NASA Space Operations

Images of facilities and equipment at NASA's Kennedy Space Center, featuring advanced technology and space shuttle components in operational settings.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- In the Space Station Processing Facility, workers are ready to attach the overhead crane to the external stowage platform 3 to lift and move it 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.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - Inside the Operations and Checkout Building at NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida, a birdcage tool along with work platforms have been placed around the Orion Exploration Flight Test 1 crew module. The birdcage will be used to continue installation of external components in preparation for Orions first uncrewed test flight in 2014 atop a Delta IV rocket.Orion is the exploration spacecraft designed to carry crews to space beyond low Earth orbit. It will provide emergency abort capability, sustain the crew during the space travel and provide safe re-entry from deep space return velocities. A second uncrewed flight test is scheduled for 2017 on NASAs Space Launch System rocket.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - In NASA Kennedy Space Center's Orbiter Processing Facility bay 2, workers watch the movement of space shuttle Endeavour's Orbiter Boom Sensor System as it is lowered into the payload bay. The OBSS is a 50-foot boom with a laser and cameras on it that astronauts use to inspect a shuttle's heat shield while in orbit. After returning from the STS-127 mission July 31, 2009, Endeavour now is being processed for the STS-130 mission targeted for Feb. 4, 2010. Endeavour will deliver to the International Space Station the Tranquility pressurized module that will provide room for many of the station's life support systems.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - Inside Orbiter Processing Facility-2 at NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida, a large crane lifts the remote manipulator system (RMS) robotic arm away from space shuttle Atlantis payload bay. The RMS will be transported to NASAs Johnson Space Center in Houston for possible use on future spaceflights. The work is part of the Space Shuttle Programs transition and retirement processing of shuttle Atlantis. The shuttle is being prepared for display at the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- In Orbiter Processing Facility-1 at NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida, an overhead crane is used to remove shuttle Endeavours left-hand orbital maneuvering system, or OMS, pod. The work is part of Endeavours transition and retirement processing. The spacecraft is being prepared for public display at the California Science Center in Los Angeles. Endeavour flew 25 missions, spent 299 days in space, orbited Earth 4,671 times and traveled 122, 883, 151 miles over the course of its 19-year career. Endeavours STS-134 and final mission was completed after landing on June 1, 2011.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- Technicians prepare to install a new Ku-Band communications system antenna on space shuttle Discovery in Orbiter Processing Facility-3 at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The antenna is used to transmit and receive high data rate communications, such as video, and is being replaced for the STS-133 mission to the International Space Station. During its STS-131 mission to the station in April, Discovery's Ku-Band failed to operate in orbit. As a result, video of the thermal protection system inspection had to be recorded aboard Discovery and transmitted to the ground after the shuttle docked with the station. Typically, the inspection video is simultaneously transmitted live to the ground and recorded aboard the shuttle for later review. NASA_Charisse Nahser

CAPE CANAVERAL, FIa. -- In the Space Station Processing Facility at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, workers keep close watch as the flexible hose rotary coupler is lowered onto the Lightweight Multi-Purpose Experiment Support Structure Carrier for installation. The carrier will be installed in space shuttle Endeavour for the STS-126 mission to the International Space Station. The 15-day flight will deliver equipment and supplies to the space station in preparation for expansion from a three- to six-person resident crew aboard the complex. The mission also will include four spacewalks to service the stations Solar Alpha Rotary Joints.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - Inside Orbiter Processing Facility-1 at NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida, United Space Alliance technicians monitor the progress as a large crane moves the right orbital maneuvering system, or OMS, pod closer to space shuttle Atlantis. It is the last time an OMS pod will be installed on Atlantis. The OMS 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 shuttles 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 the test facility at White Sands Space Harbor 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 space shuttle fleet.

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

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- In the Space Station Processing Facility, workers are ready to attach the overhead crane to the external stowage platform 3 to lift and move it 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.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - In Orbiter Processing Facility-2 at NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida, a large crane is used to lift the right orbital maneuvering system OMS pod that will be installed on space shuttle Endeavour. The OMS pod underwent complete deservicing and cleaning at White Sands Space Harbor in New Mexico, part of the transition and retirement processing of each shuttle. Endeavour is being prepared for public display at the California Science Center in Los Angeles. Over the course of its 19-year career, Endeavour spent 299 days in space during 25 missions.

Technicians work on assembly of the Exploration Flight Test-1 (EFT-1) Orion service module mass simulator at the Operations and Checkout (O&C) Building at Kennedy Space Center on March 22, 2013. Part of Batch image transfer from Flickr.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - The forward reaction control system, or FRCS, will be removed from space shuttle Endeavour's forward fuselage nose area in NASA Kennedy Space Center's Orbiter Processing Facility 2. The FRCS provides the thrust for attitude (rotational) maneuvers (pitch, yaw and roll) and for small velocity changes along the orbiter axis (translation maneuvers). Endeavour is designated as the shuttle for the STS-130 mission, targeted for launch in February 2010.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - Inside Orbiter Processing Facility-2 at NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida, United Space Alliance technician Jim Reed uses a speed wrench in a gear box to lock the left payload bay door in place after it was closed. Both payload bay doors will be closed for the final time.The orbiter is undergoing final preparations for its transfer to the Kennedy Space Center Visitor complex targeted for November. The work is part of Transition and Retirement of the remaining shuttle. Atlantis is being prepared for public display at the visitor complex. Over the course of its 26-year career, Atlantis spent 293 days in space during 33 missions.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - In the Orbiter Processing Facility Bay 1 at NASA Kennedy Space Center, the remote manipulator system boom is lifted away from Atlantis payload bay and will be temporarily stored. The RMS includes the electromechanical arm that maneuvers a payload from the payload bay of the orbiter to its deployment position and then releases it. It can also grapple a free-flying payload, maneuver it to the payload bay of the orbiter and berth it in the orbiter. The RMS arm is 50 feet 3 inches long and 15 inches in diameter. It weighs 905 pounds, and the total system weighs 994 pounds. The RMS has six joints that correspond roughly to the joints of the human arm, with shoulder yaw and pitch joints; an elbow pitch joint; and wrist pitch, yaw and roll joints. The end effector is the unit at the end of the wrist that actually grabs, or grapples, the payload.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - In the Payload Changeout Room on Launch Pad 39A at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, the payload for the STS-119 mission is being transferred to space shuttle Discovery's cargo bay. The payload consists of the integrated truss structure S6 and solar arrays. During Discovery's 14-day mission, the shuttle's seven astronauts will install the S6 truss segment and solar arrays to the starboard side of the International 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 NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, a crane is used to lift a mock air lock being prepared for installation in the payload bay of the space shuttle Atlantis in Bay 2 of the Orbiter Processing Facility. Atlantis is undergoing final preparations for its transfer to the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex targeted for November.The work is part of Transition and Retirement of the remaining space shuttles, Atlantis and Endeavour. Atlantis is being prepared for public display at Kennedy's Visitor Complex. Over the course of its 26-year career, Atlantis spent 293 days in space during 33 missions.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - Inside Orbiter Processing Facility-2 at NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida, United Space Alliance technicians inspect space shuttle Endeavours payload bay doors after they were closed for the final time. The work is part of Transition and Retirement of the remaining space shuttles, Endeavour and Atlantis. Endeavour is being prepared for public display at the California Science Center in Los Angeles. Its ferry flight to California is targeted for mid-September. Endeavour was the last space shuttle added to NASAs orbiter fleet. Over the course of its 19-year career, Endeavour spent 299 days in space during 25 missions.

At the Operations and Checkout Building at Kennedy Space Center, Lockheed Martin technicians work to mate Orion's crew module adapter to the European Service Module on Nov. 14, 2018...For the first time, NASA will use a European-built system as a critical element to power an American spacecraft, extending the international cooperation of the International Space Station into deep space. The European Service Module is a unique collaboration across space agencies and industry including ESAs prime contractor, Airbus, and 10 European countries. The completion of service module work in Europe and shipment to Kennedy signifies a major milestone toward NASAs human deep space exploration missions to the Moon and beyond.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - At the Astrotech Space Operations facility in Titusville, Fla., the communications antenna on the Solar Dynamics Observatory, or SDO, deploys, part of 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.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- In Orbiter Processing Facility-1 at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, workers are disconnecting and dismantling components on shuttle Endeavour. Seen here is the spacecraft's payload bay.The work is part of Endeavour's transition and retirement processing. The spacecraft is being prepared for public display at the California Science Center in Los Angeles. Endeavour flew 25 missions, spent 299 days in space, orbited Earth 4,671 times and traveled 122,883,151 miles over the course of its 19-year career. Endeavour's STS-134 and final mission was completed after landing on June 1, 2011.

STS-134 S.A.S.A Lift to ELC-3

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - In Orbiter Processing Facility Bay 3 at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, the gaseous nitrogen tank in space shuttle Discovery's payload bay is attached to a "fish pole" lifting fixture and ready to be hoisted out of the bay. The tank is being removed during processing for the shuttle's STS-131 mission to the International Space Station.The tanks are used for atmosphere conditioning and for moving potable water in the crew module. The seven-member STS-131 crew will deliver a Multi-Purpose Logistics Module filled with science racks to be transferred to laboratories on the station. Three spacewalks will include work to attach a spare ammonia tank assembly to the station's exterior and return a European experiment from outside the station's Columbus module. This will be the 33rd shuttle mission to the station. Launch is targeted for March 18, 2010.

The heat shield for Orions Artemis 2 mission, NASAs first crewed mission, is uncrated from its shipping container inside the Neil Armstrong Operations and Checkout Building high bay at the agencys Kennedy Space Center in Florida on July 10, 2019. The heat shield, measuring roughly 16 feet in diameter, will protect astronauts upon re-entry on the second mission of Artemis. The heat shield arrived from Lockheed Martins manufacturing facility near Denver aboard NASAs Super Guppy Aircraft. The heat shield is a base titanium truss structure. Over the next several months, technicians will apply Avcoat, an ablative material that will provide the thermal protection. Artemis 2 will confirm all of the spacecrafts systems operate as designed in the actual environment of deep space with astronauts aboard.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - Inside Orbiter Processing Facility-2 at NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida, United Space Alliance technicians monitor the progress as space shuttle Atlantis left payload bay door is closed. Both payload bay doors will be closed for the final time.The orbiter is undergoing final preparations for its transfer to the Kennedy Space Center Visitor complex targeted for November. The work is part of Transition and Retirement of the remaining shuttle. Atlantis is being prepared for public display at the visitor complex. Over the course of its 26-year career, Atlantis spent 293 days in space during 33 missions.

Inside the high bay of the Neil Armstrong Operations and Checkout Building at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, Orion's crew module adapter is mated to the European Service Module on Nov. 26, 2018. For the first time, NASA will use a European-built system as a critical element to power an American spacecraft, extending the international cooperation of the International Space Station into deep space. The European Service Module is a unique collaboration across space agencies and industry, including the European Space Agency's prime contractor, Airbus, and 10 European countries. The completion of service module work in Europe and shipment to Kennedy signifies a major milestone toward NASA's human deep space exploration missions to the Moon and beyond.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - In the Orbiter Processing Facilitys bay 1, workers are ready to secure the orbiter boom sensor system on the starboard side of Atlantiss payload bay for mission STS-117. The 50-foot-long boom attaches to the shuttle arm and provides equipment to inspect the shuttle's heat shield while in space. It contains an intensified television camera (ITVC) and a laser dynamic range imager, which are mounted on a pan and tilt unit, and a laser camera system (LCS) mounted on a stationary bracket. Mission STS-117 will carry the S3/S4 arrays for installation on the International Space Station. Launch of Space Shuttle Atlantis is scheduled for March.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- In Orbiter Processing Facility bay 2 at NASA's Kennedy Space Center, an overhead crane moves the crew airlock module across the bay to install it in Endeavour's payload bay. The airlock is located in the middeck. The airlock and airlock hatches permit flight crew members to transfer from the middeck crew compartment into the payload bay for extravehicular activities in their space suits without depressurizing the orbiter crew cabin. The airlock is sized to accommodate two fully suited flight crew members simultaneously. Endeavour is targeted for flight on Aug. 9 on mission STS-118 to the International Space Station.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- In the Space Station Processing Facility at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, technicians install a system that will investigate the potential for robotically refueling existing spacecraft in orbit in the Lightweight Multi-Purpose Experiment Support Structure Carrier (LMC). Called the Robotic Refueling Mission (RRM), the system is being processed to fly aboard space shuttle Atlantis in the LMC on the STS-135 mission to the International Space Station.Also going up will be the Raffaello multipurpose logistics module packed with supplies, logistics and spare parts. The mission also will return a failed ammonia pump module to help NASA better understand the failure mechanism and improve pump designs for future systems. 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.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, Fla. -- In the Space Station Processing Facility, a worker at the bottom of the payload canister checks the descent of the Multi-Purpose Logistics Module Leonardo. The MPLM is the primary payload on mission STS-105, the 11th assembly flight to the International Space Station. Leonardo, fitted with supplies and equipment for the crew and the Station, will be transported to Launch Pad 39A and installed into Discoverys payload bay. Launch is scheduled no earlier than Aug. 9

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. In the Space Station Processing Facility at NASA Kennedy Space Center, workers get ready to move a supply rack into the multi-purpose logistics module Leonardo (at right). The module is being prepared for the second return-to-flight mission, STS-121, on space shuttle Discovery, carrying more than two tons of equipment and supplies to the International Space Station. This will be the fourth trip to the station for Leonardo, the first of three Italian-built logistic modules. Equipment and supplies no longer needed on the station will be moved to Leonardo before it is unberthed on Flight Day 10 and put back into Discovery's cargo bay for return to Earth. This second return-to-flight test mission is to carry on analysis of safety improvements that debuted on the first return-to-flight mission, STS-114, and build upon those tests. The launch is targeted for a date no earlier than May.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - In the space Station Processing Facility at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, the pump module orbital replacement unit will be fitted with a crane to lift it to the Express Logistics Carrier 1, or ELC-1. The carrier is part of the STS-129 payload on space shuttle Atlantis, which will deliver to the International Space Station two spare gyroscopes, two nitrogen tank assemblies, two pump modules, an ammonia tank assembly and a spare latching end effector for the station's robotic arm. STS-129 is targeted to launch Nov. 12.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - In a view from above inside Orbiter Processing Facility-1 at NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida, United Space Alliance technicians monitor the progress as a crane is attached to the right orbital maneuvering system, or OMS, pod for space shuttle Atlantis. It is the last time an OMS pod will be installed on Atlantis. The OMS 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 shuttles 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 the test facility at White Sands Space Harbor 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 spa

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- Discoverys airlock is lifted toward the orbiter for installation inside the orbiters payload bay. The airlock is sized to accommodate two fully suited flight crew members simultaneously. Support functions include airlock depressurization and repressurization, extravehicular activity equipment recharge, liquid-cooled garment water cooling, EVA equipment checkout, and communications. Discovery is designated as the Return to Flight vehicle for mission STS-114, no earlier than March 2005. STS-114 mission is Logistics Flight 1, which is scheduled to deliver supplies and equipment plus the external stowage platform to the International Space Station.

The Orion Exploration Flight Test-1 (EFT-1) crew module is prepared for mating with the heat shield in the Operations and Checkout (O&C) Building at Kennedy Space Center on May 14, 2014. Part of Batch image transfer from Flickr.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - A crane moves the airlock from the cargo bay of space shuttle Atlantis to a waiting trailer in Orbiter Processing Facility-2 at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The airlock was the connecting point between the shuttle and International Space Station. It was removed as part of the ongoing work to prepare the shuttles for public display. The shuttle is being prepared for display at the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex.

Technicians work on assembly of the Exploration Flight Test-1 (EFT-1) Orion service module mass simulator at the Operations and Checkout (O&C) Building at Kennedy Space Center on March 13, 2013. Part of Batch image transfer from Flickr.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - In Orbiter Processing Facility-1 at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, space shuttle Discoverys payload bay is glimpsed for the final time as its doors swing shut with the aid of yellow-painted strongbacks, hardware used to support and operate the doors when the shuttle is not in space. Discovery's doors are being closed for the final time during Space Shuttle Program transition and retirement activities.Following the door closure, the vehicle will be powered down for the last time. Discovery is being prepared for public display at the Smithsonians National Air and Space Museum Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center in Chantilly, Va., in 2012.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - In Orbiter Processing Facility Bay 3 at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, a space shuttle main engine fills the aperture where it will be installed in shuttle Discovery for the shuttle's STS-131 mission to the International Space Station.The seven-member STS-131 crew will deliver a Multi-Purpose Logistics Module filled with resupply stowage platforms and racks to be transferred to locations around the station. Three spacewalks will include work to attach a spare ammonia tank assembly to the station's exterior and return a European experiment from outside the station's Columbus module. Discovery's launch, targeted for March 18, 2010, will initiate the 33rd shuttle mission to the station.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - In the Space Station Processing Facility at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, the Multi-Purpose Logistics Module Leonardo is carried by an overhead crane from its stand, at left, toward the payload canister. The canister will transport the module to Launch Pad 39A for installation in space shuttle Discovery for the STS-128 mission. The module will carry science and storage racks to the International Space Station. Launch is targeted for Aug. 18.

Inside the Neil Armstrong Operations and Checkout Building high bay at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, operations are underway to lower the Orion crew module adapter structural test article onto the European Space Agency's service module structural test article. After the hardware is attached, the structure will be packed and shipped to Lockheed Martin's Denver facility to undergo testing. The Orion spacecraft will launch atop the agency's Space Launch System rocket on Exploration Mission-1 in 2019.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - In Orbiter Processing Facility-1 at NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida, a United Space Alliance technician prepares to attach a yellow strongback to one of space shuttle Atlantis payload bay doors. Strongbacks are used to support and operate the doors when the shuttle is not in space.The work is part of the Space Shuttle Programs transition and retirement processing of shuttle Atlantis. A groundbreaking was held Jan. 18 for Atlantis' future home -- a 65,000-square-foot exhibit hall in Shuttle Plaza at the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - The space shuttle Endeavour is ready to back out of Bay 2 of the Orbiter Processing Facility at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida. It will be moved to the Vehicle Assembly Building to undergo final preparations for its cross-country ferry flight targeted for mid-September.The work is part of Transition and Retirement of the remaining space shuttles, Endeavour and Atlantis. Endeavour is being prepared for public display at the California Science Center in Los Angeles. Endeavour was the last space shuttle added to NASAs orbiter fleet. Over the course of its 19-year career, Endeavour spent 299 days in space during 25 missions.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- In Orbiter Processing Facility bay 2 at NASA's Kennedy Space Center, technicians direct the placement of the crew airlock module into Endeavour's payload bay, where it will be installed. The airlock is located in the middeck. The airlock and airlock hatches permit flight crew members to transfer from the middeck crew compartment into the payload bay for extravehicular activities in their space suits without depressurizing the orbiter crew cabin. The airlock is sized to accommodate two fully suited flight crew members simultaneously. Endeavour is targeted for flight on Aug. 9 on mission STS-118 to the International Space Station.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - In bay 3 of the Orbiter Processing Facility, the nose wheel well doors are open on Atlantis. The orbiter returned from mission STS-115 on Sept. 21 and is being prepared for her next mission, STS-117. The mission will be the 21st to the International Space Station and construction flight 13A. The mission payload comprises the starboard arrays 3 and 4. Launch is scheduled for no earlier than Feb. 22, 2007.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - In Orbiter Processing Facility-3 at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, the multi-purpose logistics module Leonardo and an ammonia tank assembly is lifted out of space shuttle Discovery's payload bay. Discovery landed on Runway 33 at Kennedy's Shuttle Landing Facility at 9 08 a.m. EDT April 20 after 15 days in space, completing the more than 6.2-million-mile STS-131 mission on orbit 238. The seven-member STS-131 crew carried the multi-purpose logistics module Leonardo, filled with supplies, a new crew sleeping quarters and science racks that were transferred to the International Space Station's laboratories. Leonardo now will be modified into a permanent multi-purpose module, or PMM, and left aboard the station on space shuttle Discovery's STS-133 mission, targeted for launch Sept. 16.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- The first Space Shuttle Main Engine (SSME) is installed on Space Shuttle Atlantis following the welding repair of the propulsion system flow liners as preparations to launch mission STS-112 continue. Sitting atop the engine is Angela DiMattia, the move director for Rocketdyne. Just behind and below her is Rocketdyne employee Brickford Lero, offering some additional guidance. Mission STS-112 is an assembly flight to the International Space Station and is targeted for launch no earlier than Sept. 28, 2002. Members of the STS-112 crew are Commander Jeffrey Ashby; Pilot Pamela Melroy; and Mission Specialists David Wolf, Piers Sellers, Sandra Magnus, and Fyodor Yurchikhin of the Russian Space Agency.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - In the Orbiter Processing Facilitys bay 3, the orbiter boom sensor system is moved into position by a crane over space shuttle Discovery for installation in its payload bay to support mission STS-128. The 50-foot-long boom attaches to the shuttle arm and provides equipment to inspect the shuttle's heat shield while in space. It contains an intensified television camera (ITVC) and a laser dynamic range imager, which are mounted on a pan and tilt unit, and a laser camera system (LCS) mounted on a stationary bracket. The STS-128 flight will carry science and storage racks to the International Space Station on space shuttle Discovery. Launch of Discovery is targeted for Aug. 6.

VANDENBERG AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. - Inside an environmental enclosure at Vandenberg Air Force Base's processing facility in California, NASA's Nuclear Spectroscopic Telescope Array, or NuSTAR, secured inside a turnover rotation fixture, moves toward interface with its Orbital Sciences Pegasus XL rocket. The uniting of the spacecraft with the rocket is a major milestone in prelaunch preparations.After processing of the rocket and spacecraft are complete, they will be flown on Orbital's L-1011 carrier aircraft from Vandenberg to the Ronald Reagan Ballistic Missile Defense Test Site on the Pacific Oceans Kwajalein Atoll for launch. The high-energy x-ray telescope will conduct a census of black holes, map radioactive material in young supernovae remnants, and study the origins of cosmic rays and the extreme physics around collapsed stars.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - In the Orbiter Processing Facility, the left-hand Orbital Maneuvering System (OMS) pod (seen from the front) is lifted off its transporter. The OMS pod will be installed on the orbiter Discovery. The Orbital Maneuvering System provides the thrust for orbit insertion, orbit circularization, orbit transfer, rendezvous, deorbit, abort to orbit and abort once around. It can provide up to 1,000 pounds of propellant to the aft reaction control system. Each pod contains one OMS engine and the hardware needed to pressurize, store and distribute the propellants to perform the velocity maneuvers.

A close-up view of the aft segments of the twin solid rocket boosters for the Artemis I Space Launch System rocket inside High Bay 3 of the Vehicle Assembly Building at NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Jan. 10, 2022. Artemis I will be the first integrated test of NASAs deep space exploration systems: the Orion spacecraft, Space Launch System (SLS) rocket and the ground systems at Kennedy. In later missions, NASA will land the first woman and the first person of color on the surface of the Moon, paving the way for a long-term lunar presence and serving as a steppingstone on the way to Mars.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - During Crew Equipment Interface Test (CEIT) in the Orbiter Processing Facility at NASAs Kennedy Space Center, STS-121 Mission Specialist Michael E. Fossum familiarizes himself with the Portable Foot Restraint on the forward bulkhead of Atlantis. The Airlock is in the center. During CEIT, the crew has an opportunity to get a hands-on look at the orbiter and equipment they will be working with on their mission. Mission STS-121 is scheduled to launch aboard Space Shuttle Atlantis in July.

Inside the Launch Abort System Facility (LASF) at NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida, workers assemble the Launch Abort System (LAS) on Feb. 5, 2019, that will be used for the Orion Ascent Abort-2 (AA-2) Flight Test. AA-2 is a full-stress test of the LAS, scheduled for Spring 2019. AA-2 will launch from Space Launch Complex 46, carrying a fully functional LAS and a 22,000-pound Orion test vehicle to an altitude of 31,000 feet and traveling at more than 1,000 miles an hour. The test will verify the LAS can steer the crew module and astronauts aboard to safety in the event of an issue with the Space Launch System (SLS) rocket when the spacecraft is under the highest aerodynamic loads it will experience during a rapid climb into space. NASA's Orion and Exploration Ground Systems programs and contractors from Jacob's and Northrop Grumman in conjunction with the Air Force Space and Missile Center's Launch Operations branch are performing flight operations for AA-2.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - In Orbiter Processing Facility-1 at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, the Ku-band antenna is being stowed in space shuttle Atlantis' payload bay. The antenna, which resembles a mini-satellite dish, transmits audio, video and data between Earth and the shuttle. Next, the clamshell doors of the payload bay will close completely in preparation for its move to the Vehicle Assembly Building. Atlantis is being prepared for the STS-135 mission, which will deliver the Raffaello multipurpose logistics module packed with supplies, logistics and spare parts to the International Space Station. STS-135 is targeted to launch June 28, and will be the last spaceflight for the Space Shuttle Program.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - In the Space Station Processing Facility, the U.S. Node 2 (center) and the Japanese Experiment Module (JEM), background right, await a Multi-Element Integrated Test (MEIT). Node 2 attaches to the end of the U.S. Lab on the International Space Station and provides attach locations for the Japanese laboratory, European laboratory, the Centrifuge Accommodation Module and, eventually, 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. The National Space Development Agency of Japan (NASDA) developed their laboratory at the Tsukuba Space Center near Tokyo. It is the first element, named "Kibo" (Hope), to be delivered to KSC. The JEM is Japan's primary contribution to the Station. It will enhance the unique research capabilities of the orbiting complex by providing an additional environment for astr

In the foreground, the lower dome of the Boeing CST-100 Structural Test Article rests on a test stand inside the Commercial Crew and Cargo Processing Facility, or C3PF, at NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The test article will serve as a pathfinder for assembling and processing operational CST-100 spacecraft inside the revitalized facility, which for 20 years served as a shuttle processing hangar.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - In an overhead view, technicians work inside the aft compartment of the space shuttle Endeavour during installation of replica shuttle main engine RSME number 3 in Orbiter Processing Facility Bay 2 at NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida.The work is part of Transition and Retirement of the remaining space shuttles, Endeavour and Atlantis. Endeavour is being prepared for public display at the California Science Center in Los Angeles. Its ferry flight to California is targeted for mid-September. Endeavour was the last space shuttle added to NASAs orbiter fleet. Over the course of its 19-year career, Endeavour spent 299 days in space during 25 missions.

PEGASUS NUSTAR, Fairing Halves and Starboard Fairing Move to Cleanroom

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - Two parts of the Orbiter Boom Sensor System sit end to end in the Remote Manipulator System lab inside the Vehicle Assembly Building. The OBSS will be assembled and undergo final checkout and testing in the lab prior to being transferred to the Orbiter Processing Facility for installation on Space Shuttle Discovery. The 50-foot-long OBSS will be attached to the Remote Manipulator System, or Shuttle arm, and is one of the new safety measures for Return to Flight, equipping the orbiter with cameras and laser systems to inspect the Shuttle's Thermal Protection System while in space. Discovery is slated to fly mission STS-114 once Space Shuttle launches resume. The launch planning window is May 12 to June 3, 2005.

- CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - At NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, a mock air lock has been installed in the payload bay of the space shuttle Atlantis in Bay 2 of the Orbiter Processing Facility. Atlantis is undergoing final preparations for its transfer to the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex targeted for November.The work is part of Transition and Retirement of the remaining space shuttles, Atlantis and Endeavour. Atlantis is being prepared for public display at Kennedy's Visitor Complex. Over the course of its 26-year career, Atlantis spent 293 days in space during 33 missions.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - In Orbiter Processing Facility-1 at NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida, a crane carries an orbital maneuvering system (OMS) pod closer to space shuttle Discovery. The OMS pod will be installed on Discovery. The OMS pod was returned from White Sands Space Harbor in New Mexico where it underwent a complete deservicing and cleaning. The work is part of the Space Shuttle Programs transition and retirement processing of space shuttle Discovery. The shuttle will go to the Smithsonians National Air and Space Museum, Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center in Chantilly, Va., in April 2012.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- This is a 3-D image of crews in Orbiter Processing Facility-2 at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida using a Hyster forklift to lower one of space shuttle Discovery's main engines after removal for cleaning and inspection. This is part of the spacecraft's transition and retirement processing and work performed on Discovery is expected to help rocket designers build next-generation spacecraft and prepare the shuttle for future public display. To view this image, use green and magenta 3-D glasses.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - At NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, United Space Alliance technicians install a mock air lock in the payload bay of the space shuttle Atlantis in Bay 2 of the Orbiter Processing Facility. Atlantis is undergoing final preparations for its transfer to the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex targeted for November.The work is part of Transition and Retirement of the remaining space shuttles, Atlantis and Endeavour. Atlantis is being prepared for public display at Kennedy's Visitor Complex. Over the course of its 26-year career, Atlantis spent 293 days in space during 33 missions.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- In Orbiter Processing Facility-1 at NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida, an overhead crane is moved into place around shuttle Endeavours left-hand orbital maneuvering system, or OMS, pod, to begin removal of the component.The work is part of Endeavours transition and retirement processing. The spacecraft is being prepared for public display at the California Science Center in Los Angeles. Endeavour flew 25 missions, spent 299 days in space, orbited Earth 4,671 times and traveled 122, 883, 151 miles over the course of its 19-year career. Endeavours STS-134 and final mission was completed after landing on June 1, 2011.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - In the Orbiter Processing Facility Bay 1 at NASA Kennedy Space Center, workers secure a crane to the remote manipulator system boom in Atlantis payload bay. The boom is being removed from Atlantis and will be temporarily stored.. The RMS includes the electromechanical arm that maneuvers a payload from the payload bay of the orbiter to its deployment position and then releases it. It can also grapple a free-flying payload, maneuver it to the payload bay of the orbiter and berth it in the orbiter. The RMS arm is 50 feet 3 inches long and 15 inches in diameter. It weighs 905 pounds, and the total system weighs 994 pounds. The RMS has six joints that correspond roughly to the joints of the human arm, with shoulder yaw and pitch joints; an elbow pitch joint; and wrist pitch, yaw and roll joints. The end effector is the unit at the end of the wrist that actually grabs, or grapples, the payload.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- In the Space Station Processing Facility at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, the Robotic Refueling Mission (RRM) is installed on the Lightweight Multi-Purpose Experiment Support Structure Carrier, or LMC . Technicians are preparing it for its protective cover installation prior to its move into a payload canister.The RRM is being processed to fly aboard space shuttle Atlantis on the STS-135 mission to the International Space Station.Commander Chris Ferguson, Pilot Doug Hurley and Mission Specialists Sandra Magnus and Rex Walheim are targeted to launch in early July, 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

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - Inside Orbiter Processing Facility-2 at NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida, work will begin soon to close space shuttle Atlantis payload bay doors for the final time.The orbiter is undergoing final preparations for its transfer to the Kennedy Space Center Visitor complex targeted for November. The work is part of Transition and Retirement of the remaining shuttle. Atlantis is being prepared for public display at the visitor complex. Over the course of its 26-year career, Atlantis spent 293 days in space during 33 missions.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - In Orbiter Processing Facility bay 3 at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, space shuttle main engine No. 3 has been installed in space shuttle Discovery. Each engine is 14 feet long, weighs about 6,700 pounds, and is 7.5 feet in diameter at the end of the nozzle. Discovery is being processed for its next mission, STS-119, targeted for launch on Feb. 12, 2009. Discovery and its crew will deliver integrated truss structure 6 (S6) and solar arrays to the International Space Station.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - In the Orbiter Processing Facility at NASA's Kennedy Space Center, STS-115 crew members inspect equipment in Atlantis's payload bay. The crew is at KSC for Crew Equipment Interface Test activities, which involves equipment familiarization, a routine part of astronaut training and launch preparations. The STS-115 mission will deliver the second port truss segment, the P3/P4 truss, to the International Space Station. The crew will attach the P3 to the first port truss segment, the P1 truss, as well as deploy solar array set 2A and 4A. Launch on Space Shuttle Atlantis is scheduled for late August.

Elements for the Exploration Flight Test-1 (EFT-1) Orion pressure vessel are prepared for welding at NASAs Michoud Assembly Facility in New Orleans on Sept. 7, 2011. Orions pressure vessel is underlying frame of the crew module that will provide an air-tight, habitable space for astronauts on future missions to the Moon. Part of Batch image transfer from Flickr.

The jettison motor for Orions Launch Abort System (LAS) is shown inside the Launch Abort System Facility (LASF) at NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The motor, which arrived at Kennedy on Sept. 10, 2018, will be stored in the LASF until processing for a full-stress test of the LAS called Ascent Abort-2 (AA-2), scheduled for April 2019. Designed and built by NASA and Lockheed Martin, the LAS will protect astronauts if a problem arises during launch by pulling the spacecraft away from a failing rocket. The jettison motor is one of three solid propellant rocket motors in the LAS (the abort motor and attitude control motor are the other two). The jettison motor will pull the LAS away from the crew module, allowing Orions parachutes to deploy and the spacecraft to safely land in the ocean.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- The last engine is being installed in orbiter Atlantis after a welding and polishing process was undertaken on flow liners where cracks were detected. All engines were removed for inspection of flow liners. Atlantis will next fly on mission STS-112, scheduled for launch no earlier than Oct. 2.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- Strongbacks line the payload bay doors of space shuttle Atlantis for its move from Orbiter Processing Facility-2 to the Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB) at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida.Atlantis will be stored temporarily in the VAB while transition and retirement processing resumes on shuttle Endeavour in the processing hangar. Endeavour is being prepared for public display at the California Science Center in Los Angeles. A groundbreaking was held Jan. 18 for Atlantis' future home -- a 65,000-square-foot exhibit in Shuttle Plaza at the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex. For additional information, visit http://www.nasa.gov/shuttle.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- A main engine slowly emerges from space shuttle Discovery. The work is taking place in Orbiter Processing Facility-2 at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The transition and retirement processing is expected to help rocket designers build next-generation spacecraft and prepare the shuttle for display.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - In Orbiter Processing Facility bay 3 at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, the remote manipulator system, or RMS, arm is moved out of the payload bay of space shuttle Discovery. The RMS is used to grab, or grapple, the payload as well as retrieve, repair and deploy satellites; provide a mobile extension ladder for spacewalking crewmembers; and be used as an inspection aid to allow flight crew members to view the orbiters or payloads surfaces through a TV camera on the arm. Discovery is targeted to launch Aug. 6 on the STS-128 mission.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - In the Space Station Processing Facility at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, workers secure the newly arrived ExPRESS Logistics Carrier 3, or ELC-3, on its work stand in the clean room.ELC-3 and the Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer are the primary payloads for space shuttle Endeavour's STS-134 mission to the International Space Station. The STS-134 crew will also deliver spare parts including two S-band communications antennas, a high pressure gas tank, additional spare parts for Dextre and micrometeoroid debris shields. Endeavour's launch is targeted for July 29, 2010.

At NASAs Michoud Assembly Facility in New Orleans, technicians from Orion prime contractor Lockheed Martin have welded together three cone-shaped panels on Orions crew module for the Artemis III mission that will land the first woman and next man on the Moon.The crew modules primary structure, the pressure vessel, is comprised of seven machined aluminum alloy pieces that are welded together through a weld process that produces a strong, air-tight habitable space for astronauts during the mission. The pressure vessel is designed to withstand the harsh and demanding environment of deep space, and is the core structure upon which all the other elements of Orions crew module are integrated. Infographic showing the seven pieces of Orion's underlying structureWith welding complete on the crew module cone panels - one of which contains windows providing astronauts views of the Moon and Earth - work will begin joining the forward bulkhead to the tunnel to create the top of the spacecr

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- Inside Orbiter Processing Facility 3 at Kennedy Space Center, technicians prepare to install engine No. 3 to Discovery during processing for mission STS-120. Mission STS-120 will be the 23rd flight to the International Space Station. Space Shuttle Discovery will carry the U.S. Node 2. Launch is targeted for Oct. 20. NASA/Dimitri Gerondidakis

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- Media learn about the plans Space Exploration Technologies Corp. (SpaceX) has to take NASA astronauts to the International Space Station at Space Launch Complex-40 on Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. SpaceX is working to make its Falcon 9 rocket and Dragon capsule safe for humans for NASA's Commercial Crew Program (CCP) under the Commercial Crew Development Round 2 (CCDev2) activities. SpaceX already is developing these systems under NASA's Commercial Orbital Transportation System (COTS) Program to take supplies to the space station. Scott Henderson, director of SpaceX mission assurance, explained that the company is drafting designs to make the Dragon capsule crew-capable with life support systems while meeting CCP's safety requirements. One such option under discussion is a launch abort system that would push astronauts away from the launch pad in the event of an emergency, which isdifferent than traditional pull systems. It's the freedom to develop innovativ

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - Paul Vona, operations engineer, NDT Services, with PaR Systems Inc., demonstrates the automated X-ray system in the robotic inspection cell for members of the media at Hangar N at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida. PaR Systems held an Open House to celebrate the one-year anniversary of a lease agreement with Kennedy. Under a 15-year lease, PaR Systems is utilizing Hangar N and its unique nondestructive testing equipment. The partnership agreement was established by Kennedy's Center Planning and Development Directorate. The agreement is just one example of the types of partnerships that Kennedy is seeking to create a multi-user spaceport.

Technicians begin welding the Exploration Flight Test-1 (EFT-1) Orion pressure vessel at NASAs Michoud Assembly Facility in New Orleans on Sept. 9, 2011. Orions pressure vessel is underlying frame of the crew module that will provide an air-tight, habitable space for astronauts on future missions to the Moon. Part of Batch image transfer from Flickr.

Orion EFT-1 Crew Module Being Uncrated

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- In Orbiter Processing Facility-2 at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, United Space Alliance technicians position the left orbital maneuvering system OMS pod for reinstallation on space shuttle Endeavour. The OMS pod underwent a complete deservicing and cleaning at White Sands Space Harbor in New Mexico, part of the shuttles transition and retirement processing.Endeavour is being prepared for public display at the California Science Center in Los Angeles. Over the course of its 19-year career, Endeavour spent 299 days in space during 25 missions.

An Orion weight and center of gravity test with the Exploration Flight Test-1 (EFT-1) crew module takes place at the Operations and Checkout (O&C) Building at Kennedy Space Center on June 8, 2014. Part of Batch image transfer from Flickr.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- In Vehicle Assembly Building at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, an overhead crane slowly lifts shuttle Atlantis into a vertical position above the transfer aisle. The spacecraft will be moved to a high bay where it will be attached to its external fuel tank and solid rocket boosters already on the mobile launcher platform.Commander Chris Ferguson, Pilot Doug Hurley and Mission Specialists Sandra Magnus and Rex Walheim are expected to launch in mid-July, 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

S98-06946 (28 April 1998) --- U.S. Sen. John H. Glenn Jr. (D.-Ohio), uses a device called a Sky genie to simulate rappelling from a troubled Space Shuttle during training at the Johnson Space Center (JSC). Thistraining mockup is called The full fuselage trainer (FFT). Glenn has been named as a payload specialist for STS-95, scheduled for launch later this year. This exercise, in the systems integration facility at JSC, trains the crew members for procedures to follow in egressing a troubled shuttle on the ground.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - In Orbiter Processing Facility-1 at NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida, United Space Alliance technicians reinstall the left orbital maneuvering system, or OMS, pod 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 Shuttle Plaz

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- In the Orbiter Processing Facility, the right payload bay door of Discovery is nearly closed in preparation for the rollover of the orbiter to the Vehicle Assembly Building. The primary payload, the U.S. Node 2, which is named Harmony, will be installed in the payload bay at the pad prior to Discovery's liftoff on mission STS-120. The mission will be the 23rd flight for the assembly of the International Space Station. Space Shuttle Discovery is targeted for launch on Oct. 23.

An Orbital ATK rocket is seen just before it is rolled out to launch Pad-0A at Wallops Flight Facility Thursday, May 17, 2018 at Wallops Island, VA. The Antares will launch a Cygnus spacecraft on a cargo resupply mission to the International Space Station. The mission is Orbital ATKs ninth contracted cargo delivery flight to the space station for NASA. Included in the 7,400 pounds of cargo onboard Cygnus, are science experiments, crew supplies, and vehicle hardware.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - In Orbiter Processing Facility-1 at NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida, a handling fixture lifts an orbital maneuvering system, or OMS, pod from its transporter. 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 exh

The Space Shuttle Atlantis, STS-110 mission, deployed this railcar, called the Mobile Transporter, and an initial 43-foot section of track, the S0 (S-zero) truss, preparing the International Space Station (ISS) for future spacewalks. The first railroad in space, the Mobile Transporter will allow the Station's robotic arm to travel up and down the finished truss for future assembly and maintenance. The 27,000-pound S0 truss is the first of 9 segments that will make up the Station's external framework that will eventually stretch 356 feet (109 meters), or approximately the length of a football field. The completed truss structure will hold solar arrays and radiators to provide power and cooling for additional international research laboratories from Japan and Europe that will be attached to the Station. The Space Shuttle Orbiter Atlantis, STS-110 mission, was launched April 8, 2002 and returned to Earth April 19, 2002. STS-110's Extravehicular Activity (EVA) marked the first use of the S

. Move crews at NASAs Michoud Assembly Facility lift the aft liquid oxygen tank (LOX) barrel out of the Vertical Weld Center (VWC) for its next phase of production. The aft barrel will eventually be mated with the forward barrel and the forward and aft domes to form the LOX tank, which will be used in the Space Launch Systems (SLS) Artemis IV mission. The LOX tank holds 196,000 gallons of super-cooled liquid oxygen to help fuel four RS-25 engines. The SLS core stage is made up of five unique elements: the forward skirt, liquid oxygen tank, intertank, liquid hydrogen tank, and the engine section. The liquid oxygen hardware, along with the liquid hydrogen tank will provide propellant to the four RS-25 engines to produce more than two million pounds of thrust to help launch NASAs Orion spacecraft, astronauts, and supplies beyond Earths orbit to the Moon. Together with its four RS-25 engines, the rockets massive 212-foot-tall core stage the largest stage NASA has ever built and its twin

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - In the Space Shuttle Main Engine Processing Facility at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, a United Space Alliance worker monitors a main engine as it is lowered onto a transporter. The engine is being moved to Orbiter Processing Facility Bay 3 where it will be installed in space shuttle Discovery during processing for the shuttle's STS-131 mission to the International Space Station.The seven-member STS-131 crew will deliver a Multi-Purpose Logistics Module filled with resupply stowage platforms and racks to be transferred to locations around the station. Three spacewalks will include work to attach a spare ammonia tank assembly to the station's exterior and return a European experiment from outside the station's Columbus module. Discovery's launch, targeted for March 18, 2010, will initiate the 33rd shuttle mission to the station.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- The International Space Station's Node 1 and Pressurized Mating Adapter-1 (PMA-1) are rotated by workers in KSC's Space Station Processing Facility. The node is rotated to provide access to different areas of the flight element for processing. Here, the node is rotated to provide access for the installation of heat pipe radiators and a flight computer. The node is scheduled to launch into space on STS-88, slated for a July 9 liftoff at 1:11 p.m. from KSC's Launch Pad 39B

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - In the Space Station Processing Facility at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, technicians watch as the control moment gyroscope is lowered onto an EXPRESS Logistics Carrier. The carrier is part of the STS-129 payload on space shuttle Atlantis, which will deliver to the International Space Station two spare gyroscopes, two nitrogen tank assemblies, two pump modules, an ammonia tank assembly and a spare latching end effector for the station's robotic arm. STS-129 is targeted to launch Nov. 12 .

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- In the Space Station Processing Facility, the U.S. Laboratory Destiny is about to undergo rotation in its workstand. A component of the International Space Station, Destiny is scheduled to fly on mission STS-98 in early 2001. During the mission, the crew will install the Lab during a series of three space walks. The STS-98 mission will provide the station with science research facilities and expand its power, life support and control capabilities. The U.S. Lab module continues a long tradition of microgravity materials research, first conducted by Skylab and later Shuttle and Spacelab missions. Destiny is expected to be a major feature in future research, providing facilities for biotechnology, fluid physics, combustion, and life sciences research

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- In the Space Station Processing Facility at NASA's Kennedy Space Center, technicians monitor the Special Purpose Dexterous Manipulator, known as Dextre, as a crane moves it into position onto 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.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - In Orbiter Processing Facility-1 at NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida, United Space Alliance technicians monitor the alignment of the forward reaction control system onto space shuttle Atlantis during the systems reinstallation on the shuttle. The system helped the shuttle maneuver while it was in orbit. Atlantis FRCS was removed and sent to White Sands Test Facility in New Mexico to be cleaned of its toxic propellants. 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 Shuttle Plaza at the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex. Atlantis is scheduled to roll over to the visitor complex in November in preparation for the exhibits grand opening in July 2013.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - Workers in bay 3 of the Orbiter Processing Facility check the progress of the orbiter boom sensor system as it is lowered into place in Discovery's payload bay. It was removed last week in order to inspect the power system, which is routine after every flight. Discovery returned from mission STS-121 in late July, and is now being processed for mission STS-116, scheduled to launch in mid-December.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- In the Astrotech Space Operations facility, a computer chip is bonded to a side brace on the Dawn spacecraft. The silicon chip holds the names of more than 360,000 space enthusiasts worldwide who signed up to participate in a virtual voyage to the asteroid belt and is about the size of an American five-cent coin. Dawn's mission is to explore two of the asteroid belt's most intriguing and dissimilar occupants: asteroid Vesta and the dwarf planet Ceres. Dawn is scheduled to launch June 30 from Launch Complex 17-B.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - In Orbiter Processing Facility-2 at NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida, United Space Alliance technicians monitor the progress as a large crane lifts the right orbital maneuvering system OMS pod for installation on space shuttle Endeavour. The OMS pod underwent complete deservicing and cleaning at White Sands Space Harbor in New Mexico, part of the transition and retirement processing of each shuttle. Endeavour is being prepared for public display at the California Science Center in Los Angeles. Over the course of its 19-year career, Endeavour spent 299 days in space during 25 missions.

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