NASA Spacecraft Preparation

Images show technicians working on various NASA spacecraft, including rovers and satellites, in cleanroom environments with advanced technology and equipment, highlighted by sterile conditions.

The GOES-L weather satellite sits on a workstand at Astrotech, Titusville, Fla., ready to be encapsulated for its transfer to Launch Pad 36A, Cape Canaveral Air Station. On the left side is the folded, two-panel solar array; on the adjoining side is a white box, which is the UHF antenna. Above the box is the S-band transmit antenna and receive antenna. Between them protrudes a search and rescue antenna. At right are the sounder (top) and imager (bottom). The mounted equipment on top of the unit is a telemetry and command antenna. The GOES is scheduled for launch aboard a Lockheed Martin Atlas II rocket later in May. The fourth of a new advanced series of geostationary weather satellites for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), GOES-L is a three-axis inertially stabilized spacecraft that will provide pictures and perform atmospheric sounding at the same time. After it is launched, the satellite will undergo checkout and then provide backup capabilities for the exi

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - In the Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility at NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida, technicians attach an overhead crane to the heat shield in preparation for integration with NASA's Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) mission aeroshell, (containing the compact car-sized rover Curiosity). Earlier, the aeroshell was mated to the cruise stage, which provides solar power, thrusters for navigation, and heat exchangers to the rover during its flight from Earth to Mars. The rover Curiosity has 10 science instruments designed to search for evidence on whether Mars has had environments favorable to microbial life, including chemical ingredients for life. The unique rover will use a laser to look inside rocks and release its gasses so that the rovers spectrometer can analyze and send the data back to Earth. Launch of MSL aboard a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket is scheduled for Nov. 25 from Space Launch Complex 41 on Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida.

Workers in KSCs Spacecraft Assembly and Encapsulation Facility (SAEF-2) prepare the Tracking and Data Relay Satellite (TDRS-H) above them for electrical testing. The TDRS is scheduled to be launched from CCAFS June 29 aboard an Atlas IIA/Centaur rocket. One of three satellites (labeled H, I and J) being built in the Hughes Space and Communications Company Integrated Satellite Factory in El Segundo, Calif., the latest TDRS uses an innovative springback antenna design. A pair of 15-foot-diameter, flexible mesh antenna reflectors fold up for launch, then spring back into their original cupped circular shape on orbit. The new satellites will augment the TDRS systems existing Sand Ku-band frequencies by adding Ka-band capability. TDRS will serve as the sole means of continuous, high-data-rate communication with the space shuttle, with the International Space Station upon its completion, and with dozens of unmanned scientific satellites in low earth orbit

The GOES-L weather satellite sits on a workstand at Astrotech, Titusville, Fla., ready to be encapsulated for its transfer to Launch Pad 36A, Cape Canaveral Air Station. On the left side is the folded, two-panel solar array; on the adjoining side is a white box, which is the UHF antenna. Above the box is the S-band transmit antenna and receive antenna. Between them protrudes a search and rescue antenna. At right are the sounder (top) and imager (bottom). The mounted equipment on top of the unit is a telemetry and command antenna. The GOES is scheduled for launch aboard a Lockheed Martin Atlas II rocket later in May. The fourth of a new advanced series of geostationary weather satellites for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), GOES-L is a three-axis inertially stabilized spacecraft that will provide pictures and perform atmospheric sounding at the same time. After it is launched, the satellite will undergo checkout and then provide backup capabilities for the exi

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - In the Astrotech payload processing facility in Titusville, Fla., the GOES-O satellite is moved toward a special stand for loading of its oxidizer and hydrazine propellants. The latest Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite, GOES-O was developed by NASA for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, or NOAA. The GOES satellites continuously provide observations of 60 percent of the Earth including the continental United States, providing weather monitoring and forecast operations as well as a continuous and reliable stream of environmental information and severe weather warnings. Once in orbit, GOES-O will be designated GOES-14, and NASA will provide on-orbit checkout and then transfer operational responsibility to NOAA. The GOES-O satellite is targeted to launch from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station's Launch Complex 37 no earlier than May 12 onboard a United Launch Alliance Delta IV expendable launch vehicle.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- In the Space Station Processing Facility, a crane carries the Harmony, the Italian-built U.S. Node 2 connecting module for the International Space Station, to another stand for weighing. Harmony is part of the payload for space shuttle Discovery on mission STS-120. Launch is targeted for Oct. 23.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - Inside the Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, technicians complete the attachment of the Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution spacecraft, or MAVEN, to the rotation fixture for further testing and prelaunch preparations next week. MAVEN is being readied for its scheduled November launch aboard a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket to Mars. Positioned in an orbit above the Red Planet, MAVEN will study the upper atmosphere of Mars in unprecedented detail.

VANDENBERG AIR FORCE BASE, CALIF. - Inside the mobile service tower on NASA's Space Launch Complex 2 at Vandenberg Air Force Base, the protective cover has been removed from the CALIPSO spacecraft in preparation for encapsulation and launch. Beneath CALIPSO, CloudSat is enclosed within the dual payload attach fitting. 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 spacecraft is scheduled to launch April 21 aboard a Boeing Delta II rocket.

Orions service module for NASAs Artemis 1 mission was moved from a test stand to a test cell inside the Operations and Checkout Building at NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida on May 22, 2019. With microphones, strain gauges and accelerometers attached, the service module will undergo acoustic testing to check for flaws, the latest step in preparing for the agencys first uncrewed flight test of Orion on the Space Launch System (SLS) rocket. Artemis 1 will be the first mission launching Orion on the SLS rocket from Kennedys Launch Pad 39B. The mission will take Orion thousands of miles past the Moon on an approximately three-week test flight. Orion will return to Earth and splashdown in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of California, where it will be retrieved and returned to Kennedy.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - Boeing workers at Astrotech Space Operations in Titusville, Fla., check the second part of a transportation canister placed around the Delta II upper stage booster on the MESSENGER (Mercury Surface, Space Environment, Geochemistry and Ranging) spacecraft. MESSENGER will be transported to Launch Pad 17-B at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Fla. Liftoff of MESSENGER aboard a Boeing Delta II Heavy rocket is scheduled for Aug. 2. The spacecraft is expected to reach orbit around the planet in March 2011. MESSENGER was built for NASA by the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory in Laurel, Md.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - Inside the Neil Armstrong Operations and Checkout Building high bay at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, the Orion crew and service module stack for Exploration Flight Test-1 was lifted by crane out of the test cell. The stack has been lowered onto the mating device on a stand. A protective covering surrounds the crew module. 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 later this year atop a 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 test will help engineers evaluate the systems critical to crew safety including the heat shield, parachute sy

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - In the hazardous processing facility at Astrotech Space Operations in Titusville, Fla., Observatory A of the STEREO spacecraft waits for its move to a scale and later will be fueled. 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 aboard a Boeing Delta II rocket no earlier than Aug. 1.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - Workers at Astrotech Space Operations facilities in Titusville, Fla., encapsulate the MESSENGER (Mercury Surface, Space Environment, Geochemistry and Ranging) spacecraft for a move from its current location in the hazardous processing facility, where it has been since arrival March 10. It is being moved to an adjacent nonhazardous payload processing facility where the remainder of its final assembly and testing will be completed. The spacecraft will return to the hazardous processing facility when ready for fueling, spin balance testing and mating to the upper stage. MESSENGER is scheduled to launch no earlier than July 30 from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. MESSENGER is a scientific investigation of the planet Mercury, the least explored terrestrial planet. Understanding Mercury and how it was formed is essential to understanding the other terrestrial planets and their evolution. The MESSENGER mission will orbit Mercury after making two flybys of t

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- At Astrotech, workers check the progress of the Dawn spacecraft being lowered toward the upper stage booster below. The two elements will be mated for launch. Dawn's goal is to characterize the conditions and processes of the solar system's earliest epoch by investigating in detail the largest protoplanets that have remained intact since their formations: asteroid Vesta and the dwarf planet Ceres. They reside in the extensive zone between Mars and Jupiter together with many other smaller bodies, called the asteroid belt.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - Inside a high bay at Astrotech Space Operations in Titusville, Fla., the GOES-N spacecraft, workers secure the lines to an overhead crane. The spacecraft will be lifted and moved for mating with its payload adapter. GOES-N is the latest in a series of Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellites for NOAA and NASA providing continuous monitoring necessary for intensive data analysis. It will be launched May 18 on a Boeing Delta IV rocket from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida.

An overhead crane is positioned to move the GOES-R spacecraft into its work stand inside the Astrotech payload processing facility in Titusville, Florida near NASAs Kennedy Space Center.GOES-R will be the first satellite in a series of next-generation NOAA Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellites. The spacecraft is to launch aboard a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket in November.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - In Hangar AE at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station (CCAFS) in Florida, technicians with Spectrum Astro Inc. prepare to lower the protective cover over the Swift spacecraft before moving it to the launch pad. The launch of the Swift observatory, a NASA spacecraft to pinpoint the location of gamma-ray bursts, is scheduled for Nov. 17 from Pad 17-A on CCAFS. Liftoff aboard a Boeing Delta II rocket is targeted at the opening of a one-hour launch window beginning at 12 09 p.m. EST. Gamma-ray bursts are distant, yet fleeting explosions that appear to signal the births of black holes. They are the most powerful explosions known in the universe, emitting more than 100 billion times the energy that the Sun emits in a year. Yet they last only from a few milliseconds to a few minutes, never to appear in the same spot again.

In a clean room at Astrotech Space Operations in Titusville, Florida, NOAA's Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite-S, or GOES-S, is being prepared for encapsulation in it payload fairing. After encapsulation, the weather satellite will be moved to Space Launch Complex-41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. 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.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- At the Astrotech payload processing facility in Titusville, Fla., workers from Ball Aerospace check the Star Trackers on NASA's Kepler spacecraft before testing. Star Trackers are small aperture, space-qualified optical products which assure a spacecrafts accurate navigation in space. A NASA Discovery mission, Kepler is specifically designed to survey our region of the Milky Way galaxy to discover hundreds of Earth-size and smaller planets in or near the habitable zone and determine how many of the billions of stars in our galaxy have such planets. Results from this mission will allow us to place our solar system within the continuum of planetary systems in the Galaxy. After processing at Astrotech, Kepler will be carried to its launch pad at Cape Canaveral. .NASA's planet-hunting Kepler mission is scheduled to launch no earlier than March 5 atop a Delta II rocket.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - The external fuel tank for space shuttle Atlantis' STS-129 mission is ready for assembly with the solid rocket boosters stacked on the mobile launch platform in NASA Kennedy Space Center's Vehicle Assembly Building. The STS-129 mission is targeted to launch Nov. 12 on an 11-day supply mission to the International Space Station.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- From the payload changeout room on Launch Pad 39A, the payloads for mission STS-120 have been transferred into space shuttle Discovery's payload bay. Seen here is the Italian-built U.S. Node 2 module, named Harmony. Mission STS-120 will bring the Harmony module that will provide attachment points for European and Japanese laboratory modules to the International Space Station. Launch of Discovery is targeted for Oct. 23.

SDO - MEDIA DAY & FAIRING INSTALLATION

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- NASA's Orion spacecraft is viewed by members of the media at the Launch Abort System Facility at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Orion made the 8-day, 2,700 mile overland trip back to Kennedy from Naval Base San Diego in California. Analysis of date obtained during its two-orbit, four-and-a-half hour mission Dec. 5 will provide engineers with detailed information on how the spacecraft fared. The Ground Systems Development and Operations Program led the recovery, offload and transportation efforts.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - At the Astrotech payload processing facility in Titusville, Fla., the upper segment of the transportation canister is lowered over the Space Tracking and Surveillance System - Demonstrators, or STSS Demo, spacecraft. It will be installed onto the lower segments already in place. The STSS Demo 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)

Mars 2020 Lift Activities in Payload Hazardous Serviceing Facility (PHSF)

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - At Launch Pad 39A at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, space shuttle Atlantis' payload bay doors are moments away from being closed around the cargo for Atlantis' STS-129 mission to the International Space Station. The cargo includes the Express Logistics Carriers 1 and 2.The STS-129 crew will deliver 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. Launch is set for Nov. 16.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - A technician inspects the solar arrays for NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter, or LRO, at the Astrotech processing facility in Titusville, Fla. The spacecraft was built by engineers at Goddard Space Flight Center, where it recently completed two months of tests in a thermal vacuum chamber. The orbiter will carry seven instruments to provide scientists with detailed maps of the lunar surface and enhance our understanding of the moon's topography, lighting conditions, mineralogical composition and natural resources. Information gleaned from LRO will be used to select safe landing sites, determine locations for future lunar outposts and help mitigate radiation dangers to astronauts. The polar regions of the moon are the main focus of the mission because continuous access to sunlight may be possible and water ice may exist in permanently shadowed areas of the poles. Accompanying LRO on its journey to the moon will be the Lunar Crater Observation and Sensing Satelli

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- In the Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, United Launch Alliance technicians steady half of the Atlas V payload fairing for NASA's Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) mission as it is lifted from the floor. Preparations are under way to lower it into a horizontal position to uncover and then clean it to meet NASA's planetary protection requirements. Behind it is the other half of the fairing, already uncovered. The fairing will protect the spacecraft from the impact of aerodynamic pressure and heating during ascent. Although jettisoned once the spacecraft is outside the Earth's atmosphere, the fairing must be cleaned to the same exacting standards as the laboratory to avoid the possibility of contaminating it. MSL's components include a compact car-sized rover, Curiosity, which has 10 science instruments designed to search for evidence on whether Mars has had environments favorable to microbial life, including the chemical

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - Inside the Neil Armstrong Operations and Checkout Building high bay at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, the Orion crew and service module stack for Exploration Flight Test-1 was lifted by crane out of the test cell. Technicians in clean room suits monitor the progress as the crane slowly lowers the stack onto a mating device. A protective covering surrounds the crew module. 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 later this year atop a 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 test will help engineers evaluate the systems critical to c

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- Technicians at Astrotech in Titusville, Fla., work on closeouts of the payload attach fitting on NASA's Gamma-Ray Large Area Space Telescope, or GLAST, spacecraft. The GLAST is a powerful space observatory that will explore the Universe's ultimate frontier, where nature harnesses forces and energies far beyond anything possible on Earth; probe some of science's deepest questions, such as what our Universe is made of, and search for new laws of physics; explain how black holes accelerate jets of material to nearly light speed; and help crack the mystery of stupendously powerful explosions known as gamma-ray bursts. A launch date still is to be determined.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - At Astrotech Space Operations in Titusville, Fla., the second half of the fairing is being lifted toward the GOES-N spacecraft at left. It will be attached to the first half already in place. The fairing protects the spacecraft during launch. Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellites (GOES) are sponsored by NASAs Goddard Space Flight Center and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. GOES-N is targeted to launch June 23 from Launch Complex 37 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida.

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. - At Astrotech in Titusville, Fla., the GOES-N satellite waits for rotation to a vertical position. Seen in the front is the solar panel. Since its arrival on March 11, the satellite has been undergoing final testing by Boeing Satellite Systems of the imaging system, instrumentation, communications and power systems. Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellites (GOES) are sponsored by NASAs Goddard Space Flight Center and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. GOES-N is targeted to launch May 4 onboard a Boeing expendable launch vehicle Delta IV (4,2) with a 3-burn second stage operation.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - At the Astrotech Space Operations facility in Titusville, Fla., spacecraft technicians move one of the solar panels on the Solar Dynamics Observatory, or SDO, toward the spacecraft following testing 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. - On Launch Pad 39B, Space Shuttle Atlantis' payload bay doors are being closed for launch. Inside is seen the orbiter's cargo, the 17-and-a-half-ton P3/P4 truss segment for the International Space Station. Mission STS-115 is scheduled to lift off about 4:30 p.m. Aug. 27. The crew will deliver and install the P3/P4 segment to the port side of the integrated truss system on the International Space Station. The truss includes a new set of photovoltaic solar arrays. When unfurled to their full length of 240 feet, the arrays will provide additional power for the station in preparation for the delivery of international science modules over the next two years. The mission is expected to last 11 days and includes three scheduled spacewalks.

VANDENBERG AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. -- At the Astrotech processing facility on Vandenberg Air Force Base in California, workers lower a crane into position over NASA's Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer, or WISE, to lift it from its test stand to determine its exact weight.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.

GOES-P MOVE TO FUELING STAND & MEDIA DAY

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - A worker uncovers instrumentation on one of NASA's Solar Terrestrial Relations Observatory (STEREO) spacecraft in the clean room at Astrotech, a payload processing facility near Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The spacecraft arrived on May 3 and will now undergo final preparations and testing for launch. Liftoff will occur aboard a Boeing Delta II rocket from Launch Complex 17 on Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in the summer. STEREO consists of two spacecraft whose mission is the first to take measurements of the sun and solar wind in 3-D. This new view will improve our understanding of space weather and its impact on the Earth.

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. - - Inside the Astrotech payload processing facility in Titusville, NASA's Tracking and Data Relay Satellite, or TDRS-L, spacecraft is undergoing preflight processing. TDRS-L is being prepared for encapsulation inside its payload fairing prior to being transported to Launch Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. The TDRS-L satellite will be a part of the second of three next-generation spacecraft designed to ensure vital operational continuity for the NASA Space Network. It is scheduled to launch from Cape Canaveral's Space Launch Complex 41 atop a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket on Jan. 23, 2014. The current Tracking and Data Relay Satellite system consists of eight in-orbit satellites distributed to provide near continuous information relay contact with orbiting spacecraft ranging from the International Space Station and Hubble Space Telescope to the array of scientific observatories.

NASA's Dawn spacecraft's solar array wings are folded to fit inside nose section of protective fairing.

VANDENBERG AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. - In the mobile service tower on Space Launch Complex 2, the first half of the fairing moves into place behind the Ocean Surface Topography Mission, or OSTM/Jason 2, spacecraft for encapsulation. The fairing is a molded structure that fits flush with the outside surface of the Delta II upper stage booster and forms an aerodynamically smooth nose cone, protecting the spacecraft during launch and ascent. The launch of the OSTM/Jason-2 is scheduled for June 20 from Vandenberg Air Force Base. The launch window extends from 12:46 a.m. to 12:55 a.m. PDT. The satellite will be placed in an 830-mile-high orbit at an inclination of 66 degrees after separating from the Delta II 55 minutes after liftoff. The five primary science instruments of the Ocean Surface Topography Mission aboard the Jason 2 spacecraft are dedicated to measuring the height of the ocean surface. These measurements will be used to evaluate and forecast climate changes and improve weather

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- In the Space Station Processing Facility at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, an overhead crane moves the Multi-Purpose Logistics Module Leonardo to a work stand. Leonardo carried 32,000 pounds of supplies to the International Space Station on the STS-126 mission in November. Endeavour returned to Kennedy on a piggyback flight from California Dec. 12.

Inside the high bay of the Astrotech Space Operations facility at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California, a solar array first motion test is in progress on NASA's Ice, Cloud and land Elevation Satellite-2 (ICESat-2) on June 18, 2018. The satellite is being prepared for its scheduled launch from Space Launch Complex-2 at Vandenberg on the final United Launch Alliance Delta II rocket. ICESat-2 will measure the height of a changing Earth, one laser pulse at a time, 10,000 laser pulses a second. The satellite will carry the Advanced Topographic Laser Altimeter System. ICESat-2 will help scientists investigate why, and how much our planet's frozen and icy areas, called the cryosphere, is changing in a warming climate.

NOAAs Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite-T (GOES-T) is in view inside the Astrotech Space Operations facility in Titusville, Florida, on Jan. 28, 2022, as it is being prepared for encapsulation. GOES-T is scheduled to launch on March 1, 2022, atop a United Launch Alliance (ULA) Atlas V 541 rocket from Space Launch Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station. GOES-T is the third satellite in the GOES-R series that will continue to help meteorologists observe and predict local weather events that affect public safety. The launch is being managed by NASAs Launch Services Program based at Kennedy Space Center in Florida, Americas multi-user spaceport.

Inside SpaceXs Payload Processing Facility at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California, the U.S.-European Sentinel-6 Michael Freilich ocean-monitoring satellite is being encapsulated in the SpaceX Falcon 9 payload fairing on Nov. 3, 2020. Sentinel-6 is scheduled to launch on Nov. 21, 2020, at 12:17 p.m. EST (9:17 a.m. PST), atop the SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from Space Launch Complex 4E at Vandenberg Air Force Base. The Launch Services Program at Kennedy is responsible for launch management.

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 being lifted by crane 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.

At Astrotech Space Operations in Titusville, Florida, technicians and engineers inspect NOAA's Geostationary Operation Environmental Satellite-S (GOES-S) after removal from its shipping container. 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.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- At Astrotech, technicians begin lowering the upper canister over the Dawn spacecraft. After enclosure, Dawn will be transported to Launch Pad 17-B and lifted into the mobile service tower for mating with the Delta II launch vehicle. The Delta II-Heavy, manufactured by the United Launch Alliance, is scheduled to launch the Dawn spacecraft on its 4-year flight to the asteroid belt. The Delta II-Heavy will use three stages and nine solid-fueled booster rockets to propel Dawn on its way. A 9.5-foot payload fairing will protect the spacecraft from the heat and stresses of launch. Dawn's goal is to characterize the conditions and processes of the solar system's earliest epoch by investigating in detail the largest protoplanets that have remained intact since their formations: asteroid Vesta and the dwarf planet Ceres. They reside in the extensive zone between Mars and Jupiter together with many other smaller bodies, called the asteroid belt. Dawn is schedu

Orion Service Module Testing. The European Service Module for the Artemis II mission is photographed inside the Neil Armstrong Operations and Checkout Building at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida earlier this month. The Service Module successfully completed a round of acoustic tests to ensure it can withstand the speed and vibration it will experience during launch and throughout the mission. Artemis II will be the first crewed flight test of the Space Launch System rocket and Orion spacecraft. The service module will provide the power necessary to propel Orion on a trip around the Moon, including the in-space maneuvering capability and other commodities necessary to sustain crew for the duration of the mission.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - At Astrotech Space Operations in Titusville, Fla., technicians check the STEREO spacecraft "B" as it moves away from a tilt table (at right). The spacecraft will be placed on another stand nearby. 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 aboard a Boeing Delta II rocket on July 22.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- In the Astrotech payload processing facility near Kennedy Space Center in Florida, a lifting device transfers the Atlas payload fairing enclosing the Juno spacecraft over a transporter during operations to move the spacecraft to Space Launch Complex 41.The fairing will protect the spacecraft from the impact of aerodynamic pressure and heating during ascent and will be jettisoned once the spacecraft is outside the Earth's atmosphere. Juno is scheduled to launch aboard a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket from Cape Canaveral, Fla., Aug. 5.The solar-powered spacecraft will orbit Jupiter's poles 33 times to find out more about the gas giant's origins, structure, atmosphere and magnetosphere and investigate the existence of a solid planetary core.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - In the Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility at NASA's Kennedy Space Center, arcane moves the cover of the shipping container away from its cargo, the Multi-Use Lightweight Equipment (MULE) carrier. 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. - Boeing workers move the first part of the fairing into place around the Swift spacecraft inside the mobile service tower on Launch Pad 17-A, Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. The fairing is being installed around the payload for protection during launch and ascent. A Boeing Delta II rocket is the launch vehicle for the Swift spacecraft and its Gamma-Ray Burst Mission. Swift is a first-of-its-kind multi-wavelength observatory dedicated to the study of gamma-ray burst science. Its three instruments will work together to observe GRBs and afterglows in the gamma ray, X-ray, ultraviolet and optical wavebands. Swift is scheduled to launch Nov. 17 at 12 09 p.m. EST.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- At Building AE, the Space Infrared Telescope Facility (SIRTF) is unpacked after being shipped from the Lockheed Martin plant in Sunnyvale, Calif. SIRTF will obtain images and spectra by detecting the infrared energy, or heat, radiated by objects in space. Most of this infrared radiation is blocked by the Earth's atmosphere and cannot be observed from the ground. Consisting of an 0.85-meter telescope and three cryogenically cooled science instruments, SIRTF is one of NASA's largest infrared telescopes to be launched. SIRTF is scheduled for launch aboard a Delta II rocket from Launch Complex 17-B, Cape Canaveral Air Force Station.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - At the Astrotech payload processing facility in Titusville, Fla., access platforms are being removed from around the encapsulated GOES-O satellite in preparation for moving GOES-O to Cape Canaveral Air Force Station's Launch Complex 37 pad where it will be mated with the United Launch Alliance Delta IV expendable launch vehicle. The GOES-O satellite is targeted to launch no earlier than June 26. The latest Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite, GOES-O was developed by NASA for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, or NOAA. The GOES satellites continuously provide observations of 60 percent of the Earth including the continental United States, providing weather monitoring and forecast operations as well as a continuous and reliable stream of environmental information and severe weather warnings. Once in orbit, GOES-O will be designated GOES-14, and NASA will provide on-orbit checkout and then transfer operational responsibility to NOAA.

A crane is used to rotate NASA's Ice, Cloud and land Elevation Satellite-2 (ICESat-2) in its fixture inside the high bay of the Astrotech Space Operations facility on June 14, 2018, at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California. ICESat-2 was shipped from the Northrop Grumman facility in Gilbert, Arizona, where it was built and tested. The satellite is scheduled to launch from Space Launch Complex-2 at Vandenberg on the final United Launch Alliance Delta II rocket. ICESat-2 will measure the height of a changing Earth, one laser pulse at a time, 10,000 laser pulses a second. The satellite will carry the Advanced Topographic Laser Altimeter System. ICESat-2 will help scientists investigate why, and how much our planet's frozen and icy areas, called the cryosphere, is changing in a warming climate.

STS-132 PAYLOAD CANISTER ROTATION

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - At Astrotech Space Operations in Titusville, Fla., the Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite GOES-N is lowered toward the Payload Attach Fitting for mating. The fitting will enable the spacecraft to be mated to its launch vehicle, a Boeing Delta IV, with a 3-burn second-stage operation. Since its arrival on March 11, the satellite has been undergoing final testing by Boeing Satellite Systems of the imaging system, instrumentation, communications and power systems. The GOES spacecraft are sponsored by NASAs Goddard Space Flight Center and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. GOES-N is targeted to launch June 23 from Launch Complex 37 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- Technicians inside NASA Kennedy Space Center's Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility have attached a lifting device to the Atlas V rocket's payload fairing enclosing the Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) spacecraft. The fairing must be raised in order to be placed on a transporter for the move to Space Launch Complex 41.MSL's components include a compact car-sized rover, Curiosity, which has 10 science instruments designed to search for evidence on whether Mars has had environments favorable to microbial life, including the chemical ingredients for life. The unique rover will use a laser to look inside rocks and release its gasses so that the rovers spectrometer can analyze and send the data back to Earth. Launch of MSL aboard a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket is planned for Nov. 25 from Space Launch Complex-41 on Cape Canaveral Air Force Station.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - At Astrotech Space Operations in Titusville, Fla., a protective cover is being lowered over the Deep Impact spacecraft to protect it before the canister is installed around it. Once the spacecraft is completely covered, it will be transferred to Launch Pad 17-B on Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Fla. Then, in the mobile service tower, the fairing will be installed around the spacecraft. The fairing is a molded structure that fits flush with the outside surface of the Delta II upper stage booster and forms an aerodynamically smooth joint, protecting the spacecraft during launch. Scheduled for liftoff Jan. 12, Deep Impact will probe beneath the surface of Comet Tempel 1 on July 4, 2005, when the comet is 83 million miles from Earth. After releasing a 3- by 3-foot projectile to crash onto the surface, Deep Impacts flyby spacecraft will reveal the secrets of its interior by collecting pictures and data of how the crater forms, measuring the craters depth and

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - The GOES-N satellite is checked out on the rotation stand at Astrotech in Titusville, Fla. Since its arrival on March 11, the satellite has been undergoing final testing by Boeing Satellite Systems of the imaging system, instrumentation, communications and power systems. Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellites (GOES) are sponsored by the NASAs Goddard Space Flight Center and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. GOES-N is targeted to launch May 4 onboard a Boeing expendable launch vehicle Delta IV (4,2) with a 3-burn second stage operation. Once in orbit GOES-N will be designated GOES-13 and will complete checkout and be placed in on-orbit storage as a replacement for an older GOES satellite. GOES-N is the first in the next series of GOES satellites, N-P. The multi-mission GOES series N-P will be a vital contributor to weather, solar and space operations and science. The GOES N-P series will aid activities ranging from severe storm

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, Fla. - The Tracking and Data Relay Satellite-I (TDRS-I) is lifted from a workstand in the Spacecraft Assembly and Encapsulation Facility-2 (SAEF-2) as preparations are made to mate it with the adapter of its nose fairing. The second in a new series of telemetry satellites, TDRS-I replenishes the existing on-orbit fleet of six spacecraft. The TDRS System is the primary source of space-to-ground voice, data and telemetry for the Space Shuttle. It also provides communications with the International Space Station and scientific spacecraft in low-Earth orbit such as the Hubble Space Telescope. This new advanced series of satellites will extend the availability of TDRS communications services until about 2017. Launch of TDRS-I is scheduled for March 8 aboard a Lockheed Martin Atlas IIA rocket from Pad 36-A, Cape Canaveral Air Force Station

VANDENBERG AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. -- In the mobile service tower on Space Launch Complex 2 at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California, the NOAA-N Prime spacecraft is closed out for encapsulation and installation on the launch vehicle, a Delta II rocket. NOAA-N Prime is the latest polar-orbiting operational environmental weather satellite developed by NASA for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. The satellite is scheduled to launch Feb. 4 aboard the Delta II from Vandenberg Air Force Base.

NASA engineers unveil the giant golden mirror of NASA's James Webb Space Telescope, and it's goldenly delicious! The 18 mirrors that make up the primary mirror were individually protected with a black covers when they were assembled on the telescope structure. Now, for the first time since the primary mirror was completed, the covers have been lifted. Standing tall and glimmering gold inside NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center's clean room in Greenbelt, Maryland, this mirror will be the largest yet sent into space. Currently, engineers are busy assembling and testing the other pieces of the telescope. Read more a href= http //go.nasa.gov/1TejHg4 rel= nofollow go.nasa.gov/1TejHg4 /a

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- In the Space Station Processing Facility at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, workers guide the Permanent Multipurpose Module, or PMM, as it 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.

Boeings CST-100 Pad Abort Test Vehicle is almost ready to head to White Sands, New Mexico, to test the launch abort engines. During that test, the four abort engines will prove that the vehicle can safely perform an abort maneuver in the event of an emergency on the launchpad or during flight. The vehicle is mated to the service module for a fit check, and then the two will be taken apart for final preparations before heading to the desert.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- In the Astrotech payload processing facility, NASA's Gamma-Ray Large Area Space Telescope, or GLAST, sits uncovered before its move to a work stand in the facility for a complete checkout of the scientific instruments aboard. The telescope will launch aboard a Delta II rocket May 16 from Launch Pad 17-B on Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. A powerful space observatory, the GLAST will explore the most extreme environments in the universe, and answer questions about supermassive black hole systems, pulsars and the origin of cosmic rays. It also will study the mystery of powerful explosions known as gamma-ray bursts.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - At Astrotech Space Operations in Titusville, Fla., workers check the progress of the upper portion of the transportation canister as it is lowered over the STEREO spacecraft. When the entire configuration is encased, it will be moved to Launch Pad 17-B at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. STEREO stands for Solar Terrestrial Relations Observatory and comprises two spacecraft. 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 Aug. 31.

Orion technicians at the Operations and Checkout (O&C) Facility at the Kennedy Space Center move the Orion Exploration Flight Test-1 (EFT-1) crew module from the clean room into the birdcage fixture on Dec. 6, 2012. The fixture is designed to enable precise pre-launch processing of the Orion spacecraft. Part of Batch image transfer from Flickr.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - At NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida, technicians assist as a crane is used to move one of four ogive panels closer for installation on the Orion ground test vehicle in Vehicle Assembly Building high bay 4. The ogive panels enclose and protect the Orion spacecraft and attach to the Launch Abort System. The test vehicle is being used by the Ground Systems Development and Operations Program for path finding operations, including simulated manufacturing, assembly and stacking procedures.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.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - At the Astrotech payload processing facility in Titusville, Fla., the SV1-SV2 spacecraft sits on the rotation stand after weighing. 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)

Inside the high bay of the Astrotech Space Operations facility at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California, a solar array first motion test is underway on NASA's Ice, Cloud and land Elevation Satellite-2 (ICESat-2) on June 18, 2018. The satellite is being prepared for its scheduled launch from Space Launch Complex-2 at Vandenberg on the final United Launch Alliance Delta II rocket. ICESat-2 will measure the height of a changing Earth, one laser pulse at a time, 10,000 laser pulses a second. The satellite will carry the Advanced Topographic Laser Altimeter System. ICESat-2 will help scientists investigate why, and how much our planet's frozen and icy areas, called the cryosphere, is changing in a warming climate.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - The MESSENGER (Mercury Surface, Space Environment, Geochemistry and Ranging) spacecraft begins a slow spin on the spin table at Astrotech Space Operations in Titusville, Fla. MESSENGER is scheduled to lift off Aug. 2 from Pad 17-B at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. It is expected to reach orbit around Mercury in March 2011. MESSENGER was built for NASA by the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory in Laurel, Md.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - At Astrotech Space Operations in Titusville, Fla., the STEREO spacecraft "A" rests on a tilt table for testing. On the table, the observatory will be tilted down so that technicians can perform the final comprehensive performance test of the instruments, verifying the instrument is fully functional before flight. This configuration also allows deployment tests to be done on the solar arrays. 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 aboard a Boeing Delta II rocket on July 22.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - The U.S. Node 2 is unveiled after its arrival in the Space Station Processing Facility. The second of three Station connecting modules, 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.

VANDENBERG AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. -- Inside the Astrotech payload processing facility at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California, technicians are moving both halves of the protective fairing that will encapsulate NASA's Glory spacecraft together. Next, the spacecraft will be transported to Space Launch Complex 576-E and joined with the Taurus XL rocket's third stage.The Orbital Sciences Corp. Taurus XL rocket will carry Glory into low Earth orbit. Once the spacecraft 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.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - Inside the Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, engineers and technicians prepare the Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution, or MAVEN, spacecraft for encapsulation inside its payload fairing.MAVEN is being prepared for its scheduled launch on Nov 18, 2013 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.

A crane lifts Orbital ATK's CYGNUS pressurized cargo module up and away from the KAMAG transporter inside the Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. CYGNUS will be lowered onto a work stand for final propellant loading and late cargo stowage. The Orbital ATK CRS-7 commercial resupply services mission to the International Space Station is scheduled to launch atop a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket from Space Launch Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station on March 19, 2017. CYGNUS will deliver thousands of pounds of supplies, equipment and scientific research materials to the space station.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - Inside the payload changeout room on Launch Pad 39B, STS-121 Mission Specialist Lisa Nowak takes a close look at part of the payload for the mission. She is dressed in a clean room suit, appropriate for the environmentally clean or "white room" condition in which the payload resides before being transferred to the shuttle's payload bay. The payload includes the multi-purpose logistics module Leonardo, which is carrying supplies and equipment for the International Space Station, the lightweight multi-purpose experiment support structure carrier and the integrated cargo carrier. Crew members are at NASA's Kennedy Space Center for Terminal Countdown Demonstration Test activities, which include equipment familiarization and a simulated launch countdown. Mission STS-121 is scheduled for launch on Space Shuttle Discovery on July 1.

Engineers and technicians moved the Orion service module test article into the Reverberant Acoustic Test Facility at NASA Glenn Research Centers Plum Brook Station in Sandusky, Ohio on April 8, 2016. Acoustic testing is scheduled to begin April 18. The blue structure sitting on top of the test article is a mass simulator that represents the Orion crew module...The test article will be blasted with at least 152 decibels and 20-10,000 hertz of sound pressure and vibration to simulate the intense sounds the Orion service module will be subjected to during launch and ascent into space atop the agencys Space Launch System (SLS) rocket. This is part of a series of tests to verify the structural integrity of Orions service module for Exploration Mission-1, the spacecrafts first flight atop SLS...Provided by ESA (European Space Agency) and built by Airbus Defence and Space, the service module will power, propel and cool the vehicle and also supply it with air and water.

Inside the Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, technicians monitor the progress as a crane is used to lift the Orbital ATK Cygnus pressurized cargo module, enclosed in its payload fairing, for transfer to a KAMAG transporter. The Orbital ATK CRS-7 commercial resupply services mission to the International Space Station is scheduled to launch atop a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket from Space Launch Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. Cygnus will deliver 7,600 pounds of supplies, equipment and scientific research materials to the space station.

At Vandenberg Air Force Base in California, the payload fairing is installed encapsulating the Joint Polar Satellite System-1, or JPSS-1, spacecraft atop a United Launch Alliance Delta II rocket at Space Launch Complex 2. Built by Ball Aerospace and Technologies Corp. of Boulder, Colorado, JPSS is the first in a series four next-generation environmental satellites in a collaborative program between the NOAA and NASA. Liftoff is scheduled to take place from Vandenberg's Space Launch Complex 2 at 1:47 a.m. PST (4:47 a.m. EST), on Nov. 14, 2017.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, Fla. -- An overhead crane in the Space Station Processing Facility lifts the Integrated Cargo Carrier from its workstand to move it to the payload canister. The ICC holds several payloads for mission STS-105, the Early Ammonia Servicer and two experiment containers. The ICC will join the Multi-Purpose Logistics Module Leonardo in the payload canister for transport to Launch Pad 39A where they will be placed in the payload bay of Space Shuttle Discovery. Launch of STS-105 is scheduled for 5:38 p.m. EDT Aug. 9

Most of the protective covering has been removed from the lower stack, mini-stack number 1, two of the observatories for NASA's Magnetospheric Multiscale Observatory, or MMS, inside Building 1 D high bay at the Astrotech payload processing facility in Titusville, Florida, near Kennedy Space Center. The MMS upper stack, mini-stack number 2, is scheduled to arrive in about two weeks. MMS is a Solar Terrestrial Probes mission comprising four identically instrumented spacecraft that will use Earths magnetosphere as a laboratory to study the microphysics of three fundamental plasma processes: magnetic reconnection, energetic particle acceleration and turbulence. Launch aboard a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket from Space Launch Complex 41 on Cape Canaveral Air Force Station is targeted for March 12, 2015.

Engineers perform mass properties testing on the rocket-powered descent stage of NASAs Mars Perseverance rover at Kennedy Space Center on April 12, 2020. The testing to determine the center of gravity, or the point at which weight is evenly dispersed on all sides, was performed inside the Florida spaceports Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility. The descent stage will lower the rover through the thin Martian atmosphere and onto the surface on Feb. 18, 2021. Liftoff, aboard a United Launch Alliance Atlas V 541 rocket, is targeted between July 17 and Aug. 5 from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. NASAs Launch Services Program based at Kennedy is managing the launch. The rover will seek signs of ancient life and collect rock and soil samples for possible return to Earth.

At the Astrotech processing facility in Titusville, Florida, near NASA's Kennedy Space Center, technicians and engineers remove NASA's Parker Solar Probe from its shipping container on Wednesday, April 4, 2018. The Parker Solar Probe will launch on a United Launch Alliance Delta IV Heavy rocket from Space Launch Complex 37 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida no earlier than Aug. 4, 2018. The mission will perform the closest-ever observations of a star when it travels through the Sun's atmosphere, called the corona. The probe will rely on measurements and imaging to revolutionize our understanding of the corona and the Sun-Earth connection.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- The first half of the payload fairing is moved into place around NASA's Gamma-Ray Large Area Space Telescope within the mobile service tower on Launch Pad 17-B at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. The fairing is a molded structure that fits flush with the outside surface of the Delta II upper stage booster and forms an aerodynamically smooth nose cone, protecting the spacecraft during launch and ascent. GLAST is a powerful space observatory that will explore the Universe's ultimate frontier, where nature harnesses forces and energies far beyond anything possible on Earth; probe some of science's deepest questions, such as what our Universe is made of, and search for new laws of physics; explain how black holes accelerate jets of material to nearly light speed; and help crack the mystery of stupendously powerful explosions known as gamma-ray bursts. The launch date is targeted no earlier than June 3.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- At Astrotech Space Operations facilities near KSC, workers adjust wires on the Mercury Surface, Space Environment, Geochemistry and Ranging (MESSENGER) spacecraft during rotation on the turnover fixture. Workers will perform the propulsion system phasing test - firing gas through the thrusters in order to verify that the right thrusters fire when expected - as part of prelaunch testing at the site. Launch is scheduled for May 11 from Pad 17-B, Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. The spacecraft will fly past Venus three times and Mercury twice before starting a year-long orbital study of Mercury in July 2009.

VANDENBERG AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. - At Vandenberg Air Force Base in California, NASA's Soil Moisture Active Passive mission, or SMAP, satellite is mated to its Delta II rocket at Space Launch Complex 2.SMAP will provide global measurements of soil moisture and its freeze/thaw state. These measurements will be used to enhance understanding of processes that link the water, energy and carbon cycles, and to extend the capabilities of weather and climate prediction models. SMAP data also will be used to quantify net carbon flux in boreal landscapes and to develop improved flood prediction and drought monitoring capabilities. Launch is scheduled for Jan. 29, 2015.

On April 29, Orions Service Module, shown here on May 3, 2019, moved to the lift station inside the assembly bay for installation and fastening of systems in preparation for Direct Field Acoustics Test (DFAT). The Service Module will move down to the east end of the bay next week where it will be surrounded with speakers and exposed to the acoustic level that will be experienced in space.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- Inside the Space Station Processing Facility at Kennedy Space Center, workers use a hoisting device to move the Remote Manipulator System, or robotic arm, toward the Japanese Experiment Module for installation and testing. The RMS is one of the payloads scheduled to be delivered to the station on a future mission tentatively scheduled for 2008.The RMS is similar to the robotic arm already installed on the station's mobile base system.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - Boeing workers help guide a section of the fairing into place around the Swift spacecraft inside the mobile service tower on Launch Pad 17-A, Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. The fairing is being installed around the payload for protection during launch and ascent. A Boeing Delta II rocket is the launch vehicle for the Swift spacecraft and its Gamma-Ray Burst Mission. Swift is a first-of-its-kind multi-wavelength observatory dedicated to the study of gamma-ray burst science. Its three instruments will work together to observe GRBs and afterglows in the gamma ray, X-ray, ultraviolet and optical wavebands. Swift is scheduled to launch Nov. 17 at 12 09 p.m. EST.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - Inside the Neil Armstrong Operations and Checkout Building high bay at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, the Orion crew and service module stack for Exploration Flight Test-1 was lifted by crane out of the test cell and is being moved along the center aisle toward the mating device. A protective covering surrounds the crew module.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 later this year atop a 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 test will help engineers evaluate the systems critical to crew safety including the heat shield, parachut

In a clean room at Astrotech Space Operations in Titusville, Florida, NOAA's Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite-S, or GOES-S, is being prepared for encapsulation in it payload fairing. After encapsulation, the weather satellite will be moved to Space Launch Complex-41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. 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.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - In the Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility, the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) has been lifted off the rotation stand and is being transferred to a Mars Orbit Insertion Thruster assembly stand for testing. In late July, the MRO will be transported to the Vertical Installation Facility. It will join the Atlas V for the final phase of launch preparations. The spacecraft is then scheduled to undergo a functional test, and a final week of integrated testing and closeouts. The MRO was built by Lockheed Martin for the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in California. It is the next major step in Mars exploration and scheduled for launch from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in a window opening Aug. 10. The MRO is an important next step in fulfilling NASAs vision of space exploration and ultimately sending human explorers to Mars and beyond.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - In the Boeing Delta Operations Center, workers carefully lower second stage of a Boeing Delta IV launch vehicle, suspended by a crane, onto a work stand. The Delta IV rocket will be used for the 2005 launching of the GOES-N weather satellite for NASA and NOAA (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration). The first in a series of three advanced weather satellites including GOES-O and GOES-P, the GOES-N will provide continuous monitoring necessary for intensive data analysis. It will provide a constant vigil for the atmospheric triggers of severe weather conditions such as tornadoes, flash floods, hail storms and hurricanes. When these conditions develop, GOES-N will be able to monitor storm development and track their movements.

At the Astrotech processing facility in Titusville, Florida, near NASA's Kennedy Space Center, NASA's Parker Solar Probe has been removed from its shipping bag on Wednesday, April 4, 2018. The Parker Solar Probe will launch on a United Launch Alliance Delta IV Heavy rocket from Space Launch Complex 37 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida no earlier than Aug. 4, 2018. The mission will perform the closest-ever observations of a star when it travels through the Sun's atmosphere, called the corona. The probe will rely on measurements and imaging to revolutionize our understanding of the corona and the Sun-Earth connection.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- On Launch Pad 39A at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, the clamshell doors of space shuttle Discovery's payload bay are closed in preparation for the STS-133 launch to the International Space Station.Targeted to launch Nov. 1, STS-133 will carry the Permanent Multipurpose Module (PMM) packed with supplies and critical spare parts, as well as Robonaut 2 (R2) to the station.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- The solar array panels on the Galaxy Evolution Explorer (GALEX) satellite are deployed during processing in the Multi-Payload Processing Facility. The GALEX is an orbiting space telescope that will observe galaxies in ultraviolet light across 10 billion years of cosmic history. Led by the California Institute of Technology, GALEX will conduct several first-of-a-kind sky surveys, including an extra-galactic (beyond our galaxy) ultraviolet all-sky survey. During its 29-month mission GALEX will produce the first comprehensive map of a Universe of galaxies under construction, bringing more understanding of how galaxies like the Milky Way were formed. GALEX is due to be launched from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station March 25 via a Pegasus rocket.

Workers in KSCs Spacecraft Assembly and Encapsulation Facility (SAEF-2) conduct electrical testing on the Tracking and Data Relay Satellite (TDRS-H) above them. The TDRS is scheduled to be launched from CCAFS June 29 aboard an Atlas IIA/Centaur rocket. One of three satellites (labeled H, I and J) being built in the Hughes Space and Communications Company Integrated Satellite Factory in El Segundo, Calif., the latest TDRS uses an innovative springback antenna design. A pair of 15-foot-diameter, flexible mesh antenna reflectors fold up for launch, then spring back into their original cupped circular shape on orbit. The new satellites will augment the TDRS systems existing Sand Ku-band frequencies by adding Ka-band capability. TDRS will serve as the sole means of continuous, high-data-rate communication with the space shuttle, with the International Space Station upon its completion, and with dozens of unmanned scientific satellites in low earth orbit

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