Inside Spacecraft Operations

This set showcases astronauts conducting various tasks inside spacecraft, demonstrating teamwork and technology in microgravity. Images feature equipment handling and experiments.

(22 Jan 1992) --- Astronaut David C. Hilmers, mission specialist, looks over a checklist at the Johnson Space Center refrigerator/freezer, in which perishable samples are stowed. The view gives an overall perspective of the science module -- heavily utilized for eight-days of scientific research supporting the International Microgravity Laboratory (IML-1) -- in Discovery's cargo bay..

AS13-62-9004 (April 1970) --- An interior view of the Apollo 13 Lunar Module (LM) during the trouble-plagued journey back to Earth. This photograph shows some of the temporary hose connections and apparatus which were necessary when the three Apollo astronauts moved from the Command Module (CM) to use the LM as a lifeboat . Astronaut John L. Swigert Jr., command module pilot, is on the right. An unidentified astronaut on the left holds in his right hand the feed water bag from the Portable Life Support System (PLSS). It is connected to a hose (center) from the Lunar Topographic (Hycon) Camera. In the background is the mail box, a jury-rigged arrangement which the crew men built to use the CM lithium hydroxide canisters to scrub CO2 from the spacecraft's atmosphere. Since there was a limited amount of lithium hydroxide in the LM, this arrangement was rigged up to utilize the canisters from the CM. The mail box was designed and tested on the ground at the Manned Spacecraft Center (MSC) b

View showing Payload Specialists Bonnie Dunbar and Larry DeLucas in the aft section of the U. S. Microgravity Laboratory-1. Dunbar prepares to load a sample in the Crystal Growth Furnace (CGF) Integrated Furnace Experiment Assembly (IFEA) in rack 9 of the Microgravity Laboratory, while DeLucas checks out the multi-purpose Glovebox Facility.

Launched on June 20, 1996, the STS-78 missions primary payload was the Life and Microgravity Spacelab (LMS), which was managed by the Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC). During the 17 day space flight, the crew conducted a diverse slate of experiments divided into a mix of life science and microgravity investigations. In a manner very similar to future International Space Station operations, LMS researchers from the United States and their European counterparts shared resources such as crew time and equipment. Five space agencies (NASA/USA, European Space Agency/Europe (ESA), French Space Agency/France, Canadian Space Agency /Canada, and Italian Space Agency/Italy) along with research scientists from 10 countries worked together on the design, development and construction of the LMS. This onboard photo represents payload commander Susan Helms and fellow astronaut in the LMS.

S72-50271 (September 1972) --- Astronaut Stuart A. Roosa, backup crew command module pilot of the Apollo 17 lunar landing mission, participates in extravehicular activity simulation training under zero-gravity conditions aboard a U. S. Air Force KC-135 aircraft. A mock-up of the Scientific Instrument Module (SIM) bay of the Apollo 17 Service Module is used in the exercise. Here, Roosa simulates retrieving the film cassette of the Mapping Camera from the SIM bay. Astronaut Ronald E. Evans, Apollo 17 prime crew command module pilot, is scheduled to receive film cassettes from the Mapping Camera, Panoramic Camera, and Lunar Sounder during Apollo 17 trans-Earth extravehicular activity.

Astronaut Joe H. Engle, STS-2 commander, practices donning and doffing his extravehicular mobility unit (EMU) in the weightless environment afforded aboard a KC-135 zero-gravity aircraft.

STS008-05-145 (5 Sept 1983) --- On middeck (MDK), Mission Specialist (MS) Gardner sleeps in sleep restraint attached to starboard wall. Open airlock hatch, airlock hatch hinge, and free-floating footwear appear in view.

S66-24406 (16 March 1966) --- Close-up view of astronaut David R. Scott, pilot of the Gemini-8 spaceflight, making final adjustments and checks in the spacecraft during the Gemini-8 prelaunch countdown. In the background almost out of view is astronaut Neil A. Armstrong, command pilot.

S69-58885 (14 Nov. 1969) --- Interior view of the White Room atop Pad A, Launch Complex 39, Kennedy Space Center (KSC), during the insertion of the Apollo 12 crew. In the center background preparing to ingress the spacecraft is astronaut Charles Conrad Jr., commander. Astronaut Alan L. Bean, lunar module pilot, stands in the right foreground. Awaiting his turn to ingress, but out of view, is astronaut Richard F. Gordon Jr., command module pilot. The Apollo 12 is the United States' second lunar landing mission.

STS008-18-481 (30 Aug-5 Sept 1983) --- Astronaut Daniel C. Brandenstein, STS-8 pilot, communicates with ground controllers form the flight deck of the Earth orbiting Space Shuttle Challenger. This frame was shot with a 35mm camera.

(22 Jan 1992) --- Astronaut David C. Hilmers, mission specialist, looks over a checklist at the Johnson Space Center refrigerator/freezer, in which perishable samples are stowed. The view gives an overall perspective of the science module -- heavily utilized for eight-days of scientific research supporting the International Microgravity Laboratory (IML-1) -- in Discovery's cargo bay..

S79-30347 (31 March 1979) --- Taking advantage of a brief period of zero-gravity afforded aboard a KC-135 flying a parabolic curve, the flight crew of the first space shuttle orbital flight test (STS-1) goes through a spacesuit donning exercise. Astronaut John W. Young has just entered the hard-material torso of the shuttle spacesuit by approaching it from below. He is assisted by astronaut Robert L. Crippen. The torso is held in place by a special stand here, simulating the function provided by the airlock wall aboard the actual shuttle craft. The life support system is mated to the torso on Earth and remains so during the flight, requiring this type of donning and doffing exercise. Note Crippens suit is the type to be used for intravehicular activity in the shirt sleeve environment to be afforded aboard shuttle. The suit worn by Young is for extravehicular activity (EVA). Young will be STS-1 commander and Crippen, pilot. They will man the space shuttle orbiter 102 Columbia.

STS029-11-027 (13-18 March 1989) --- Astronaut John E. Blaha holds up a picture of the crewmembers' wives from the pilot's station on Discovery's flight deck. The photo, unlike the numbers of printed information and photos which were sent up by the text and graphics system (TAGS), was found by crewmembers upon their ingressing the spacecraft at Kennedy Space Center on launch day.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- Inside the SPACEHAB module, STS-106 Mission Specialists Richard A. Mastracchio (left) and Edward T. Lu (right) look over documentation on the equipment in the module. The two astronauts and other crew members Commander Terrence W. Wilcutt, Pilot Scott D. Altman, and Mission Specialists Boris V. Morukov, Yuri I. Malenchenko and Daniel C. Burbank are taking part Crew Equipment Interface Test activities at KSC. On the 11-day mission, the seven-member crew will perform support tasks on orbit, transfer supplies and prepare the living quarters in the newly arrived Zvezda Service Module for the first long-duration crew, dubbed Expedition One,” which is due to arrive at the Station in late fall. STS-106 is scheduled to launch Sept. 8, 2000, at 8:31 a.m. EDT from Launch Pad 39B

S66-21411 (18 Feb. 1966) --- Astronaut David R. Scott, in full spacesuit, holds maneuvering unit while suspended in a weightless state during extravehicular activity (EVA) training in a C-135 Air Force plane.

S66-21409 (18 Feb. 1966) --- Astronaut David R. Scott, in full spacesuit, holds maneuvering unit while suspended in a weightless state during extravehicular activity (EVA) training in a C-135 Air Force plane.

ISS013-E-82298 (17 Sept. 2006) --- Astronauts Christopher J. Ferguson (left), STS-115 pilot; Joseph R. Tanner and Heidemarie M. Stefanyshyn-Piper, both mission specialists, make preparations for their return home on the aft flight deck of the Space Shuttle Atlantis.

This wide view gives an overall perspective of the working environment of five astronauts and two guest researchers for 16 days in Earth-orbit. At work in support of the U.S. Microgravity Laboratory (USML-2) mission in this particular scene are astronaut Catherine G. Coleman, who busies herself at the glovebox, and payload specialist Fred. W. Leslie, monitoring the Surface-Tension-Driven Convection Experiment (STDCE).

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- STS-101 Mission Specialist Jeffrey N. Williams takes his seat inside Space Shuttle Atlantis before taking part in a simulated launch countdown. The countdown is part of Terminal Countdown Demonstration Test (TCDT) activities that also include emergency egress training and familiarization with the payload. Other crew members taking part are Commander James D. Halsell Jr., Pilot Scott J. "Doc" Horowitz and Mission Specialists Mary Ellen Weber, James Voss, Susan Helms, and Yury Usachev of Russia. During their mission to the International Space Station, the STS-101 crew will be delivering logistics and supplies, plus preparing the Station for the arrival of the Zvezda Service Module, expected to be launched by Russia in July 2000. Also, the crew will conduct one space walk to perform maintenance on the Space Station. This will be the third assembly flight for the Space Station. STS-101 is scheduled to launch April 24 at 4:15 p.m. from Launch Pad 39A

STS042-17-001 (22 Jan 1992) --- Astronaut David C. Hilmers, mission specialist, looks over a checklist at the Johnson Space Center refrigerator/freezer, in which perishable samples are stowed. The view gives an overall perspective of the science module -- heavily utilized for eight-days of scientific research supporting the International Microgravity Laboratory (IML-1) -- in Discovery's cargo bay.

STS113-339-005 (23 November  7 December 2002) --- Astronaut James D. Wetherbee, STS-113 mission commander, floats in the Zvezda Service Module on the International Space Station (ISS).

STS047-28-002 (20 Sept. 1992) --- Astronaut Curtis L. Brown, Jr., STS-47 pilot, is photographed at the Space Shuttle Endeavour's pilot station about ten minutes after main engine cutoff on launch day of the eight-day Spacelab-J mission. Wearing the partial-pressure launch and entry suit, Brown shared the forward cabin with astronaut Robert L. Gibson (out of frame at left), mission commander. Endeavour was beginning its second mission in space, this one devoted to research supporting the Spacelab-J mission.

STS088-307-005 (4-15 December 1998) --- Astronauts James H. Newman (left) and Jerry L. Ross, both mission specialists, congratulate each other following one of their three extravehicular activities (EVA). The two had just doffed their Extravehicular Mobility Units (EMU) with the aid of astronaut Frederick W. "Rick" Sturckow (out of frame), pilot.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, Fla. -- In the White Room at Launch Pad 39B, Commander Steven W. Lindsey places a crew patch at the entrance to Space Shuttle Atlantis while other crew members look on. At left are Mission Specialists Janet Lynn Kavandi and Michael L. Gernhardt, and at right is Mission Specialist James F. Reilly. Not seen is Pilot Charles O. Hobaugh. The crew is taking part in Terminal Countdown Demonstration Test activities, which include emergency exit training from the orbiter, opportunities to inspect their mission payloads in the orbiters payload bay and simulated countdown exercises. The launch of Atlantis on mission STS-104 is scheduled July 12 from Launch Pad 39B. The mission is the 10th flight to the International Space Station and carries the Joint Airlock Module

STS-56 Discovery, Orbiter Vehicle (OV) 103, Commander Kenneth Cameron, (left) and Pilot Stephen S. Oswald, wearing launch and entry suits (LESs) and launch and entry helmets (LEHs), are seated on the forward flight deck of the crew compartment trainer (CCT), a shuttle mockup. Cameron mans the commander station controls and Oswald the pilots station controls during an emergency egress (bailout) simulation. The view was taken from the aft flight deck looking forward and includes Cameron's and Oswald's profiles and the forward flight deck controls and checklists. The CCT is located in JSC's Mockup and Integration Laboratory (MAIL) Bldg 9NE.

JSC2002-00796 (12 April 2002) --- Astronaut Jeffrey S. Ashby, STS-112 mission commander, occupies the commanders station during a mission training session in one of the high fidelity shuttle trainers in the Space Vehicle Mockup Facility at the Johnson Space Center (JSC). Ashby is attired in a training version of the shuttle launch and entry suit. STS-112 will be the 15th shuttle mission to visit the International Space Station (ISS).

S86-29122 (March 1986) --- Astronauts John E. Blaha, left, and Robert C. Springer participate in a rehearsal for their assigned flight in the crew compartment trainer at the Johnson Space Center (JSC). Blaha is pilot and Springer, one of three mission specialists for the mission. The two will mark their first spaceflights on the next mission.

STS035-10-011 (2-10 Dec 1990) --- STS-35 Mission Specialist (MS) Robert A.R. Parker operates Astronomy Laboratory 1 (ASTRO-1) manual pointing controller (MPC) on the aft flight deck of Columbia, Orbiter Vehicle (OV) 102. Parker monitors a closed circuit television (CCTV) screen at the payload station as he uses the MPC to send data collection instructions to the ASTRO-1 instrument pointing system (IPS).

STS026-06-033 (5 Oct 1988) --- Astronaut David C. Hilmers, STS-26 mission specialist, reads teleprinted message which has been clipped to stowage locker doors on the middeck. Food, a galley and various experiments surround the mission specialist.

Astronaut Walter Cunningham, Apollo 7 lunar module pilot, writes with a space pen while performing flight tasks on the ninth day of the Apollo 7 mission. A 70 mm Hasselbald camera film magazine floats just above Cunningham's right hand in the zero gravity environment of the spacecraft. Country: Unknown

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - Inside the SPACEHAB module at SPACEHAB, Cape Canaveral, Fla., Pilot William 'Willie' McCool (kneeling) and Mission Specialist David Brown (standing, right) look over schematics. STS-107 is a research mission, and the primary payload is the first flight of the SHI Research Double Module (SHI_RDM). The experiments range from material sciences to life sciences (many rats). Among the experiments is a Hitchhiker carrier system, modular and expandable in accordance with payload requirements. STS-107 is scheduled to launch in June 2002

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - Apollo 11 Commander Neil Armstrong is going through flight training in the lunar module simulator situated in the Flight Crew Training Building at KSC. Armstrong wil pilot the lunar module to a Moon landing on July 20, following launch from KSC at 9:32 a.m. July 16.

S75-22785 (25 Feb. 1975) --- An interior view of the Docking Module trainer, in Building 35, during Apollo-Soyuz Test Project (ASTP) joint crew training at NASA's Johnson Space Center (JSC). Astronaut Thomas P. Stafford, commander of the American ASTP prime crew, is on the right. The other crewman is cosmonaut Aleksky A. Leonov, commander of the Soviet ASTP prime crew. The training session simulated activities on the second day in Earth orbit. The American and Soviet crews will visit each other's spacecraft during the July 1975 docking mission in Earth orbit. The Docking Module is designed to link the Apollo and Soyuz spacecraft.

STS-65 Mission Specialist (MS) Leroy Chiao (top) and MS Donald A. Thomas are seen at work in the International Microgravity Laboratory 2 (IML-2) spacelab science module aboard the Space Shuttle Columbia, Orbiter Vehicle (OV) 102. The two crewmembers are conducting experiments at the IML-2 Rack 5 Biorack (BR). Chiao places a sample in the BR incubator as Thomas handles another sample inside the BR glovebox. The glovebox is used to prepare samples for BR and slow rotating centrifuge microscope (NIZEMI) experiments.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- As part of Crew Equipment Interface Test (CEIT) activities at SPACEHAB, in Cape Canaveral, Fla., STS-101 Commander James Halsell (left) and Mission Specialist James Voss (right) look over a piece of equipment for their mission to the International Space Station. Behnd them are Mission Specialists Yuri Usachev and Susan Helms. Other members of the crew taking part in the CEIT are Pilot Scott Horowitz, and Mission Specialists Mary Ellen Weber and Jeffrey Williams. The STS-101 crew will be responsible for preparing the Space Station for the arrival of the Zvezda Service Module, expected to be launched by Russia in July 2000. Also, the crew will conduct one space walk to perform maintenance on the Space Station and deliver logistics and supplies. This will be the third assembly flight for the Space Station. STS-101 is scheduled to launch no earlier than April 13 from Launch Pad 39A

S65-61911 (12 Dec. 1965) --- Astronauts Walter M. Schirra Jr. (foreground), command pilot; and Thomas P. Stafford, pilot, in Gemini-6 spacecraft after hatches are closed during prelaunch countdown. NASA made an attempt to launch Gemini-6 from Pad 19 at 9 54 a.m. (EST) on Dec. 12, 1965. However, seconds after ignition, the first stage engine of the Gemini-6 launch vehicle shutdown due to a faulty release of a liftoff umbilical plug.

STS055-106-048 (26 April-6 May 1993) --- Astronaut Bernard A. Harris, Jr., mission specialist, works with a sample at the Heater Facility, part of the Werkestofflabor material sciences laboratory in the Spacelab D-2 Science Module aboard the Space Shuttle Columbia. Harris was joined by four other NASA astronauts and two German payload specialists for the 10-day mission aboard the Space Shuttle Columbia.

(27 June-4 July 1982) --- Astronaut Thomas K. Mattingly II, STS-4 crew commander, prepares a meal in the middeck area of space shuttle Columbia. He uses scissors to open a drink container. Various packages of food and meal accessories are attached to locker doors. At far left edge of the frame is the tall payload called continuous flow electrophoresis experiment (CFES) system-designed to separate biological materials according to their surface electrical charges as they pass through an electrical field.

STS059-05-007 (9-20 April 1994) --- On Endeavour's middeck, the three STS-59 red shift crew members begin to organize what was believed to be among the longest mail messages in recent Shuttle history. With the picture held vertically, astronaut Sidney M. Gutierrez, mission commander, is in upper right. Also seen are astronauts Linda M. Godwin, payload commander, and Kevin P. Chilton, pilot. Though early Shuttle flights could brag of longer teleprinted messages, this Thermal Imaging Printing System's (TIPS) message from the ground competes with those of recent Shuttle flights.

STS003-25-231 (22-30 March 1982) --- Astronaut Jack R. Lousma, STS-3 commander, wearing communication kit assembly mini headset, gathers three freefloating plastic trash bags filled with empty containers, paper towels, straws, etc. Lousma will stow them in a designated stowage volume.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- In the Orbiter Processing Facility Bay 1, STS-88 Mission Specialists Sergei Krikalev (left), a cosmonaut from Russia; and Jerry L. Ross examine equipment that will be aboard Space Shuttle Endeavour. Launch of mission STS-88 is targeted for Dec. 3, 1998. The STS-88 crew members are participating in a Crew Equipment Interface Test (CEIT), familiarizing themselves with the orbiter's midbody and crew compartments. Other crew members are Commander Robert D. Cabana, Pilot Frederick W. "Rick" Sturckow and Mission Specialists Nancy J. Currie and James H. Newman. STS-88 will be the first Space Shuttle launch for assembly of the International Space Station (ISS). The primary payload is the Unity connecting module which will be mated to the Russian-built Zarya control module, expected to be already on orbit after a November launch from Russia. The first major U.S.-built component of ISS, Unity will serve as a connecting passageway to living and working areas of the s

AST-05-296 (17-19 July 1975) --- Astronaut Thomas P. Stafford (left) and cosmonaut Aleksey A. Leonov are photographed together in the Soyuz Orbital Module during the joint U.S.-USSR Apollo-Soyuz Test Project docking mission in Earth orbit. They are respective commanders of their crews. This picture was taken with a 35mm camera.

Candid views of the STS-41C crew preparing and eating food on the middeck include : Mission pilot Francis R. (Dick) Scobee goes bobbing for a morsel of food from his position on the middeck near the galley.

ISS007-E-06139 (1 June 2003) --- Cosmonaut Yuri I. Malenchenko (right), Expedition 7 mission commander, and astronaut Edward T. Lu, NASA ISS science officer and flight engineer, share a meal in the Zvezda Service Module on the International Space Station (ISS). Malenchenko represents Rosaviakosmos.

STS050-06-011 (25 June-9 July 1992) --- Astronaut Carl J. Meade (left), mission specialist, and Eugene H. Trinh, payload specialist, share a view through one of the Space Shuttle Columbia's aft flight deck windows during a break in photography of Earth. The two were among seven crew members who shared 14 record-setting days aboard the Space Shuttle supporting the United States Microgravity Laboratory (USML-1) mission.

S73-28714 (29 June 1973) --- These three men are the prime crewmen for the Skylab 3 mission. Pictured in the one-G trainer Multiple Docking Adapter (MDA) at the Johnson Space Center (JSC) are, left to right, scientist-astronaut Owen K. Garriott, science pilot; and astronauts Jack R. Lousma and Alan L. Bean, pilot and commander, respectively.

STS076-345-017 (22 - 31 March 1996) --- Onboard the Spacehab module in the cargo bay of the Earth-orbiting Space Shuttle Atlantis, astronaut Michael R. (Rich) Clifford secures a stowed gyrodyne. The stabilizing instrument earlier had been replaced on Russia's Mir Space Station with a new one brought up from the ground by the crew. The mission specialist and his crew mates docked with Mir on March 23, 1996 and remained linked until March 28, 1996.

STS029-04-029 (13-18 March 1989) --- Astronaut Michael L. Coats appears to like the status of the STS-29 flight as he offers a big smile from the commander's station on the flight deck. He takes a momentary break from updating the crew activity plan (CAP) to pose for the photo. This photographic frame was among NASA's third STS-29 photo release. Monday, March 20, 1989. Crew members were astronauts Michael L. Coats, John E. Blaha, James F. Buchli, Robert C. Springer and James P. Bagian.

Apollo 15 Command Module Pilot Alfred M. Worden practices alone in a mission simulator at the Kennedy Space Center in preparation for his upcoming launch to the Moon with Mission Commander David R. Scott and Lunar Module Pilot James B. Irwin. Worden will maintain the command module in lunar orbit while the other two crewmen remain on the surface for as long as 67 hours. Launch to the moon is scheduled for no earlier than July 26, 1971.

S73-32837 (10 Sept. 1973) --- Scientist-astronaut Edward G. Gibson, seated, and astronaut William R. Pogue discuss a mission procedure at the Apollo Telescope Mount (ATM) display and control panel mock-up in the one-G trainer for the Multiple Docking Adapter (MDA) at Johnson Space Center.

STS106-320-014 (10 September 2000) ---Astronaut Richard A. Mastracchio, mission specialist, uses a handheld laser device on the aft flight deck of the Space Shuttle Atlantis to track the range of the International Space Station during rendezvous operations.

STS-38 Mission Specialist (MS) Carl J. Meade, wearing liquid cooling and ventilation garment (LCVG) and extravehicular mobility unit (EMU) lower torso, crouches under EMU upper torso. Technicians extend the EMU sleeves as Meade reaches into upper torso during suit donning in JSC's Weightless Environment Training Facility (WETF) Bldg 29. Positioned on the WETF platform at pool side, Meade is preparing for an underwater extravehicular activity (EVA) simulation. During the training exercise, Meade will rehearse contingency EVA procedures for the STS-38 mission aboard Atlantis, Orbiter Vehicle (OV) 104.

Astronauts Charles F. Bolden Jr. (left) and Kenneth S. Reightler, commander and pilot, respectively, for the STS-60 mission, rehearse some of their duties on the flight deck of the crew compartment trainer in JSC's Shuttle mockup and integration laboratory (50652); Astronaut N. Jan Davis, mission specialist for STS-60, gets assistance with her suit from Lockheed's Max Kandler during a training session at JSC's Shuttle mockup and integration laboratory. She is seated in the mission specialist station on the middeck mockup (50653).

This image depicts the Apollo 16 mission astronauts John Young (right) and Charles Duke (left) in pressure suits during a final crew training on the Lunar Roving Vehicle (LRV) at the Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC), building 4619. Developed by the MSFC, the LRV was the lightweight electric car designed to increase the range of mobility and productivity of astronauts on the lunar surface. It was used on the last three Apollo missions; Apollo 15, Apollo 16, and Apollo 17.

S83-33032 (23 May 1983) --- Astronauts Guion S. Bluford, right, and Daniel C. Brandenstein man their respective Challenger entry and ascent stations in the Shuttle Mission Simulator (SMS) at NASA's Johnson Space Center (JSC) during a training session for the STS-8 mission. Brandenstein is in the pilot's station, while Bluford, a mission specialist, occupies one of the two aft flight deck seats. Both are wearing civilian clothes for this training exercise. This motion based simulator represents the scene of a great deal of training and simulation activity, leading up to crew preparedness for Space Transportation System (STS) mission. Photo credt NASA/Otis Imboden, National Geographic

S65-14550 (26 Feb. 1965) --- Astronaut Thomas P. Stafford, the pilot of the Gemini-Titan 3 backup crew, is shown during suiting operations at Pad 16 at Cape Kennedy, Florida.

JSC2000-04867 (19 May 2000) --- Equipped with a shuttle extravehicular mobility unit (EMU) space suit, astronaut Daniel C. Burbank is about to participate in an underwater spacewalk rehearsal in the Hydrolab facility at the Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Center in Star City, Russia. Burbank, STS-106 mission specialist, was joined by astronaut Edward T. Lu (out of frame), for the simulation.

The Hubble Space Telescope (HST) is a cooperative program of the European Space Agency (ESA) and the National Aeronautical and Space Administration

41G-101-039 (5-13 Oct 1984) --- Two members of a record seven-person crew are pictured during Intravehicular Activity (IVA) aboard the Earth-orbiting Space Shuttle Challenger. Hold picture with open hand at right center edge. Astronaut David C. Leestma, mission specialist, is at right observing a test by payload specialist Marc Garneau, representing the National Research Council (NRC) of Canada. Garneau spent much of his on-duty time conducting a series of experiments for the NRC. The crew consisted of astronauts Robert L. Crippen, commander; Jon A. McBride, pilot; mission specialist's Kathryn D. Sullivan, Sally K. Ride, and David D. Leestma; Canadian astronaut Marc Garneau, and Paul D. Scully-Power, payload specialist's.EDITOR'S NOTE: The STS-41G mission had the first American female EVA (Sullivan); first seven-person crew; first orbital fuel transfer; and the first Canadian (Garneau).

AS09-20-3154 (3-13 March 1969) --- This close-up view of astronaut James A. McDivitt shows several days' beard growth. The Apollo 9 mission commander was onboard the Lunar Module (LM) Spider in Earth orbit, near the end of the flight. He was joined on the mission by astronauts David R. Scott, command module pilot, and Russell L. Schweickart, lunar module pilot. Schweickart took this picture while Scott remained in the Command Module (CM) Gumdrop. In Earth orbit, the three tested the transposition and docking systems of the lunar module and command module. On a scheduled lunar landing mission later this year, a team of three astronauts and ground controllers will use what this crew and its support staff have learned in handling the systems of the two spacecraft.

STS056-30-022 (8-17 April 1993) --- Aboard Discovery, astronaut Kenneth D. Cameron (call letters N5AWP), talks to amateur radio operators on Earth via the Shuttle Amateur Radio Experiment (SAREX). SAREX was established by NASA, the American Radio LeagueAmateur Satellite Corporation and the Johnson Space Center Amateur Radio Club to encourage public participation in the space program. It is part of an endeavor to demonstrate the effectiveness of conducting short-wave radio transmissions between the Shuttle and ground-based radio operators at low cost ground stations with amateur and digital techniques. As on several previous missions, SAREX was used on this flight as an educational opportunity for students around the world to learn about space firsthand by speaking directly to astronauts aboard the Shuttle.

61C-09-035 (12-18 Jan. 1986) --- STS-61C pilot Charles F. Bolden is seen at controls on the aft flight deck of the Earth-orbiting space shuttle Columbia. Bolden was making his first spaceflight.

STS-95 Mission Specialist Pedro Duque of Spain, representing the European Space Agency, suits up in the Operations and Checkout Building prior to his trip to Launch Pad 39-B. Duque and the rest of the STS-95 crew are at KSC to participate in the Terminal Countdown Demonstration Test (TCDT) which includes mission familiarization activities, emergency egress training, and a simulated main engine cutoff. The other crew members are Payload Specialist Chiaki Mukai (M.D., Ph.D.), representing the National Space Development Agency of Japan (NASDA), Pilot Steven W. Lindsey, Mission Specialist Scott E. Parazynski, Mission Specialist Stephen K. Robinson, Payload Specialist John H. Glenn Jr., senator from Ohio, and Mission Commander Curtis L. Brown. The STS-95 mission, targeted for liftoff on Oct. 29, includes research payloads such as the Spartan solar-observing deployable spacecraft, the Hubble Space Telescope Orbital Systems Test Platform, the International Extreme Ultraviolet Hitchhiker, as w

S83-32569 (23 May 1983) --- A preview of NASA s next spaceflight is provided by this scene in the Johnson Space Center s Shuttle mission simulator (SMS) with four-fifths of the crew in the same stations they will be in for launch and landing phases of the Challenger s second space mission. They are (left-right) Astronauts Robert L. Crippen, crew commander; Frederick H. Hauck, pilot; John M. Fabian and Dr. Sally K. Ride, mission specialists. Dr. Norman E. Thagard, a third mission specialist, is to be seated in the mid-deck area below the flight deck for launch and landing phases. Launch is now scheduled for June 18.

STS106-375-008 (8-20 September 2000) ---Astronaut Daniel C. Burbank, mission specialist, prepares to photograph thedeparting International Space Station through the overhead windows on the aft flight deck of the Space Shuttle Atlantis.

STS034-08-007 (18-23 Oct. 1989) --- Astronaut Ellen S. Baker, an STS-34 mission specialist and medical doctor, conducts a medical examination on astronaut Franklin R. Chang-Diaz, mission specialist, on the middeck of the Earth-orbiting space shuttle Atlantis. Dr. Baker was monitoring Chang-Diaz's blood flow. The scene was recorded on film with a 35mm camera.

STS084-304-004 (15-24 May 1997) --- Astronaut Edward T. Lu (left) gets an early start on transfer operations in the Spacehab Double Module as he goes over an inventory checklist with astronaut Jean-Franois Clervoy, payload commander. Later, almost three tons of supplies were transferred between the Space Shuttle Atlantis and Russia's Mir Space Station.

S82-E-5597 (17 Feb. 1997) --- Astronaut Scott J. Horowitz at pilot's station works with a hand-fashioned loop fastener device to be used in support of the additional STS-82 Extravehicular Activity (EVA) to service Hubble Space Telescope (HST). Note sketches overhead which were sent by ground controllers to guide the pilot's engineering of the task. This view was taken with an Electronic Still Camera (ESC).

ISS003-E-7060 (23-31 October 2001) --- Astronaut Frank L. Culbertson, Jr. (right), Expedition Three mission commander, shakes hands with Soyuz Taxi crew Commander Victor Afanasyev in the Unity node on the International Space Station (ISS). Afanasyev represents Rosaviakosmos. This image was taken with at digital still camera.

S75-25823 (February 1975) --- Cosmonaut Aleksei A. Leonov (left) and astronaut Thomas P. Stafford display the Apollo Soyuz Test Project (ASTP) commemorative plaque. The two commanders, of their respective crews, are in the Apollo Command Module (CM) trainer at Building 35 at NASA's Johnson Space Center (JSC). Two plaques divided into four quarters each will be flown on the ASTP mission. The American ASTP Apollo crew will carry the four United States quarter pieces aboard Apollo; and the Soviet ASTP Soyuz 19 crew will carry the four USSR quarter sections aboard Soyuz. The eight quarter pieces will be joined together to form two complete commemorative plaques after the two spacecraft rendezvous and dock in Earth orbit. One complete plaque then will be returned to Earth by the astronauts; and the other complete plaque will be brought back by the cosmonauts. The plaque is written in both English and Russian. The Apollo crew will consist of astronauts Thomas P. Stafford, commander; Donald K

STS054-47-017 (13-19 Jan 1993) --- The three STS-54 mission specialists who were involved in the four-plus hours extravehicular activity (EVA) pose on Endeavour's mid deck. Astronaut Susan J. Helms, who remained in cabin and communicated with the two space walkers, shares this scene with them -- Gregory J. Harbaugh, left, and Mario Runco Jr. This scene, photographed prior to the EVA, shows the pair partially suited for their EVA session. The special pole system to aid in emergency evacuation is in the upper portion of the frame.

ISS008-E-05026 (27 October 2003) --- European Space Agency (ESA) astronaut Pedro Duque (left) of Spain works with the Cervantes mission experiment PROMISS in the Microgravity Science Glovebox (MSG) in the Destiny laboratory on the International Space Station (ISS). This experiment will investigate the growth processes of proteins in weightless conditions. Astronaut Edward T. Lu, Expedition 7 NASA ISS science officer and flight engineer, is visible at right.

S89-E-5354 (28 Jan 1998) --- This Electronic Still Camera (ESC) image shows the Mir-24 crew having fun with the STS-89 crew just prior to the closing of the Docking Module (DM) hatch. The closing of the hatch will bring an end to the eighth Shuttle /Mir joint docking activities. The Mir-24 crew members are from the left - astronaut Andrew S. W. Thomas, cosmonaut guest researcher (looking through camera); cosmonaut Pavel V. Vinogradov, flight engineer (wearing communications headset); and cosmonaut Anatoliy Y. Solovyev, commander (with the stand off cross or docking target in his hand). Thomas, replacing astronaut David A. Wolf as cosmonaut guest researcher, will be the last American astronaut to serve a tour aboard Russia's Mir Space Station. This ESC view was taken on January 28, 1998, at 22:28:29 GMT.

(2-11 Aug 1991) --- Astronaut G. David Low, STS-43 mission specialist, works out on a treadmill device which was used for medical testing on the nine-day flight..

STS050-02-036 (25 June-9 July 1992) --- Astronaut Carl J. Meade, mission specialist, operates the Generic Bioprocessing Apparatus (GBA) in the Science Module aboard the Space Shuttle Columbia. Meade was joined by four astronauts and two scientists from the private sector for the record-setting 14-day United States Microgravity Lab 1 (USML-1) mission.

STS049-S-218 (8 May 1992) --- Astronaut Richard J. Hieb, on Endeavour's middeck, changes batteries on the electronic still camera to begin a series of snapshots with the experiment, a detailed test objective. DTO 648 is making its fourth flight into space. At various times during the week-long mission, crewmembers will downlink images from the camera. The scene was recorded at 16:51:15:05 GMT, May 8, 1992.

In the Space Station Processing Facility, STS-98 Mission Specialist Thomas D. Jones (Ph.D.) looks over documents as part of a Multi-Equipment Interface Test (MEIT) on the U.S. Lab Destiny. Other crew members taking part in the MEIT are Commander Kenneth D. Cockrell and Pilot Mark Polansky. The remaining members of the crew (not present for the MEIT) are and Mission Specialists Robert L. Curbeam Jr. and Marsha S. Ivins. During the STS-98 mission, the crew will install the Lab on the International Space Station during a series of three space walks. The mission will provide the station with science research facilities and expand its power, life support and control capabilities. The U.S. Laboratory 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. Th

STS073-233-007 (20 October - 5 November 1995) --- Payload specialist Fred W. Leslie makes use of the versatile U.S. Microgravity Laboratory (USML-2) glovebox to conduct an investigation with the Oscillatory Thermocapillary Flow Experiment (OTFE). This complement of the Surface-Tension-Driven Convection Experiment (STDCE) studies the shapes that fluid surfaces in weightless environments assume within specific containers. Leslie was one of two guest researchers who joined five NASA astronauts for 16 days of on Earth-orbit research in support of USML-2.

During a tour of KSC, Lady Margaret Thatcher (left), former Prime Minister of Britain, talks with United Space Alliance technician Mike Parrish (right) while sitting in the cockpit of the orbiter Endeavour. The orbiter, which is in the Orbiter Processing Facility bay 2, is flying on mission STS-100, the ninth construction flight to the International Space Station

Astronaut Stephen Oswald, at left, listens to Ohio Senator John Glenn on the orbiter Columbia's middeck as the senator asks questions regarding Shuttle operations at the Orbiter Processing Facility 3 at Kennedy Space Center. Senator Glenn arrived at KSC on Jan. 20 to tour KSC operational areas and to view the launch of STS-89 later this week. Glenn, who made history in 1962 as the first American to orbit the Earth, completing three orbits in a five-hour flight aboard Friendship 7, will fly his second space mission aboard Space Shuttle Discovery this October. Glenn is retiring from the Senate at the end of this year and will be a payload specialist aboard STS-95

S72-33685 (22 March 1972) --- Astronauts John W. Young, Apollo 16 commander; and Charles M. Duke Jr. (nearest camera), lunar module pilot, rehearse some of the motorized phases of their scheduled extravehicular activity (EVA) assignments on the lunar surface. Young and Duke will take part in three different sessions of EVA on the moon while astronaut Thomas K. (Ken) Mattingly II, command module pilot, remains with the Command and Service Modules (CSM) in lunar orbit. The four-wheeled helper is called the Lunar Roving Vehicle (LRV).

S66-50775 (10 Sept. 1966) --- Astronaut Richard F. Gordon Jr., pilot, walks away from Pad 19 following postponement of the Gemini-11 spaceflight. The mission was rescheduled for Sept. 12, 1966.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- Workers in the Space Station Processing Facility prepare the hatch of the Unity connecting module for closure before its launch aboard Space Shuttle Endeavour on STS-88 in December. Unity will now undergo a series of leak checks before a final purge of clean, dry air inside the module to ready it for initial operations in space. Other testing includes the common berthing mechanism to which other space station elements will dock and the Pad Demonstration Test to verify the compatibility of the module with the Space Shuttle as well as the ability of the astronauts to send and receive commands to Unity from the flight deck of the orbiter. The next time the hatch will be opened it will be by astronauts on orbit. Unity is expected to be ready for installation into the payload canister on Oct. 25, and transported to Launch Pad 39-A on Oct. 27. The Unity will be mated to the Russian-built Zarya control module which should already be in orbit at that time

51F-13-021 (29 July-6 Aug 1985) --- Astronaut Story Musgrave, STS51F mission specialist, is seen hitching a zero-g ride on a blood centrifuge on the middeck of the space shuttle Challenger. "The centrifuge got more workout than just separation of our blood," crewmate John Bartoe, payload specialist, later told a gathering of media representatives at the 51F post-flight press conference, referring to Musgrave's off-duty antics.

STS069-363-010 (7-18 September 1995) --- Astronaut Kenneth D. Cockrell, pilot, looks over a logbook on Space Shuttle Endeavours flight deck during rendezvous operations involving one of two temporarily free-flying craft. Astronaut James H. Newman (background), mission specialist, eyeballs the target. Endeavour, with a five-member crew, launched on September 7, 1995, from the Kennedy Space Center (KSC). The multifaceted mission ended September 18, 1995, with a successful landing on Runway 33 at KSC.

(14 Nov. 1982) --- Astronaut Joseph P. Allen IV, one of two mission specialist astronauts for STS-5, participates in a biomedical test in the middeck area of the Earth-orbiting space shuttle Columbia. A series of electrodes have been connected to his face for monitoring of his responses in zero-gravity.

STS050-20-012 (26 June 1992) --- Astronaut Kenneth D. Bowersox, pilot, performs in-flight maintenance (IFM) on the Regenerative Carbon Dioxide Removal System (RCRS) on the mid-deck of the Earth-orbiting Space Shuttle Columbia. Bowersox was joined by four other astronauts and two scientists from the private sector for a record-setting 14-day stay aboard the Space Shuttle in support of the United States Microgravity Laboratory 1 (USML-1).

Skylab 4 Astronaut Ed Gibson preparing his meal aboard the Skylab space station. Skylab 4 mission lasted 84 days, testing the effects of prolonged zero gravity. Nov. 16, 1973 -Feb. 8, 1974.

S68-56531 (21-27 Dec. 1968) --- Astronaut Frank Borman, mission commander, is shown during intravehicular activity (IVA) on the Apollo 8 lunar orbit mission. This still print was made from movie film exposed by an onboard 16mm motion picture camera.

STS087-320-028 (19 November - 5 December 1997) --- Astronaut Kevin R. Kregel, mission commander, studies the movement of the SPARTAN-201 satellite while communicating with ground controllers and fellow crew members. He is using the Space Shuttle Columbia's aft starboard window to monitor the free-flyer, which earlier had been deployed from Columbias cargo bay.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, Fla. -- During Crew Equipment Interface Test (CEIT)activities at SPACEHAB, Cape Canaveral, Fla., STS-107 Mission Specialist Laurel Blair Salton Clark gets hands-on training on equipment inside the Spacehab module. As a research mission, STS-107 will carry the Spacehab Double Module in its first research flight into space and a broad collection of experiments ranging from material science to life science. CEIT activities enable the crew to perform certain flight operations, operate experiments in a flight-like environment, evaluate stowage locations and obtain additional exposure to specific experiment operations. Other STS-107 crew members are Commander Rick Douglas Husband; Pilot William C. McCool; Payload Commander Michael P. Anderson; Mission Specialists Kalpana Chawla and David M. Brown; and Payload Specialist Ilan Ramon, of Israel. STS-107 is scheduled for launch May 23, 2002

This Skylab-4 mission onboard photograph shows Astronaut Ed Gibson getting ready to prepare his meal in the crew wardroom. The tray contained heating elements for preparing the individual food packets. The food on Skylab was a great improvement over that on earlier spaceflights. It was no longer necessary to squeeze liquified food from plastic tubes. Skylab's kitchen was so equipped that each crewman could select his own menu and prepare it to his own taste.

STS043-37-012 (2-11 Aug 1991) --- Three STS-43 astronauts are busy at work onboard the earth-orbiting space shuttle Atlantis. Astronaut Shannon W. Lucid is pictured performing one of several tests on Computer hardware with space station applications in mind. Sharing the aft flight deck with Lucid are Michael A. Baker (left), pilot and John E. Blaha, mission commander.

S84-27204 (3-11 Feb 1984) --- Astronaut Ronald E. McNair, STS 41-B mission specialist, prepares to assemble meal items aboard the Earth-orbiting Space Shuttle Challenger. The galley is located in the mid deck. The number of items in the area signals how busy it is. Later Dr. McNair died on January 28, 1986 on his next space flight STS 51-L when the Space Shuttle Challenger exploded after launch from the Kennedy Space Center, Florida.

In this photograph, astronaut David Hilmers conducts a life science experiment by using the Biorack Glovebox (GBX) during the International Microgravity Laboratory-1 (IML-1) mission. The Biorack was a large multipurpose facility designed for studying the effects of microgravity and cosmic radiation on numerous small life forms such as cells, tissues, small organisms, and plants. Located at the Biorack, the GBX was an enclosed environment that protected samples from contamination and prevented liquid from escaping. Crewmembers handled the specimens with their hands inside gloves that extended into the sealed work area. A microscope and video camera mounted on the GBX door were used to observe and document experiments. Managed by the Marshall Space Flight Center, the IML-1 mission was the first in a series of Shuttle flights dedicated to fundamental materials and life sciences research and was launched aboard the Shuttle Orbiter Discovery (STS-42) on January 22, 1992.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- At Pad A, Launch Complex 39, astronauts Joe Engle, left, and Richard Truly talk with technicians and inspect the Space Shuttle vehicle that will propel them into orbit later this fall.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- Apollo 11 astronaut Edwin E. Aldrin Jr. appears to be relaxed during suiting operations in the Manned Spacecraft Operations Building (MSOB) prior to the astronauts' departure to Launch Pad 39A. The three astronauts, Edwin E. Aldrin Jr., Neil A. Armstrong and Michael Collins, will then board the Saturn V launch vehicle, scheduled for a 9:32 a.m. EDT liftoff, for the first manned lunar landing mission

JOHNSON SPACE CENTER, HOUSTON, TEXAS - Flying in a KC-135 aircraft, Apollo 11 Lunar Module Pilot Edwin E. Aldrin Jr. takes pictures during training for the upcoming first manned lunar landing with astronauts Neil A. Armstrong Jr. and Michael Collins.

STS79-E-5032 (18 September 1996) --- Astronaut John E. Blaha checks on additional supplies to be transferred to Russia's Mir Space Station from the Space Shuttle Atlantis, on Flight Day 3.

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