Space Shuttle Crew Activities

Images of astronauts during training, equipment checks, and post-mission interactions in various settings related to space missions.

PHOTO DATE: 11/09/12LOCATION: EFDSUBJECT: Expedition 35/36 astronaut Chris Cassidy preparing for T-38 flight

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- Members of the STS-112 crew check out flight equipment during a Crew Equipment Interface Test at KSC. Clockwise from front are Pilot Pamela Melroy, Commander Jeffrey Ashby, a technician, and Mission Specialist David Wolf. STS-112 is the 15th assembly flight to the International Space Station and will be ferrying the S1 Integrated Truss Structure. The S1 truss is the first starboard (right-side) truss segment, whose main job is providing structural support for the radiator panels that cool the Space Station's complex power system. The S1 truss segment also will house communications systems, external experiment positions and other subsystems. The S1 truss will be attached to the S0 truss. STS-112 is currently scheduled for launch Aug. 22, 2002

At the Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Center in Star City, Russia, Expedition 36/37 Soyuz Commander Fyodor Yurchikhin (center) signs in for another round of qualification exams May 6 as his crewmates, Karen Nyberg of NASA (left) and Luca Parmitano of the European Space Agency (right) look on. Nyberg, Yurchikhin and Parmitano are set to launch from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan in their Soyuz TMA-09M spacecraft on May 29, Kazakh time, for a five-month mission on the International Space Station.NASA/Stephanie Stoll

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- Bob Cabana, director of NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, greets the STS-133 crew members as they exit the crew transport vehicle after landing aboard space shuttle Discovery. Leading the crew is Commander Steve Lindsey, followed by Pilot Eric Boe, and Mission Specialists Alvin Drew, Steve Bowen, Michael Barratt and Nicole Stott. Touchdown on the Shuttle Landing Facility's Runway 15 was at 11:57 a.m. EST, bringing an end to the 13-day STS-133 mission to the International Space Station.Discovery and its six-member crew delivered the Permanent Multipurpose Module, packed with supplies and critical spare parts, as well as Robonaut 2, the dexterous humanoid astronaut helper, to the orbiting outpost. STS-133 was Discovery's 39th and final mission. This was the 133rd Space Shuttle Program mission and the 35th shuttle voyage to the space station.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - During the traditional post-flight walk-around after the landing of an orbiter, NASA Administrator Mike Griffin (right) shares a story with STS-121 Pilot Mark Kelly, Mission Specialist Lisa Nowak and Commander Steven Lindsey. Discovery's smooth and perfect landing was on time at 9:14 a.m. EDT on Runway 15 of NASA's Shuttle Landing Facility after traveling 5.3 million miles on 202 orbits. Mission elapsed time was 12 days, 18 hours, 37 minutes and 54 seconds. The landing is the 62nd at Kennedy Space Center and the 32nd for Discovery.

NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine, right, meets with Expedition 54 NASA astronauts Mark Vande Hei, left, and Joe Acaba during their Expedition 54 post flight, Wednesday, June 13, 2018 at NASA Headquarters, Washington.

PHOTO DATE: 11/09/12LOCATION: EFDSUBJECT: Expedition 35/36 astronaut Chris Cassidy preparing for T-38 flight

JSC2001-E-25821 (23 August 2001) --- Johnson Space Center's (JSC) Acting Director Roy Estess congratulates the STS-105 crew on the stage in Hangar 990 at Ellington Field during the STS-105 and Expedition Two crew return ceremonies. From left to right are Estess, Scott J. Horowitz, STS-105 commander, Frederick W. Sturckow, pilot, Daniel T. Barry, mission specialist, and Patrick G. Forrester, mission specialist. The STS-105 crew delivered the Expedition Three crew and supplies to the International Space Station (ISS) and brought the Expedition Two crew back to Earth.

NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine, right, participates in a Crew Dragon flight simulation with NASA astronauts Doug Hurley, center, and Bob Behnken, left, who will be flying aboard the Crew Dragon during the Demo-2 mission, at the SpaceX Headquarters, Thursday, Oct. 10, 2019 in Hawthorne, CA.

NASAs SpaceX Crew-7 Crew Arrival for Prelaunch Activities. Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) astronaut Satoshi Furukawa, right, answers a question from a member of the media alongside crewmates Roscosmos cosmonaut Konstantin Borisov, ESA (European Space Agency) astronaut Andreas Mogensen, and NASA astronaut Jasmin Moghbeli, after arriving at the Launch and Landing Facility at NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida ahead of the agencys SpaceX Crew-7 mission, Sunday, Aug. 20, 2023. NASAs SpaceX Crew-7 mission is the seventh crew rotation mission of the SpaceX Dragon spacecraft and Falcon 9 rocket to the International Space Station as part of the agencys Commercial Crew Program. Moghbeli, Mogensen, Furukawa, and Borisov are scheduled to launch at 3:49 a.m. EDT on August 25, from Launch Complex 39A at the Kennedy Space Center.

NASA astronaut Nicole Mann and Boeing astronaut Chris Ferguson are seen during a press conference ahead of the Boeing Orbital Flight Test mission, Thursday, Dec. 19, 2019, at NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Mann, Ferguson, and NASA astronaut Michale Fincke are assigned to fly Boeings Crew Flight Test. The uncrewed Orbital Flight Test will be Starliners maiden mission to the International Space Station for NASA's Commercial Crew Program. The mission, currently targeted for a 6:36 a.m. EST launch on Dec. 20, will serve as an end-to-end test of the system's capabilities.

NASA astronauts Nicole Mann, left, and Michael Fincke, right, and Boeing astronaut Chris Ferguson, center, who are assigned to fly on Boeings Crew Flight Test, are seen during a press conference ahead of the Boeing Orbital Flight Test mission, Thursday, Dec. 19, 2019 at NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The uncrewed Orbital Flight Test will be Starliners maiden mission to the International Space Station for NASA's Commercial Crew Program. The mission, currently targeted for a 6:36 a.m. EST launch on Dec. 20, will serve as an end-to-end test of the system's capabilities.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. --- The STS-123 crewmembers are greeted by NASA VIPs and guests at NASA Kennedy Space Center's Shuttle Landing Facility. From left, in the blue flight suits, are Commander Dominic Gorie, Mission Specialist Mike Foreman, Pilot Gregory H. Johnson, and Mission Specialists Robert L. Behnken, Takao Doi of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, and Rick Linnehan. From left, the NASA managers in the back row are Space Shuttle Launch Director Mike Leinbach, Kennedy Space Center Director Bill Parsons, and Chairman of Mission Management Team LeRoy Cain. Space shuttle Endeavour landed on Runway 15 at NASA Kennedy Space Center's Shuttle Landing Facility to end the STS-123 mission, a 16-day flight to the International Space Station. This was the 16th night landing at Kennedy. The main landing gear touched down at 8:39:08 p.m. EDT. The nose landing gear touched down at 8:39:17 p.m. and wheel stop was at 8:40:41 p.m. The mission completed nearly 6.6 million miles. The la

JSC2001-E-08322 (22 March 2001) --- Astronaut James D. Wetherbee, STS-102 mission commander, speaks to a crowd of greeters during a crew return ceremony in Ellington Field's Hangar 990. Pictured in the background on the dais are (from the left) Roy S. Estess, Johnson Space Center's Acting Director;along with astronauts Paul W. Richards,Andrew S.W. Thomas and James M. Kellyof the STS-102 crew.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- NASA Administrator Charlie Bolden introduces the STS-133 crew to media representatives waiting on the Shuttle Landing Facility at Kennedy Space Center in Florida to hear statements about space shuttle Discovery's final spaceflight mission. Crew members, from left, are Mission Specialists Nicole Stott and Michael Barratt, Commander Steve Lindsey, Pilot Eric Boe and Mission Specialists Alvin Drew and Steve Bowen. The crew returned to Earth at 11:57 a.m. on Runway 15, completing a 13-day, 5.3-million-mile mission to the International Space Station. STS-133 delivered the Permanent Multipurpose Module, packed with supplies and critical spare parts, as well as Robonaut 2, the dexterous humanoid astronaut helper, to the orbiting outpost. STS-133 was Discovery's 39th and final mission. This was the 133rd Space Shuttle Program mission and the 35th shuttle voyage to the space station.

JSC2001-E-25809 (23 August 2001) --- The STS-105 and Expedition Two crews meet their families and friends during the crew return ceremonies at Ellington Field. Among the crowd are Johnson Space Center's (JSC) Acting Director Roy Estess (back left), astronaut Marsha S. Ivins (third from the left), cosmonaut Yury V. Usachev (fourth from the left), Expedition Two mission commander, Susan J. Helms (fifth from the left), Expedition Two flight engineer, James S. Voss (third from the right), Expedition Two flight engineer, and cosmonaut Vasili V. Tsibliyev. The STS-105 crew delivered the Expedition Three crew and supplies to the International Space Station (ISS) and brought the Expedition Two crew back to Earth.

NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine, left, and Amy Ross, a spacesuit engineer at NASAs Johnson Space Center, left, are seen with Kristine Davis, a spacesuit engineer at NASAs Johnson Space Center, wearing a ground prototype of NASAs new Exploration Extravehicular Mobility Unit (xEMU), during a demonstration of the suit, Tuesday, Oct. 15, 2019 at NASA Headquarters in Washington. The xEMU suit improves on the suits previous worn on the Moon during the Apollo era and those currently in use for spacewalks outside the International Space Station and will be will be worn by first woman and next man as they explore the Moon as part of the agencys Artemis program.

NASA Director for Human Space Flight Programs, Russia, Chad Rowe, left, NASA astronaut and Astronaut Office Representative Kate Rubins, center, and NASA International Space Station Operations Integration Manager Kenny Todd listen as NASA, ESA, Roscosmos, and Russian Search and Recovery Forces meet at the Cosmonaut Hotel in Karaganda, Kazakhstan to discuss the readiness for the landing of Expedition 57 crew members Serena Auñón-Chancellor of NASA, Alexander Gerst of ESA (European Space Agency), and Sergey Prokopyev of Roscosmos, Tuesday, Dec. 18, 2018. Auñón-Chancellor, Gerst, and Prokopyev are returning after 197 days in space where they served as members of the Expedition 56 and 57 crews onboard the International Space Station.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- The STS-118 crew is welcomed back to Earth by NASA officials after completing mission STS-118. From left are KSC Director Bill Parsons, Mission Launch Integration Director Leroy Cain, Commander Scott Kelly, Shuttle Launch Director Mike Leinbach, Pilot Charlie Hobaugh, and Mission Specialists Tracy Caldwell, Rick Mastracchio and Canadian astronaut Dave Williams. NASA Administrator Mike Griffin also greeted the astronauts. On the mission, the crew installed a new gyroscope, an external spare parts platform and another truss segment to the expanding station. Endeavour's main gear touched down at 12:32:16 p.m. EDT. Nose gear touchdown was at 12:32:29 p.m. and wheel stop was at 12:33:20 p.m. Endeavour landed on orbit 201. STS-118 was the 119th space shuttle flight, the 22nd flight to the station, the 20th flight for Endeavour and the second of four missions planned for 2007. This was the 65th landing of an orbiter at Kennedy.

At the Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Center in Star City, Russia, Expedition 59 crewmembers Christina Koch of NASA (left), Alexey Ovchinin of Roscosmos (center) and Nick Hague of NASA (right) report to Russian space officials Feb. 19 during the first of two days of final pre-launch qualification exams. They will launch March 14, U.S. time, from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan on the Soyuz MS-12 spacecraft for a six-and-a-half month mission on the International Space Station.NASA/Beth Weissinger

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, Fla. -- The STS-118 crew arrives at Kennedy's Shuttle Landing Facility aboard a Shuttle Training Aircraft to take part in the Terminal Countdown Demonstration Test (TCDT), a dress rehearsal for launch. From left are Mission Specialist Barbara R. Morgan, Commander Scott Kelly and Mission Specialist Alvin Drew. Morgan joined NASA's Teacher in Space program in 1985 and was selected as an astronaut in 1998. TCDT activities include M-113 armored personnel carrier training, payload familiarization, emergency egress training at the pad and a simulated launch countdown. The STS-118 payload aboard Space Shuttle Endeavour includes the S5 truss, a SPACEHAB module and external stowage platform 3. The mission is the 22nd flight to the International Space Station and is targeted for launch on Aug.7.

From left, commercial crew astronauts Suni Williams, Nicole Mann, Eric Boe, Chris Ferguson and Josh Cassada visit Kennedy Space Center (KSC) in Florida shortly after they were officially assigned to fly on Boeings CST-100 Starliner. The astronauts stopped by Boeings Commercial Crew and Cargo Processing Facility (C3PF) at Kennedy and Space Launch Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station to view progress on the Starliner and the launch pad. Boe, Ferguson and Mann will fly on Starliner in Boeings upcoming Crew Flight Test to the International Space Station (ISS). Cassada and Williams are assigned to Boeings first operational mission to the ISS.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- On the Shuttle Landing Facility at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, the STS-135 crew members have disembarked from T-38 jets. Seen here are Commander Chris Ferguson (left), Mission Specialist Sandy Magnus, Pilot Doug Hurley, Jerry Ross, chief of the Vehicle Integration Test Office and former NASA astronaut; Shuttle Launch Director Mike Leinbach and Mission Specialist Rex Walheim.The STS-135 astronauts arrived at Kennedy about 2:30 p.m. EDT on July 4 for final preparations for space shuttle Atlantis' STS-135 mission to the International Space Station. Atlantis is scheduled to lift off on July 8 to deliver the Raffaello multi-purpose logistics module packed with supplies and spare parts to the station. The STS-135 mission also will fly a system to investigate the potential for robotically refueling existing satellites and return a failed ammonia pump module to help NASA better understand the failure mechanism and improve pump designs for future systems.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - At the Shuttle Landing Facility at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, NASA Associate Administrator for Space Operations Bill Gerstenmaier, wearing sunglasses, congratulates STS-129 Commander Charles O. Hobaugh on a successful mission. Space Shuttle Launch Integration Manager Mike Moses looks on, at left. Space shuttle Atlantis landed on Runway 33, completing the 4.5-million-mile STS-129 mission to the International Space Station on orbit 171. Main gear touchdown was at 9:44:23 a.m. EST. Nose gear touchdown was at 9:44:36 a.m., and wheels stop was at 9:45:05 a.m. On STS-129, the six-member crew delivered 14 tons of cargo to the orbiting laboratory, including two ExPRESS Logistics Carriers containing spare parts to sustain station operations after the shuttles are retired next year.

NASAs SpaceX Crew-7 Crew Arrival for Prelaunch Activities. Roscosmos cosmonaut Konstantin Borisov answers a question from a member of the media alongside fellow crewmates ESA (European Space Agency) astronaut Andreas Mogensen, NASA astronaut Jasmin Moghbeli, and Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) astronaut Satoshi Furukawa after arriving at the Launch and Landing Facility at NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida ahead of the agencys SpaceX Crew-7 mission, Sunday, Aug. 20, 2023. NASAs SpaceX Crew-7 mission is the seventh crew rotation mission of the SpaceX Dragon spacecraft and Falcon 9 rocket to the International Space Station as part of the agencys Commercial Crew Program. Moghbeli, Mogensen, Furukawa, and Borisov are scheduled to launch at 3:49 a.m. EDT on August 25, from Launch Complex 39A at the Kennedy Space Center.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- During a media briefing at Launch Pad 39A, STS-98 Mission Specialist Marsha Ivins (second from right) describes how the robotic arm will lift the payload from the orbiters bay and maneuver it into position for attachment to the International Space Station. The other crew members are (left to right) Pilot Mark Polansky, Mission Specialist Thomas Jones, Commander Ken Cockrell and Robert Curbeam. All are at KSC to take part in Terminal Countdown Demonstration Test activities, which include emergency egress training and a simulated launch countdown. STS-98 is the seventh construction flight to the International Space Station, carrying as payload the U.S. Lab Destiny, a key element in the construction of the ISS. Launch of STS-98 is scheduled for Jan. 19 at 2:11 a.m

These photos show highlights from Artemis II NASA astronauts Victor Glover, Reid Wiseman, and Christina Koch of NASA and CSA (Canadian Space Agency) astronaut Jeremy Hansen visit to NASAs Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama, Nov. 27. The crew met and spoke to employees and viewed facilities for SLS (Space Launch System) rocket. All four astronauts signed the Orion stage adapter (OSA), a small ring structure that connects SLS to NASAs Orion spacecraft, that will be used for Artemis II. Koch and Wiseman also visited the Systems Integration Lab, where SLS flight software testing is conducted. The four astronauts will launch atop SLS inside Orion to venture around the Moon on Artemis II, the first crewed flight for Artemis.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- NASA Administrator Charlie Bolden congratulates the STS-134 crew on a job well done following the successful landing of space shuttle Endeavour at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. From left, are the European Space Agency's Roberto Vittori, Pilot Greg H. Johnson, Commander Mark Kelly, Bolden, and Mission Specialists Mike Fincke, Greg Chamitoff and Drew Feustel. The crew returned to Earth at 2:35 a.m. EDT on the Shuttle Landing Facility's Runway 15, completing a 16-day, 6.5-million mile journey to the International Space Station. STS-134 delivered the Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer-2 (AMS) and the Express Logistics Carrier-3 (ELC-3) to the International Space Station. AMS will help researchers understand the origin of the universe and search for evidence of dark matter, strange matter and antimatter from the station. ELC-3 carried spare parts that will sustain station operations once the shuttles are retired from service. STS-134 was the 25th and final flight

Artemis II Crew Canadian Embassy Reception. From left to right, CSA (Canadian Space Agency) astronaut Jeremy Hansen, NASA astronauts Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, and Christina Hammock Koch participate in a media gather, Wednesday, May 17, 2023, outside of the Canadian Embassy in Washington. Wiseman, Glover, Koch, and Hansen, who will fly around the Moon on NASAs Artemis II flight test, visited Washington to discuss their upcoming mission with members of Congress and others.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- NASA Astronaut Kay Hire and former NASA Astronauts Sam Durrance and Bob Springer take a moment to converse on a very warm, sunny Florida afternoon while attending the 30th anniversary celebration in honor of the Space Shuttle Program's first shuttle launch. The event is being held at NASA's Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex.The celebration followed an announcement by NASA Administrator Charles Bolden where the four orbiters will be placed for permanent display after retirement.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - In the SRB Assembly and Refurbishment Facility, some of the STS-114 crew greet United Space Alliance employees Ed Glovich and Noemi Navaro-Cruz. The crew members are (from left) Mission Specialists Soichi Noguchi and Stephen Robinson; Commander Eileen Collins; and Mission Specialist Charles Camarda. Behind Noguchi, who represents the Japanese Aerospace and Exploration Agency, is Paul Gutierrez, SRB associate program manager with United Space Alliance. The STS-114 crew is at KSC for familiarization with Shuttle and mission equipment. The STS-114 mission is Logistics Flight 1, which is scheduled to deliver supplies and equipment, plus the external stowage platform, to the International Space Station.

KSC Orion Media Day. Artemis II crew members, shown inside the Neil Armstrong Operations and Checkout Building at NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida, stand in front of their Orion crew module and talk with NASA Deputy Administrator Pam Melroy on Aug. 8, 2023. From left are: Victor Glover, pilot; Reid Wiseman, commander; Christina Hammock Koch, mission specialist; and Jeremy Hansen, mission specialist. The crew module is undergoing acoustic testing ahead of integration with the European Service Module. Artemis II is the first crewed mission on NASAs path to establishing a long-term lunar presence for science and exploration under Artemis.

Expedition 36/37 Flight Engineer Karen Nyberg of NASA, left, Soyuz Commander Fyodor Yurchikhin of the Russian Federal Space Agency (Roscosmos), center, and Flight Engineer Luca Parmitano of the European Space Agency, receive a traditional blessing from an Orthodox Priest prior to the three crew members departing the Cosmonaut Hotel for suit up and launch onboard a Soyuz to the International Space Station, Tuesday, May 28, 2013, Baikonur Kazakhstan. The crew's Soyuz rocket is scheduled to launch at 2:31a.m., Wednesday May 29, Kazakh time. Yurchikhin, Nyberg, and, Parmitano, will remain aboard the station until mid-November.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - Astronauts from space shuttle Atlantis STS-135 mission return to the Training Auditorium at NASAs Kennedy Space Center for the traditional post-flight crew return presentation. Commander Chris Ferguson (with microphone) shares a personal story about his experiences. With him are (from left) Mission Specialist Sandra Magnus and Pilot Doug Hurley.STS-135 Mission Specialist Rex Walheim was unable to attend the Kennedy event. In July 2011, Atlantis and its crew delivered to the International Space Station the Raffaello multi-purpose logistics module packed with more than 9,400 pounds of spare parts, equipment and supplies that will sustain station operations for the next year. STS-135 was the 33rd and final flight for Atlantis and the final mission of the Space Shuttle Program.

NASA flight director Chris Edelen looks up at the orbiter from under the wings after the space shuttle Atlantis landed at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida completing STS-135, the final mission of the NASA shuttle program, on Thursday, July 21, 2011. ( NASA Photo / Houston Chronicle, Smiley N. Pool )

NASA astronaut Mike Fincke, left, speaks during a briefing at the agencys Kennedy Space Center in Florida following launch of Boeings Orbital Flight Test, Dec. 20, 2019. Beside him are NASA astronaut Nicole Mann; Jim Bridenstine, NASA Administrator; and Tory Bruno, president and CEO, United Launch Alliance. Boeings CST-100 Starliner spacecraft launched atop a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket from Space Launch Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station at 6:36 a.m. EST. The uncrewed Orbital Flight Test is the Starliners first flight for NASAs Commercial Crew Program.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -NASA astronauts Mike Fossum and Catherine Coleman speak to Kennedy Space Center employees about their experiences aboard the International Space Station.Coleman spent 159 days aboard the station during expeditions 26 and 27. During expeditions 28 and 29, Fossum was in space for 167 days.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- At NASA Kennedy Space Center's Shuttle Landing Facility in Florida, the STS-134 crew members are greeted by Kennedy Center Director Bob Cabana, Shuttle Launch Director Mike Leinbach and other NASA managers after the crew's arrival for final preparations for shuttle Endeavour's liftoff to the International Space Station. From center are Commander Mark Kelly, Bob Cabana, Mike Leinbach, Mission Specialists Greg Chamitoff, European Space Agency astronaut Roberto Vittori, Mission Specialists Andrew Feustel, Michael Fincke and Pilot Greg H. Johnson. Endeavour and its crew will deliver the Express Logistics Carrier-3, Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer-2 (AMS), a high-pressure gas tank and additional spare parts for the Dextre robotic helper to the station. This will be the final spaceflight for Endeavour.

Chris Ferguson, Boeing astronaut, participates in a Boeing Orbital Flight Test media briefing near the countdown clock at the Florida spaceport on Dec. 19, 2019. In the background from left to right are NASA astronauts Nicole Mann and Mike Finke, NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine and Deputy Administrator Jim Morhard. Boeings CST-100 Starliner spacecraft will launch atop a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket from Space Launch Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. The uncrewed Orbital Flight Test will be the Starliners first flight to the International Space Station for NASAs Commercial Crew Program.

Commander Brent Jett (center) talks with employees and visitors at NASA Stennis Space Center. The astronauts of NASA's STS-115 space shuttle mission visited SSC in south Mississippi to share highlights of their 12-day mission and to thank SSC employees for the reliability of the space shuttle's main engines, which helped propel Space Shuttle Atlantis into orbit. STS-115's other crewmembers are (from left) Mission Specialists Joe Tanner, Dan Burbank, Heidemarie Stefanyshyn-Piper and Steve MacLean of the Canadian Space Agency. The mission launched Sept. 9, 2006, resuming construction of the International Space Station.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- A photographer captures the moment as NASA Administrator Mike Griffin (left) welcomes STS-118 Commander Scott Kelly back to Earth after completing mission STS-118. On the mission, the crew installed a new gyroscope, an external spare parts platform and another truss segment to the expanding station. Endeavour's main gear touched down at 12:32:16 p.m. EDT. Nose gear touchdown was at 12:32:29 p.m. and wheel stop was at 12:33:20 p.m. Endeavour landed on orbit 201. STS-118 was the 119th space shuttle flight, the 22nd flight to the station, the 20th flight for Endeavour and the second of four missions planned for 2007. This was the 65th landing of an orbiter at Kennedy.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- Shuttle Launch Director Mike Leinbach, right, is on hand to greet STS-134 Pilot Greg H. Johnson who arrived on the Shuttle Landing Facility at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida aboard a T-38 jet. While at Kennedy, space shuttle Endeavour's crew will participate in a launch countdown dress rehearsal called the Terminal Countdown Demonstration Test (TCDT) and related training in preparation for the upcoming STS-134 mission.Endeavour and its six STS-134 crew members will deliver the Express Logistics Carrier-3, Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer-2 (AMS), a high-pressure gas tank, additional spare parts for the Dextre robotic helper and micrometeoroid debris shields to the International Space Station. This will be the final spaceflight for Endeavour. Launch is targeted for April 19 at 7:48 p.m. EDT.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. --- STS-123 Commander Dominic Gorie inspects the thermal protection system tile on space shuttle Endeavour at NASA Kennedy Space Center's Shuttle Landing Facility. Endeavour landed on Runway 15 to end the STS-123 mission, a 16-day flight to the International Space Station. This was the 16th night landing at Kennedy. The main landing gear touched down at 8:39:08 p.m. EDT. The nose landing gear touched down at 8:39:17 p.m. and wheel stop was at 8:40:41 p.m. The mission completed nearly 6.6 million miles. The landing was on the second opportunity after the first was waved off due to unstable weather in the Kennedy Space Center area. The STS-123 mission delivered the first segment of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency's Kibo laboratory and the Canadian Space Agency's two-armed robotic system, known as Dextre.

STS-131 TCDT - PAD Q & A

NASA's Tracy Caldwell Dyson, left, looks on as Expedition 23 Soyuz Commander Alexander Skvortsov answers a reporters' question during a press conference held at the Cosmonaut Hotel in Baikonur, Kazakhstan on Thursday, April 1, 2010. The launch of the Soyuz spacecraft with Expedition 23 NASA Flight Engineer Tracy Caldwell Dyson, Soyuz Commander Alexander Skvortsov and Flight Engineer Mikhail Kornienko is scheduled for Friday, April 2, 2010 at 10:04 a.m. Kazakhstan time.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- In the Training Auditorium at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, STS-133 Mission Specialists Nicole Stott and Michael Barratt participate in a crew return event. The crew launched from Kennedy's Launch Pad 39A aboard space shuttle Discovery on its final flight on February 24, 2011 to the International Space Station. The crew delivered Robonaut 2 and the Permanent Multipurpose Module packed with supplies and critical spare parts on a 13-day mission. Discovery is being processed for retirement and will be displayed at the National Air and Space Museum's Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center in Chantilly, Va.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - After arrival at NASAs Kennedy Space Center, the STS-114 crew members pause on the runway while Commander Eileen Collins makes a brief statement to the media. Seen here are Pilot James Kelly and Mission Specialists Wendy Lawrence and Stephen Robinson. The crew is at KSC to take part in the Terminal Countdown Demonstration Test (TCDT) over the next three days. The TCDT is held at KSC prior to each Space Shuttle flight. It provides the crew of each mission an opportunity to participate in simulated countdown activities. The test ends with a mock launch countdown culminating in a simulated main engine cutoff. The crew also spends time undergoing emergency egress training exercises at the launch pad. STS-114 is the first Return to Flight mission to the International Space Station. The launch window extends July 13 through July 31.

NASA Armstrongs Chief of Maintenance, Tom Grindle, leads a tour inside the hangar with a group of teachers.

Perseid Meteor flight on Google's Gulfstream Aircraft. P.I. Peter Jenniskens, SETI Group and Rick Conrey, NASA Ames Exploration Academy

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - STS-134 Pilot Gregory H. Johnson is joined by several employees as he signs a poster inside Orbiter Processing Facility-1 at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Also attending the crew return event was STS-134 Mission Specialist Michael Fincke.Commander Mark Kelly, Johnson and Mission Specialists Fincke, Greg Chamitoff, Andrew Feustel and European Space Agency astronaut Roberto Vittori lifted off May 16, 2011 aboard space shuttle Endeavour. During the nearly 16-day STS-134 mission, Endeavour delivered to the International Space Station the Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer (AMS) and spare parts, including two S-band communications antennas, a high-pressure gas tank and additional spare parts for Dextre. This was the 36th shuttle mission to the station and Endeavour's 25th and final flight.

NASAs SpaceX Crew-6 Launch. Bob Cabana, NASA associate administrator, left, and Joe Acaba, Chief of the Astronaut Office, right, shake hands following the launch of a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket carrying the company's Dragon spacecraft on the Crew-6 mission with NASA astronauts Stephen Bowen and Warren "Woody" Hoburg, UAE (United Arab Emirates) astronaut Sultan Alneyadi, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Andrey Fedyaev onboard, Thursday, March 2, 2023, in firing room four of the Rocco A. Petrone Launch Control Center at NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida. NASAs SpaceX Crew-6 mission is the sixth crew rotation mission of the SpaceX Dragon spacecraft and Falcon 9 rocket to the International Space Station as part of the agencys Commercial Crew Program. Bowen, Hoburg, Alneyadi, and Fedyaev launched at 12:34 a.m. EST, from Launch Complex 39A at the Kennedy Space Center to begin a six month mission aboard the International Space Station.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- After greeting the media on the KSC Shuttle Landing Facility after their arrival, the STS-117 crew members head for crew quarters. Welcoming the crew are KSC Deputy Director Janet Petro and Shuttle Launch Director Mike Leinbach. The astronauts are (from left) Pilot Lee Archambault, Mission Specialists Patrick Forrester, John "Danny" Olivas and Steven Swanson, and astronaut Clayton Anderson, who will be joining the Expedition 15 crew on the International Space Station. During the 11-day mission and three spacewalks, the crew will work with flight controllers at NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston to install a 17-ton segment on the station's girder-like truss and deploy a set of solar arrays, S3/S4. The mission will increase the space station's power capability in preparation for the arrival of new science modules from the European and Japanese space agencies.

Vice President Mike Pence, center, and NASA astronaut Reid Wiseman, left, and NASA astronaut Pat Forrester, right, walk out of the historic crew doors at Kennedy Space Center's (KSC) Operations and Checkout Building on Thursday, July 6, 2017, in Cape Canaveral, Florida. These are the same doors that Apollo and space shuttle astronauts walked through on their way to the launch pad.

KSC's Press Site serves as the stage for makers of "The Cape," a pilot television movie starring Corbin Bernsen (third from front).

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - After landing with the STS-124 mission crew, astronaut Garrett Reisman talks to NASA Associate Administrator for Space Operations Bill Gerstenmaier and NASA Associate Administrator Chris Scolese. Reisman spent 95 days on the International Space Station as part of the Expedition 17 crew. The STS-124 mission ended with space shuttle Discovery's landing on Runway 15 at NASA's Kennedy Space Center, ending a 14-day mission to the International Space Station. Discovery's main landing gear touched down at 11:15:19 a.m. EDT on Runway 15. The nose landing gear touched down at 11:15:30 a.m. and wheel stop was at 11:16:19 a.m. The mission completed 5.7 million miles. The STS-124 mission delivered the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency's large Japanese Pressurized Module and its remote manipulator system to the space station.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - Following a presentation by the STS-127 crew members about their experiences on the mission, Commander Mark Polansky (right) presents a plaque commemorating the mission to Kennedy Space Center Director Bob Cabana. At far left is Mission Specialist Julie Payette. Behind Cabana are Mission Specialist Christopher Cassidy and Pilot Doug Hurley. Behind Polansky is Mission Specialist Tom Marshburn. The STS-127 mission was the final of three flights dedicated to the assembly of the Japanese Kibo laboratory complex on the International Space Station. The crew launched on space shuttle Endeavour on July 15 and returned July 31.

Expedition 56 backup crew member David Saint-Jacques of the Canadian Space Agency takes a selfie as the Soyuz rocket arrives as the launch pad after being rolled out by train, Monday, June 4, 2018 at the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. Expedition 56 Soyuz Commander Sergey Prokopyev of Roscosmos, flight engineer Serena Auñón-Chancellor of NASA, and flight engineer Alexander Gerst of ESA (European Space Agency) are scheduled to launch aboard their Soyuz MS-09 spacecraft at 7:12 a.m. Eastern time (5:12 p.m. Baikonur time), on Wednesday, June 6.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- The STS-122 crew returns to NASA's Kennedy Space Center for a presentation in the Training Auditorium. Here, Mission Specialist Rex Walheim (with microphone) shares a personal story about his experiences. With him are (from left) Mission Specialists Leland Melvin, Hans Schlegel and Stanley Love.

Expedition 54 flight engineer Scott Tingle of NASA performs the traditional door signing at the Cosmonaut Hotel prior to departing the hotel for launch on a Soyuz rocket with fellow cremates flight engineer Norishige Kanai of Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) and Soyuz Commander Anton Shkaplerov of Roscosmos, Sunday, Dec. 17, 2017 in Baikonur, Kazakhstan. Tingle, Shkaplerov, and Kanai will launch in their Soyuz MS-07 to the International Space Station to begin a five month mission.

STS -132 astronauts from left, Steve Bowen, Tony Antonelli, Garrett Reisman, Ken Ham, Piers Sellers, and Michael Good are seen with students fromthe Summer of Innovation program following a presentation by the crew at the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum, Tuesday, July 27, 2010, in Washington.

NASA Chief of the Astronaut Office Peggy Whitson, left, STS-135 mission Pilot Doug Hurley, second from left, NASA Administrator Charles Bolden, and Deputy Chief of Flight Crew Operations Directorate Brian Kelly, right, talk under the space shuttle Atlantis at the Kennedy Space Center Shuttle Landing Facility (SLF) shortly after Hurley and the rest of the STS-135 crew landed in Atlantis early Thursday morning, July 21, 2011, in Cape Canaveral, Fla. Overall, Atlantis spent 307 days in space and traveled nearly 126 million miles during its 33 flights. Atlantis, the fourth orbiter built, launched on its first mission on Oct. 3, 1985.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- Members of the STS-106 crew get information from a worker while looking over paperwork at SPACEHAB, Port Canaveral, Fla., about the payload on their mission to the International Space Station. From left (in uniform) are Pilot Scott Altman and Mission Specialists Edward Lu and Boris Morukov, who is with the Russian Space Agency. Among the payload is the Treadmill Vibration Isolation System (TVIS), a device to collect data on how vibrations imparted by crew exercise may be reduced or eliminated on the International Space Station. Those vibrations could disturb delicate microgravity experiments on the Space Station. During the mission, the crew will complete service module support tasks on orbit, transfer supplies and outfit the Space Station for the first long-duration crew. STS-106 is scheduled to launch Sept. 8

NASA astronauts Robert Behnken, left, and Douglas Hurley speak to members of the media after arriving at the Launch and Landing Facility at NASAs Kennedy Space Center ahead of SpaceXs Demo-2 mission, Wednesday, May 20, 2020, in Florida. NASAs SpaceX Demo-2 mission is the first launch with astronauts of the SpaceX Crew Dragon spacecraft and Falcon 9 rocket to the International Space Station as part of the agencys Commercial Crew Program. The flight test will serve as an end-to-end demonstration of SpaceXs crew transportation system. Behnken and Hurley are scheduled to launch at 4:33 p.m. EDT on Wednesday, May 27, from Launch Complex 39A at the Kennedy Space Center. A new era of human spaceflight is set to begin as American astronauts once again launch on an American rocket from American soil to low-Earth orbit for the first time since the conclusion of the Space Shuttle Program in 2011.

Expedition 23 Flight Engineer T.J. Creamer, center, is assisted by NASA Flight Surgeon Pete Bauer, left, and Chief NASA astronaut Peggy Whitson from a Russian Search and Recovery all terrain vehicle to his helicopter shortly after he and fellow crew members Soichi Noguchi and Commander Oleg Kotov landed in their Soyuz TMA-17 capsule near the town of Zhezkazgan, Kazakhstan on Wednesday, June 2, 2010. NASA Astronaut Creamer, Russian Cosmonaut Kotov and Japanese Astronaut Noguchi are returning from six months onboard the International Space Station where they served as members of the Expedition 22 and 23 crews.

Expedition 65 crew member Russian cosmonaut Oleg Novitskiy of Roscosmos, signs in for Soyuz qualification exams while crew mates Mark Vande Hei of NASA, left, and Pyotr Dubrov of Roscosmos look on, Monday, March 22, 2021 at the Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Center (GCTC) in Star City, Russia, in advance of their scheduled launch April 9 from Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan to the International Space Station.

Expedition 64 prime crew member NASA astronaut Kate Rubins, left, and backup crew member NASA astronaut Mark Vande Hei are seen during a tour of the Baikonur Cosmodrome Museum, Wednesday, Oct. 7, 2020, at the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. Rubins, Sergey Kud-Sverchkov of Roscosmos, and Sergey Ryzhikov of Roscosmos, are scheduled to launch to the International Space Station aboard the Soyuz MS-17 spacecraft on October 14.

From left to right, NASA Administrator Bill Nelson, NASA Deputy Administrator Pam Melroy, NASAs SpaceX Crew-2 ESA (European Space Agency) astronaut Thomas Pesquet, NASA astronauts Megan McArthur and Shane Kimbrough, Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) astronaut Akihiko Hoshide, and NASA Associate Administrator Bob Cabana meet, Monday, June 6, 2022, at the Mary W. Jackson NASA Headquarters Building in Washington DC.

At the Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Center in Star City, Russia, Expedition 48-49 prime crewmember Kate Rubins of NASA signs in for the start of final qualification exams May 26 as her crewmates, Takuya Onishi of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (left) and Anatoly Ivanishin of Roscosmos (center) look on. Rubins, Onishi and Ivanishin will launch June 24 on the Soyuz MS-01 spacecraft from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan for a four-month mission on the International Space Station.NASA/Stephanie Stoll

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- At NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, NASA Administrator Charlie Bolden, left, space shuttle Discovery's STS-133 Mission Specialist Nicole Stott, Shuttle Launch Director Mike Leinbach and Kennedy Center Director Bob Cabana chat on the Shuttle Landing Facility runway. In the days leading up to their launch to the International Space Station, Stott and her crew members will check the fit of their launch-and-entry suits, review launch-day procedures, receive weather briefings and remain medically quarantined to prevent sickness. This will be the second launch attempt for Discovery's crew, following a scrub in November 2010 due to a hydrogen gas leak at the ground umbilical carrier plate (GUCP) as well as modifications to the external fuel tank's intertank support beams, called stringers.Scheduled to lift off Feb. 24 at 4:50 p.m. EST, Discovery and its crew will deliver the Permanent Multipurpose Module, packed with supplies and critical spare parts, as well

RICK BURT, RIGHT, DIRECTOR OF SAFETY AND MISSION ASSURANCE TALKS WITH ANDY SCHORR, ASSISTANT MANAGER OF THE SPACE LAUNCH SYSTEM'S SPACECRAFT PAYLOAD INTEGRATION AND EVOLUTION OFFICE. BEHIND THEM IS THE LAUNCH VEHICLE STAGE ADAPTOR, WHICH WAS DESIGNED AND MANUFACTURED AT MARSHALL AND WILL CONNECT TWO MAJOR SLS UPPER SECTIONS

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- At the Shuttle Landing Facility, KSC Launch Director Michael Leinbach (shaking hands) greets STS-106 Pilot Scott D. Altman and Commander Terrence W. Wilcutt after their successful mission and landing. Just behind Leinbach is Jim Halsell, manager of Space Shuttle Launch Integration and former Shuttle Commander, plus other dignitaries on hand to welcome the crew home. Landing occurred on-time at 3:56:48 a.m. EDT. Atlantis and crew traveled 4.9 million miles on the 11-day, 19-hour, 11-minute STS-106 mission. During the mission to the International Space Station, the crew transferred nearly 5,000 pounds of equipment and supplies for use by the first resident crew expected to arrive in November. STs-106 was the 99th flight in the Shuttle program and the 22nd for Atlantis. STS-106 also marked the 15th nighttime landing in Shuttle history and the 23rd consecutive landing at KSC

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- After being welcomed back to Earth from their successful mission, the STS-118 crew heads for Endeavour and a close look at the underside of the orbiter. In the front are Commander Scott Kelly (left) and Pilot Charlie Hobaugh. Seen behind them are Mission Specialists Rick Mastracchio and Tracy Caldwell. On the mission, the crew installed a new gyroscope, an external spare parts platform and another truss segment to the expanding station. Endeavour's main gear touched down at 12:32:16 p.m. EDT. Nose gear touchdown was at 12:32:29 p.m. and wheel stop was at 12:33:20 p.m. Endeavour landed on orbit 201. STS-118 was the 119th space shuttle flight, the 22nd flight to the station, the 20th flight for Endeavour and the second of four missions planned for 2007. This was the 65th landing of an orbiter at Kennedy.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - On Launch Pad 39A at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, the members of space shuttle Endeavour's STS-130 crew are instructed on emergency exit procedures. From left are Mission Specialist Stephen Robinson; Commander George Zamka; Mission Specialist Robert Behnken; Pilot Terry Virts; and Mission Specialists Kathryn Hire and Nicholas Patrick.The crew members of space shuttle Endeavour's upcoming mission are at Kennedy for training related to their launch dress rehearsal, the Terminal Countdown Demonstration Test. The primary payload on STS-130 is the International Space Station's Node 3, Tranquility, a pressurized module that will provide room for many of the station's life support systems. Attached to one end of Tranquility is a cupola, a unique work area with six windows on its sides and one on top. Endeavour's launch is targeted for Feb. 7.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - On the Fixed Service Structure at Launch Pad 39B, the STS-114 crew gets instructions on using the slidewire basket, emergency egress equipment from the pad. Crew members seen here are (from left) Mission Specialist Wendy Lawrence, Commander Eileen Collins and Mission Specialist Soichi Noguchi, who is with the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency. The training is part of Terminal Countdown Demonstration Test activities. The TCDT is held at KSC prior to each Space Shuttle flight. It provides the crew of each mission an opportunity to participate in simulated countdown activities. The test ends with a mock launch countdown culminating in a simulated main engine cutoff. The crew also spends time undergoing emergency egress training exercises at the launch pad. STS-114 is designated the first Return to Flight mission, with a launch window extending from July 13 to July 31.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - Mrs. Daniel R. Mulville shakes hands with Kent V. Rominger, Deputy Director of Flight Crew Operations, on the runway of the Shuttle Landing Facility following the landing of Endeavour. Mrs. Mulville is the wife of Dr. Daniel R. Mulville, NASA Associate Deputy Administrator. In the group, from left are KSC Director Roy D. Bridges; Mrs. Mulville; Dr. Mulville (back to camera); James D. Halsell Jr., Manager of Launch Integration at KSC, Space Shuttle Program; Rominger; and STS-113 Commander James Wetherbee. Commander Wetherbee earlier guided Space Shuttle Endeavour to a flawless touchdown on runway 33 at the Shuttle Landing Facility after completing the 13-day, 18-hour, 48-minute, 5.74-million mile STS-113 mission to the International Space Station. Main gear touchdown was at 2:37:12 p.m. EST, nose gear touchdown was at 2:37:23 p.m., and wheel stop was at 2:38:25 p.m. Poor weather conditions thwarted landing opportunities until a fourth day, the first time

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - At the SRB Assembly and Refurbishment Facility, STS-114 Eileen Collins (center) and Mission Specialist Stephen Robinson look on the table at a mockup of a booster separation motor (BSM) igniter and expanded views of the BSM and igniter. At left is Paul Gutierrez, SRB associate program manager with United Space Alliance. The crew is at KSC for familiarization with Shuttle and mission equipment. The STS-114 mission is Logistics Flight 1, which is scheduled to deliver supplies and equipment, plus the external stowage platform, to the International Space Station.

STS-123 crew visit to Stennis Space Center; Bob Cabana

NASAs SpaceX Crew-4 at NASM. NASA astronauts Robert Hines, left, Kjell Lindgren, second from left, and Jessica Watkins, center, speak with Beth Wilson, second from right and Marty Kelsey, right, while taping a segment for STEM in 30, Tuesday, March 28, 2023 at the Smithsonians National Air and Space Museum in Washington. Lindgren, Hines, and Watkins spent 170 days in space as part of Expeditions 67 and 68 aboard the International Space Station.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- At NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, space shuttle Discovery's STS-133 Mission Specialist Tim Kopra, left, shakes hands with Kennedy's Center Director Bob Cabana on the Shuttle Landing Facility runway after arriving in a T-38 training jet. In the days leading up to their launch to the International Space Station, Kopra and his crew members will check the fit of their launch-and-entry suits, review launch-day procedures, receive weather briefings and remain medically quarantined to prevent sickness.Scheduled to lift off Nov. 1 at 4:40 p.m., Discovery and crew will deliver the Permanent Multipurpose Module, packed with supplies and critical spare parts, as well as Robonaut 2, the dexterous humanoid astronaut helper, to the orbiting outpost.

jsc2017e136937 - At the Baikonur Museum in Baikonur, Kazakhstan, Expedition 54-55 backup crewmember Jeanette Epps of NASA views a model of a Soyuz rocket Dec. 6 during a traditional pre-launch visit to the facility. Epps, Sergey Prokopyev of the Russian Fe

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - From left, Lars Perkins, chair of the Education and Public Outreach Committee of the NASA Advisory Council; former astronaut Leland Melvin, NASA associate administrator for Education; Will.i.am, entertainer and member of The Black Eyed Peas; and NASA Deputy Administrator Lori Garver talk to the participants of a NASA Tweetup in a tent set up at NASA Kennedy Space Center's Press Site in Florida during prelaunch activities for the agencys Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) launch.Participants in the Tweetup are given the opportunity to listen to agency briefings, tour locations on the center normally off limits to visitors, and get a close-up view of Space Launch Complex-41 on Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. The tweeters will share their experiences with followers through the social networking site Twitter. The MSL mission will pioneer precision landing technology and a sky-crane touchdown to place a car-sized rover, Curiosity, near the foot of a mountain inside Ga

In the Space Shuttle Atlantis facility at the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex in Florida, Astronaut Scholarship Foundation Chairman Dan Brandenstein, left, also a Hall of Fame astronaut, presents inductee Michael Foale with his hall of fame medal. Former NASA Administrator Charlie Bolden, right, a Hall of Fame member, presented Foale for induction. During this year's ceremonies, space shuttle astronaut Ellen Ochoa also was enshrined.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, Fla. -- The STS-118 crew arrives at Kennedy's Shuttle Landing Facility aboard a Shuttle Training Aircraft to take part in the Terminal Countdown Demonstration Test (TCDT), a dress rehearsal for launch. From left are Mission Specialist Barbara R. Morgan, Commander Scott Kelly and Mission Specialist Alvin Drew. Morgan joined NASA's Teacher in Space program in 1985 and was selected as an astronaut in 1998. DT activities include M-113 armored personnel carrier training, payload familiarization, emergency egress training at the pad and a simulated launch countdown. The STS-118 payload aboard Space Shuttle Endeavour includes the S5 truss, a SPACEHAB module and external stowage platform 3. The mission is the 22nd flight to the International Space Station and is targeted for launch on Aug.7.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - STS-135 Mission Specialist Sandra Magnus signs an autograph for an employee inside Kennedy Space Center's Orbiter Processing Facility-2, where space shuttle Atlantis is being prepared for eventual display at the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex in Florida. Magnus, along with Commander Chris Ferguson and Pilot Doug Hurley, was at the center for the traditional post-flight crew return presentation. STS-135 Mission Specialist Rex Walheim was unable to attend the Kennedy event. In July 2011, Atlantis and its crew delivered to the International Space Station the Raffaello multi-purpose logistics module packed with more than 9,400 pounds of spare parts, equipment and supplies that will sustain station operations for the next year. STS-135 was the 33rd and final flight for Atlantis and the final mission of the Space Shuttle Program.

Expedition 64 backup crew member Mark Vande Hei of NASA signs in for his Soyuz qualification exams as crew mates Oleg Novitskiy of Roscosmos, left, and Petr Dubrov of Roscosmos look on, Wednesday, Sept. 23, 2020 at the Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Center (GCTC) in Star City, Russia.

jsc2018e097322 - At the Baikonur Museum in the town of Baikonur, Kazakhstan, Expedition 58 backup crewmember Drew Morgan of NASA signs a wall mural Nov. 21 in a traditional pre-launch activity. He is one of the backups to Anne McClain of NASA, Oleg Kononenko of Roscosmos and David Saint-Jacques of the Canadian Space Agency, who will launch Dec. 3 on the Soyuz MS-11 spacecraft from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan for a six-and-a-half month mission on the International Space Station...NASA/Victor Zelentsov.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - STS-119 Mission Specialists Carlos Noriega (center) and Michael Gernhardt (left) discuss mission information during a Crew Equipment Interface Test activity. The mission will deliver the fourth and final set of U.S. solar arrays along with the fourth starboard truss segment, the S6 truss. Mission STS-119 is scheduled to launch in January 2004.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - STS-130 Mission Specialist Kathryn Hire, left, and Pilot Terry Virts inspect the thermal protection system tiles under space shuttle Endeavour following its successful landing on Runway 15 at the Shuttle Landing Facility at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. After 14 days in space, Endeavour's 5.7-million-mile STS-130 mission was completed on orbit 217. Main gear touchdown was at 10 20 31 p.m. EST followed by nose gear touchdown at 10 20 39 p.m. and wheels stop at 10 22 10 p.m. It was the 23rd night landing in shuttle history and the 17th at Kennedy. During Endeavour's STS-130 mission, astronauts installed the Tranquility node, a module that provides additional room for crew members and many of the station's life support and environmental control systems. Attached to Tranquility is a cupola with seven windows that provide a panoramic view of Earth, celestial objects and visiting spacecraft. The module was built in Turin, Italy, by Thales Alenia Space for the

On Thursday, April 5, over 800 middle school, high school and college and university students representing 23 states listened as NASA astronaut Randy Bresnik and European Space Agency astronaut Paolo Nespoli told shared their experiences of exploring space and chasing their dreams. The students were in Huntsville for a week of activities as part of NASA Student Launch.

NASA Director for Human Space Flight Programs, Russia, Chad Rowe, left, and NASA Deputy International Space Station Program Manager Dan Hartman, right, are seen along with other NASA, Roscosmos, and JAXA team members during a meeting to discuss the readiness for the landing of Expedition 55 crew members Anton Shkaplerov of Roscosmos, Scott Tingle of NASA, Norishige Kanai of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) Saturday, June 2, 2018. Shkaplerov, Tingle, and Kanai are returning after 168 days in space where they served as members of the Expedition 54 and 55 crews onboard the International Space Station.

Artemis II Crew Visits Naval Base San Diego. NASAs Artemis II astronauts tour the U.S. Navys Defense Distribution Depot Center in San Diego, California, on July 19, 2023. The depot is currently being used by NASA to house the Vehicle Advanced Demonstrator for Emergency Recovery (VADER), a replica of the Orion crew module. In preparation for the agencys Artemis II crewed mission, NASA and the U.S. Navy will conduct a series of tests to demonstrate and evaluate the processes, procedures, and hardware used in Orion recovery operations for crewed lunar missions. NASA astronauts Commander Reid Wiseman, Pilot Victor Glover, and Mission Specialist Christina Koch, and Canadian Space Agency astronaut Jeremy Hansen will venture around the Moon on Artemis II. The approximately 10-day flight will test NASA's foundational human deep space exploration capabilities, the Space Launch System rocket and Orion spacecraft, for the first time with astronauts and will pave the way to establishing a long-ter

NASA astronaut Ricky Arnold speaks about his time onboard the International Space Station (ISS) during Expeditions 55 and 56, Friday, May 3, 2019 at the Challenger Center in Lanham, MD. During Expedition 55/56, Arnold completed three spacewalks for a total of 19.5 hours outside the space station, and concluded his 197 day mission when he landed in a remote area near the town of Zhezkazgan, Kazakhstan in Oct. 2018. He also flew to the space station on shuttle mission STS-119 to deliver the final pair of power-generating solar array wings.

NASA astronaut Ricky Arnold presents Robert Gabrys, director of the Office fo STEM Engagement at NASAs Goddard Space Flight Center, a montage from his mission onboard the International Space Station, Thursday, May 2, 2019 at NASAs Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md. During Arnolds 197 days onboard the International Space Station, as part of Expeditions 55 and 56, he ventured outside the space station on three spacewalks in addition to conducting numerous experiments and educational downlink events.

Expedition 36/37 Soyuz Commander Fyodor Yurchikhin of the Russian Federal Space Agency (Roscosmos) and Flight Engineer Karen Nyberg of NASA, are seen during the crew press conference at the Cosmonaut Hotel, Monday, May 27, 2013, in Kazakhstan. Yurchikhin, Nyberg and fellow crew member Luca Parmitano of the European Space Agency, were in quarantine and kept behind glass during the press conference in preparation for their launch on a Soyuz rocket to the International Space Station (ISS) on Wednesday May 29, Kazakh time.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - At NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, STS-126 crew members sign autographs for Kennedy workers who attended the astronauts' presentation of their experiences during the mission. In front is Commander Chris Ferguson; behind him in the center is Pilot Eric Boe.

In preparation for Space Shuttle Mission STS-87, the crew arrives at the Kennedy Space Center Shuttle Landing Facility to participate in the Terminal Countdown Demonstration Test (TCDT) for their mission. The TCDT is a dress rehearsal for launch. STS-87 will be the fourth flight of the United States Microgravity Payload and the Spartan-201 deployable satellite. Launch is targeted for Nov. 19

NASA Astronaut and STS-124 commander Mark E. Kelly, right, talks with NASA Associate Administrator Chris Scolese, center, and NASA Associate Administrator for Space Operations Bill Gerstenmaier underneath the space shuttle Discovery shortly after landing on runway 15 of the NASA Kennedy Space Center, Shuttle Landing Facility at 11:15 a.m., Saturday, June 14, 2008 in Cape Canaveral, Florida. Onboard Discovery were NASA astronauts Mark Kelly, commander; Ken Ham, pilot; Mike Fossum, Ron Garan, Karen Nyberg, Garrett Reisman and Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency astronaut Akihiko Hoshide, all mission specialists. During the STS-124 mission, Discovery's crew installed the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency's large Kibo laboratory and its remote manipulator system leaving a larger space station and one with increased science capabilities.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- At Kennedy Space Center in Florida, NASA is hosting a Tweetup for 150 Twitter followers of space shuttle Atlantis' STS-135 mission to the International Space Station, selected from more than 5,500 online registrants. A Tweetup is an informal meeting of people who use the social messaging medium Twitter. Here, NASA astronaut Mike Massimino talks with Sesame Street's Elmo. Sesame Street also is at Kennedy to film Elmo, as he learns about space exploration at NASA.Atlantis and its crew of four; Commander Chris Ferguson, Pilot Doug Hurley, Mission Specialists Sandy Magnus and Rex Walheim, are scheduled to lift off at 11:26 a.m. EDT on July 8 to deliver the Raffaello multi-purpose logistics module packed with supplies and spare parts to the station. Atlantis also will fly the Robotic Refueling Mission experiment that will investigate the potential for robotically refueling existing satellites in orbit. In addition, Atlantis will return with a failed ammonia pum

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - NASA astronaut Doug Hurley talks to a member of the media during an event to mark the T-6 months and counting to the launch of Orion on Exploration Flight Test-1, or EFT-1, inside the Operations and Checkout Building high bay at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. In the background is NASA astronaut Rex Walheim. The crew module has been stacked on the service module in the Final Assembly and System Testing cell. EFT-1 will provide engineers with data about the heat shield's ability to protect Orion and its future crews from the 4,000-degree heat of reentry and an ocean splashdown following the spacecrafts 20,000-mph reentry from space. Data gathered during the flight will inform decisions about design improvements on the heat shield and other Orion systems, and authenticate existing computer models and new approaches to space systems design and development. This process is critical to reducing overall risks and costs of future Orion missions.Orion is the e

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - STS-134 Pilot Gregory H. Johnson, left, and Mission Specialist Michael Fincke speak to employees at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida during a crew return event. Commander Mark Kelly, Johnson and Mission Specialists Fincke, Greg Chamitoff, Andrew Feustel and European Space Agency astronaut Roberto Vittori lifted off May 16, 2011, aboard space shuttle Endeavour. During the nearly 16-day STS-134 mission, Endeavour delivered to the International Space Station the Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer (AMS) and spare parts, including two S-band communications antennas, a high-pressure gas tank and additional spare parts for Dextre. This was the 36th shuttle mission to the station and Endeavour's 25th and final flight.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- From the fixed service structure on Launch Pad 39A at NASA's Kennedy Space Center, the STS-124 crew looks out over the slidewire basket landing area. The crew is learning about and practicing emergency egress procedures. Seen in front from left are Mission Specialists Akihiko Hoshide and Mike Fossum and Commander Mark Kelly; at right, Mission Specialist Karen Nyberg and Pilot Ken Ham, Not seen are Mission Specialists Ron Garan and Greg Chamitoff. Hoshide represents the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency. The crew is at Kennedy for a dress launch rehearsal called the terminal countdown demonstration test. TCDT provides astronauts and ground crews with an opportunity to participate in various simulated countdown activities, including equipment familiarization and emergency training. On the STS-124 mission, the crew will deliver and install the Japanese Experiment Module - Pressurized Module and Japanese Remote Manipulator System. Discovery's launch is tar

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