing Facility of NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida engineers and technicians remove the Orbital ATK OA-7 Cygnus spacecraft's pressurized cargo module (PCM) from its environmentally controlled shipping container. Scheduled to launch on March 19, 2017, the Orbital ATK OA-7 mission will lift off atop a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket from Space launch Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. The commercial resupply services mission to the International Space Station will deliver thousands of pounds of supplies, equipment and scientific research materials that improve life on Earth and drive progress toward future space exploration.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- In the Space Station Processing Facility at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, cargo is being prepared for installation inside the Raffaello multi-purpose logistics module for shuttle Atlantis' flight to the International Space Station.Commander Chris Ferguson, Pilot Doug Hurley and Mission Specialists Sandra Magnus and Rex Walheim are targeted to lift off on July 8, taking with them the Raffaello multi-purpose logistics module packed with supplies, logistics and spare parts. The STS-135 mission also will fly a system to investigate the potential for robotically refueling existing spacecraft and return a failed ammonia pump module to help NASA better understand the failure mechanism and improve pump designs for future systems. STS-135 will be the 33rd flight of Atlantis, the 37th shuttle mission to the space station, and the 135th and final mission of NASA's Space Shuttle Program.

The Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite (GOES-R) has been secured in the vertical position on an up-ender” inside the Astrotech payload processing facility in Titusville, Florida near NASA’s Kennedy Space Center. GOES-R will be the first satellite in a series of next-generation NOAA GOES Satellites. The spacecraft is to launch aboard a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket in November.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - In the Space Station Processing Facility, an overhead crane lowers the S3/S4 integrated truss structure onto a work stand. It was moved from a rotation stand at left. Along with a third set of solar arrays and batteries, the truss is scheduled to fly on mission STS-117 aboard Space Shuttle Atlantis to the International Space Station. The crew of six astronauts will install the truss to continue assembly of the station.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - In the Space Station Processing Facility at NASAs Kennedy Space Center, the P3_P4 Truss is prepared to be rotated to the upper deck position in preparation for installation of the upper deck solar array wing. The truss is scheduled to launch on mission 12A, STS-115, to the International Space Station. The wing was removed to replace aging flight batteries. New batteries are being installed to ensure that the batteries do not exceed their lifetime expectancy prior to their planned logistics resupply on-orbit. The new batteries have a lifetime expectancy of approximately 7 years.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- In the Vertical Integration Facility at NASA's Kennedy Space Center, workers check the placement of the payload canister after it was lowered onto the payload canister transporter. The canister contains the Japanese Experiment Module -Pressurized Module, which will be transported to Launch Pad 39A for space shuttle Discoverys STS-124 mission. At the pad, the payload will be transferred from the canister into the payload changeout room on the rotating service structure. The changeout room is the enclosed, environmentally controlled portion of the service structure that supports cargo delivery to the pad and subsequent vertical installation into an orbiter's payload bay. On the mission, the STS-124 crew will transport the JEM as well as the Japanese Remote Manipulator System to the International Space Station. The launch of Discovery is targeted for May 31.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - Technicians lift a special fixture inside the high bay of the Operations & Checkout Building at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The fixture is designed to enable precise pre-launch processing of the Orion spacecraft. An Orion capsule is being prepared to make a flight test in 2014 on a mission that will not carry any astronauts. Photo by Tim Jacobs

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - Inside the Operations and Checkout Building high bay at NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida, technicians use a special handling device to move the first of three fairings for installation on the service module for the Orion spacecraft. The Orion spacecraft is being prepared for its first unpiloted flight test, Exploration Flight Test-1, or EFT-1, scheduled for launch atop a Delta IV rocket in September 2014. The Orion spacecraft is designed to carry astronauts to destinations not yet explored by humans. It will have emergency abort capability, sustain the crew during space travel and provide safe re-entry from deep space return velocities. Orion is scheduled to launch atop NASAs Space Launch System rocket in 2017.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- In the Space Station Processing Facility, workers oversee the removal of the P4 truss from the truck that transported it from Tulsa, Okla. Part of the 10-truss, girder-like structure that will ultimately extend the length of a football field on the International Space Station, the P4 is the second port truss segment that will attach to the first port truss segment (P1 truss). The P4 is scheduled for mission 12A in September 2002.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - An orbital maneuvering system, or OMS, pod is lifted across the ceiling in Orbiter Processing Facility-1 at NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The pod will be reinstalled on space shuttle Atlantis.The orbital maneuvering system provided the shuttle with thrust for orbit insertion, rendezvous and deorbit, and could provide up to 1,000 pounds of propellant to the aft reaction control system. The OMS is housed in two independent pods located on each side of the shuttle's aft fuselage. Each pod contains one OMS engine and the hardware needed to pressurize, store and distribute the propellants to perform the velocity maneuvers. Atlantis OMS pods were removed and sent to White Sands Test Facility in New Mexico to be cleaned of residual toxic propellant. The work is part of the Space Shuttle Programs transition and retirement processing of the shuttle fleet. A groundbreaking was held Jan. 18 for Atlantis' future home, a 65,000-square-foot exhibit hall in Shu

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - At the Astrotech Space Operations facility in Titusville, Fla., the solar arrays on the Solar Dynamics Observatory, or SDO, deploy during the testing required to verify the spacecraft's readiness for launch.SDO is the first space weather research network mission in NASA's Living With a Star Program. The spacecraft's long-term measurements will give solar scientists in-depth information about changes in the sun's magnetic field and insight into how they affect Earth. Liftoff on an Atlas V rocket is scheduled for Feb. 3, 2010.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- In the Space Station Processing Facility at NASA's Kennedy Space Center, technicians guide the Special Purpose Dexterous Manipulator, known as Dextre, as a crane lowers it toward a pallet. Processing of the payload is under way for its mission to the International Space Station. Dextre will work with the mobile base and Canadarm2 on the station to perform critical construction and maintenance tasks. Dextre is part of the payload scheduled on mission STS-123, targeted to launch Feb. 14, 2008.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- Workers attach an overhead crane to the SPACEHAB module to lift it off the transport vehicle beneath it. The module, part of the payload on mission STS-106, will be placed in the payload canister for transport to the launch pad. STS-106 is scheduled to launch Sept. 8 at 8:31 a.m. EDT

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - On Launch Pad 39A at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, space shuttle Discovery's payload bay doors are being closed. The cargo consists of the integrated truss structure S6 and solar arrays for the STS-119 mission to the International Space Station. During Discovery's 14-day mission, the shuttle's seven astronauts will install the S6 truss to the starboard side of the space station, completing the station's truss, or backbone. Launch of Discovery on the STS-119 mission is targeted for Feb. 12.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- In the Space Station Processing Facility at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, a crane lifts the MAXI (Monitor of All-sky X-ray Image) to move it onto the Japanese Experiment Module's Experiment Logistics Module-Exposed Section, or ELM-ES, where it will be installed. The MAXI is part of space shuttle Endeavour's payload on the STS-127 mission. Using X-ray slit cameras with high sensitivity, the MAXI will continuously monitor astronomical X-ray objects over a broad energy band (0.5 to 30 keV). Endeavour is targeted to launch May 15.

VANDENBERG AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. In the Orbital Sciences Building 836 at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California, three micro-satellites are mounted on the payload support structure. The three satellites make up the Space Technology 5 spacecraft, called ST5, and will be launched by a Pegasus XL rocket. The satellites contain miniaturized redundant components and technologies. Each will validate New Millennium Program selected technologies, such as the Cold Gas Micro-Thruster and X-Band Transponder Communication System. After deployment from the Pegasus, the micro-satellites will be positioned in a “string of pearls” constellation that demonstrates the ability to position them to perform simultaneous multi-point measurements of the magnetic field using highly sensitive magnetometers. The data will help scientists understand and map the intensity and direction of the Earth’s magnetic field, its relation to space weather events, and affects on our planet. With such missions, NASA

The International Docking Adapter 3, a critical component for future crewed missions to the International Space Station, is carefully packed away in the unpressurized trunk” section of the SpaceX Dragon spacecraft at the SpaceX facility on Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida on June 19. It will launch to the orbiting laboratory in July on the company’s 18th commercial resupply mission. The adapter will support future U.S. crewed vehicles visiting the station.

Part of the P-1 truss is seen as it rests in a workstand in the Operations and Checkout Building. Scheduled to fly in spring of 2002, the P-1 is part of a total 10-truss, girder-like structure that will ultimately extend the length of a football field. Astronauts will attach the 14by 15-foot structure to the port side of the center truss, S0, during the spring assembly flight. The 33,000-pound P-1 will house the thermal radiator rotating joint (TRRJ) that will rotate the International Space Stations radiators away from the sun to increase their maximum cooling efficiency

STS-130 ENDEAVOUR PAYLOAD BAY DOOR CLOSURE

In the Space Station Processing Facility at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, the hatch was closed on the Cygnus spacecraft's pressurized cargo module (PCM) for the Orbital ATK CRS-7 mission to the International Space Station. The module is being rotated to vertical for mating to the service module. Scheduled to launch on March 19, 2017, the commercial resupply services mission will lift off atop a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket from Space launch Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- In the Canister Rotation Facility at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, the payload canister rests on a transport vehicle after being rotated into a vertical position.The canister will then be delivered to Launch Pad 39A, lifted into the rotating service structure where the module will be moved into the clean room before it is installed into space shuttle Discovery's payload bay. Discovery and its STS-133 crew will deliver the PMM, packed with supplies and critical spare parts, as well as Robonaut 2, the dexterous humanoid astronaut helper, to the International Space Station. Launch is targeted for 4:40 p.m. EDT, Nov. 1.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - In the Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility at NASA's Kennedy Space Center, the Multi-Use Lightweight Equipment (MULE) carrier awaits a move into the clean-room high bay. The MULE is part of the payload for the fifth and final shuttle servicing mission to NASA's Hubble Space Telescope, STS-125. The MULE carrier will join the Flight Support System, the Super Lightweight Interchangeable Carrier and the Orbital Replacement Unit Carrier in the Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility where the Hubble payload is being prepared for launch. The Relative Navigation Sensors and the New Outer Blanket Layers will be on the MULE. The payload is scheduled to go to Launch Pad 39A in mid-September to be installed into Atlantis' payload bay. Atlantis is targeted to launch Oct. 8 at 1:34 a.m. EDT. .

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- In the Space Station Processing Facility, an overhead crane moves the Multi-Purpose Logistics Module Raffaello across the room toward the weight and balance stand at left. Raffaello is the second MPLM built by the Italian Space Agency, and serves as a reusable logistics carrier and primary delivery system used to resupply and return station cargo requiring a pressurized environment. Weighing nearly 4.5 tons, the Raffaello measures 21 feet long and 15 feet in diameter. The MPLM will fly on mission STS-100, scheduled to launch aboard Space Shuttle Endeavour on April 19

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - In Orbiter Processing Facility-2 at NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida, one of space shuttle Endeavours payload bay doors has been fully opened so that technicians can retract an antenna. Space Shuttle Program transition and retirement work continues on Discovery and Endeavour in the orbiter processing facilities, while shuttle Atlantis is in temporary storage in high bay 4 of the Vehicle Assembly Building. Endeavour is being prepared for display at the California Science Center in Los Angeles.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- Inside the Horizontal Integration Facility, or HIF, at Space Launch Complex 37 on Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida, the upper stage for the United Launch Alliance Delta IV Heavy for Exploration Flight Test-1, or EFT-1, is being removed from its transportation container. The upper stage, along with the port booster and spacecraft adapter arrived by barge at the U.S. Army Outpost wharf at Port Canaveral in Florida and were transported to the HIF.At the HIF, all three booster stages will be processed and checked out before being moved to the nearby launch pad and hoisted into position. The spacecraft adapter will connect Orion to the ULA Delta IV, and also will connect Orion to NASA's new rocket, the Space Launch System, on its first mission in 2017. During the EFT-1 mission, Orion will travel farther into space than any human spacecraft has gone in more than 40 years. The data gathered during the flight will influence design decisions, validate existi

Nanoracks technicians work on the NanoRacks Bishop Airlock inside the Space Station Processing Facility at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Oct. 7, 2020. The next-generation Nanoracks payload facility is being prepared for its flight to the International Space Station on SpaceXs 21st commercial resupply services mission (CRS-21) to the International Space Station. The Bishop Airlock is the first commercially funded airlock for the space station. It will provide payload hosting, robotics testing, satellite deployment, serve as an outside toolbox for station crew spacewalks, and more. CRS-21 is scheduled to launch on a SpaceX Falcon 9 from Kennedys Launch Complex 39A.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - In the Astrotech payload processing facility at Port Canaveral, Fla., preparations are under way to close the hatch of the Russian-built Mini-Research Module-1, or MRM-1, for flight. The six-member crew of space shuttle Atlantis' STS-132 mission will deliver an Integrated Cargo Carrier and the MRM-1, known as Rassvet, to the International Space Station. The second in a series of new pressurized components for Russia, MRM-1 will be permanently attached to the Earth-facing port of the Zarya control module. Rassvet, which translates to 'dawn,' will be used for cargo storage and will provide an additional docking port to the station. STS-132 is the 34th mission to the station and the 132nd space shuttle mission. Launch is targeted for May 14.

Workers in the payload changeout room stand by as the doors open on the payload transport canister. Inside is the P6 integrated truss segment, which will fly on mission STS-97. The P6 comprises Solar Array Wing-3 and the Integrated Electronic Assembly, to be installed on the International Space Station. The Stations electrical power system will use eight photovoltaic solar arrays, each 112 feet long by 39 feet wide, to convert sunlight to electricity. The solar arrays are mounted on a “blanket” that can be folded like an accordion for delivery. Once in orbit, astronauts will deploy the blankets to their full size. Gimbals will be used to rotate the arrays so that they will face the Sun to provide maximum power to the Space Station. Launch of STS-97 is scheduled for Nov. 30 at 10:06 p.m. EST

VANDENBERG AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. -- At the Astrotech processing facility on Vandenberg Air Force Base in California, NASA's Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer, or WISE, is prepared to be lifted by crane from its test stand for mating to its Payload Attach Fitting, at right.The satellite will survey the entire sky at infrared wavelengths, creating a cosmic clearinghouse of hundreds of millions of objects which will be catalogued and provide a vast storehouse of knowledge about the solar system, the Milky Way, and the universe. Launch is scheduled for Dec. 7.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- Workers in the Space Station Processing Facility check out components of over the Mobile Base System (MBS), part of the payload on mission STS-111 to the International Space Station. The MBS will be installed on the Mobile Transporter to complete the Canadian Mobile Servicing System, or MSS. The mechanical arm will then have the capability to "inchworm" from the U.S. Lab Destiny to the MSS and travel along the truss to work sites. STS-111 is the second utilization flight (UF-2) to the Space Station and will also carry the Expedition 5 crew to replace Expedition 4. Launch is scheduled for May 2, 2002

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- With the hatch of Multi-Purpose Logistics Module Leonardo open, the contents are ready to be removed. The MPLM has just returned from its maiden voyage to the International Space Station aboard Discovery on mission STS-102. It has brought back to KSC nearly a ton of trash and excess equipment from the Space Station. Leonardo is one of three MPLMs built by the Italian Space Agency to serve as cargo vans” to the Station, carrying supplies and equipment. In the SSPF, Leonardo will be prepared for a future mission

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- At Launch Pad 39A, the U.S. Laboratory Destiny waits in Atlantiss payload bay for closure of the payload bay doors. Destiny, a key element in the construction of the International Space Station, is 28 feet long and weighs 16 tons. This research and command-and-control center is the most sophisticated and versatile space laboratory ever built. It will ultimately house a total of 23 experiment racks for crew support and scientific research. Destiny will be launched Feb. 7 on STS-98, the seventh construction flight to the ISS

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- In the Space Station Processing Facility at NASA's Kennedy Space Center, the Experiment Logistics Module Pressurized Section, or ELM-PS, moves toward a rotation stand, at right. The ELM-PS is part of the Japanese Experiment Module, called Kibo. The ELM-PS is the primary payload for space shuttle Endeavour's STS-123 mission, which is targeted for launch to the International Space Station on Feb. 14.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - At Launch Pad 39B, STS-114 Mission Specialists Stephen Robinson (left) and Andrew Thomas discuss the payloads in Space Shuttle Discovery's cargo bay with a technician. The STS-114 crew is conducting a final inspection of their mission payloads before launch. During its 12-day mission, Discoverys seven-person crew will test new hardware and techniques to improve Shuttle safety, as well as deliver supplies to the International Space Station. Discoverys payloads include the Multi-Purpose Logistics Module Raffaello, the Lightweight Multi-Purpose Experiment Support Structure Carrier (LMC), and the External Stowage Platform-2 (ESP-2). Raffaello will deliver supplies to the International Space Station including food, clothing and research equipment. The LMC will carry a replacement Control Moment Gyroscope and a tile repair sample box. The ESP-2 is outfitted with replacement parts. Launch of Discovery on its Return to Flight mission STS-114 is set for July 13.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- In the Space Station Processing Facility at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, the Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer-2 AMS is above a payload canister after technicians measured its weight and center of gravity. The canister will protect the space-bound payload on its journey to Launch Pad 39A, where it will later be installed into space shuttle Endeavours payload bay. AMS is a particle physics detector, designed to operate as an external experiment on the International Space Station. It will use the unique environment of space to study the universe and its origin by searching for dark matter. AMS-2 will fly to the station aboard Endeavour's STS-134 mission targeted to launch April 19 at 7:48 p.m. EDT.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- Workers in the Space Station Processing Facility begin unwrapping the protective cover over the end of Multi-Purpose Logistics Module Leonardo so they can open the hatch and access the inside. The MPLM has just returned from its maiden voyage to the International Space Station aboard Discovery on mission STS-102. Leonardo is one of three MPLMs built by the Italian Space Agency to serve as cargo vans” to the Station, carrying supplies and equipment. In the SSPF, Leonardo will be prepared for a future mission

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - In the high bay of the Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility at NASA's Kennedy Space Center, a worker from NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center removes the protective wrapping from the Orbital Replacement Unit Carrier for the Hubble Space Telescope. The Orbital Replacement Unit Carrier, or ORUC, is one of four carriers supporting hardware for space shuttle Atlantis' STS-125 mission to service the telescope. The Super Lightweight Interchangeable Carrier, or SLIC, and the Flight Support System, or FSS, have also arrived at Kennedy. The Multi-Use Lightweight Equipment carrier will be delivered in late July. The carriers will be prepared for the integration of telescope science instruments, both internal and external replacement components, as well as the flight support equipment to be used by the astronauts during the Hubble servicing mission, targeted for launch Oct. 8.

The forward bay cover is installed on the Artemis I spacecraft in the Final Assembly and System Testing (FAST) cell inside the Neil Armstrong Operations and Checkout building high bay at NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Nov. 23, 2020. It protects the upper part of Orion during the mission and, upon reentry into Earths atmosphere, jettison mechanisms will push the forward bay cover a safe distance from the spacecraft, allowing the three main parachutes to unfurl and slow Orion to a safe speed for splashdown in the Pacific Ocean. The first in a series of increasingly complex mission, Artemis I will test the Space Launch System rocket and Orion spacecraft as an integrated system prior to crewed flights to the Moon. Under the Artemis program, NASA is planning to land the first woman and next man on the lunar surface by 2024.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - A close-up of the camera pack to be installed on space shuttle Endeavour's orbiter boom sensor system. The work is being done in the Orbiter Processing Facility bay 2 at NASA's Kennedy Space Center. The scheduled launch vehicle for the STS-126 missions, Endeavour will deliver a multi-purpose logistics module to the International Space Station. Launch is targeted for Nov. 10. Endeavour is also the backup shuttle, if needed for rescue, for the STS-125 mission in October that will make repairs on NASA's Hubble Space Telescope. For that purpose, it is designated STS-400.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - The payload canister moves back into the environmentally controlled high bay of the Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility at NASA's Kennedy Space Center. The canister was moved out of the high bay during contamination of the Super Lightweight Integration Carrier, one of four associated with the STS-125 mission to service the Hubble Space Telescope. It will be installed in the payload canister for transfer to Launch Pad 39A. At the pad, all the carriers will be loaded into space shuttle Atlantis payload bay. Launch of Atlantis is targeted for Oct. 10.

At Astrotech Space Operations in Titusville, Florida, a technician inspects NOAA's Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite-S (GOES-S). The facility is located near NASA's Kennedy Space Center. GOES-S is the second in a series of four advanced geostationary weather satellites. The GOES-R series - consisting of the GOES-R, GOES-S, GOES-T and GOES-U spacecraft - will significantly improve the detection and observation of environmental phenomena that directly affect public safety, protection of property and the nation's economic health and prosperity. GOES-S is slated to launch March 1, 2018 aboard a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida.

The Solar Orbiter spacecraft is loaded with propellants during processing activities inside the Astrotech Space Operations facility in Titusville, Florida. Solar Orbiter aims to study the Sun, its outer atmosphere and solar wind, and will provide the first images of the Suns poles. Solar Orbiter is a space mission of international collaboration between ESA (European Space Agency) and NASA. The spacecraft has been developed by Airbus. NASAs Launch Services Program based at Kennedy Space Center in Florida is managing the launch. Liftoff is scheduled for Feb. 5, 2020, from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station aboard a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- In the Vertical Integration Facility at NASA's Kennedy Space Center, the payload canister containing the Japanese Experiment Module -Pressurized Module is ready for rotation to a vertical position. The canister will be transported to Launch Pad 39A for space shuttle Discoverys STS-124 mission. At the pad, the payload will be transferred from the canister into the payload changeout room on the rotating service structure. The changeout room is the enclosed, environmentally controlled portion of the service structure that supports cargo delivery to the pad and subsequent vertical installation into an orbiter's payload bay. On the mission, the STS-124 crew will transport the JEM as well as the Japanese Remote Manipulator System to the International Space Station. The launch of Discovery is targeted for May 31.

SIX OF THE EIGHTEEN JAMES WEBB SPACE TELESCOPE MIRROR SEGMENTS ARE BEING PREPPED TO MOVE INTO THE X-RAY AND CRYOGENIC FACILITY FOR TESTING.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - Inside the Delta Operations Center near Space Launch Complex 37 on Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida, the second stage for the United Launch Alliance Delta IV Heavy for Exploration Flight Test-1, or EFT-1, is secured in its cradle for the move to a test cell.At the Horizontal Integration Facility, all three booster stages will be processed and checked out before being moved to the nearby launch pad and hoisted into position. During the EFT-1 mission, Orion will travel farther into space than any human spacecraft has gone in more than 40 years. The data gathered during the flight will influence design decisions, validate existing computer models and innovative new approaches to space systems development, as well as reduce overall mission risks and costs for later Orion flights. Liftoff of Orion on EFT-1 is planned for fall 2014.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- In the Orbiter Processing Facility, STS-123 crew members are lowered into space shuttle Endeavour's payload bay to check out the equipment. At right is Mission Specialist Garrett Reisman; at left is Mission Specialist Takao Doi. The crew is at NASA's Kennedy Space Center for a crew equipment interface test, a process of familiarization with payloads, hardware and the space shuttle. Doi represents the Japanese Aerospace and Exploration Agency. Reisman will join the Expedition 16 crew on the International Space Station, replacing flight engineer Leopold Eyharts. The STS-123 mission is targeted for launch on space shuttle Endeavour on Feb. 14. It will be the 25th assembly flight of the station.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- Inside the Space Station Processing Facility at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, technicians begin to lower the cover of a shipping container that will enclose the orbital replacement unit for the space station's utility transfer assembly. The unit is one of the payloads processed at Kennedy that will be flown to Japan for the HTV-4 launch to the station, which is currently scheduled for this summer.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - On Launch Pad 39A at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, space shuttle Discovery's payload bay doors are being closed. A worker checks the progress of the doors. The cargo consists of the integrated truss structure S6 and solar arrays for the STS-119 mission to the International Space Station. During Discovery's 14-day mission, the shuttle's seven astronauts will install the S6 truss to the starboard side of the space station, completing the station's truss, or backbone. Launch of Discovery on the STS-119 mission is targeted for Feb. 12.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- At Launch Pad 39A at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, space shuttle Atlantis' STS-135 crew members take part in a payload bay walkdown to check out the cargo secured in Atlantis' bay. Seen here inspecting the airlock are Pilot Doug Hurley (left) and Mission Specialist Rex Walheim.The astronauts are at Kennedy to participate in a launch countdown dress rehearsal called the Terminal Countdown Demonstration Test (TCDT) and related training. Atlantis and its crew are targeted to lift off July 8, taking with them the Raffaello multi-purpose logistics module packed with supplies and spare parts to the International Space Station. The STS-135 mission also will fly a system to investigate the potential for robotically refueling existing satellites and return a failed ammonia pump module to help NASA better understand the failure mechanism and improve pump designs for future systems. STS-135 will be the 33rd flight of Atlantis, the 37th shuttle mission to the

The Orion Crew Module Adapter simulator arrives at NASA Glenn's Plum Brook Station Space Power Facility in Sandusky, Ohio on June 24, 2015. Part of Batch image transfer from Flickr.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- In the Space Station Processing Facility, the external stowage platform 3 is ready to be lifted from its stand to move to the payload canister. The platform is part of the payload on mission STS-118 and will be loaded into Space Shuttle Endeavour's payload bay at the pad. Endeavour is targeted for launch on Aug. 9 to the International Space Station. The mission will continue space station construction by delivering a third starboard truss segment, S5, as well as carrying the external stowage platform 3.

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