Space Shuttle Launch Preparations

Images of space shuttles on launch pads at Kennedy Space Center, showcasing rockets and service structures, capturing the excitement of space exploration.

Rollout of Space Shuttle Discovery and Crawler

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - Space Shuttle Discovery, resting on the Mobile Launcher Platform atop the Crawler_Transporter, slowly rolls off Launch Pad 39B on its way back to the Vehicle Assembly Building. At left are the Rotating and Fixed Service Structures (RSS and FSS). Atop the FSS is the 80-foot lightning mast. Once inside the VAB, Discovery will be demated from its External Tank and lifted into the transfer aisle. On or about June 7, Discovery will be lifted and attached to its new tank and Solid Rocket Boosters, which are already in the VAB. Only the 15th rollback in Space Shuttle Program history, the 4.2-mile journey allows additional modifications to be made to the External Tank prior to a safe Return to Flight. Discovery is expected to be rolled back to the launch pad in mid-June for Return to Flight mission STS-114. The launch window extends from July 13 to July 31.

The space shuttle Discovery is poised for liftoff on the STS-128 mission from pad 39a at the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Fla., Monday, Aug. 24, 2009. Discovery is scheduled to launch early Tuesday morning.

Cape Canaveral, Florida, USA. The final mission of Space Shuttle Endeavour STS-134 on Pad 39A.

An Orbital Sciences Corporation Antares rocket is seen on launch Pad-0A during sunrise at NASA's Wallops Flight Facility, Wednesday, January 8, 2014, Wallops Island, VA. Early this morning, Orbital Sciences Corp. decided to scrub todays launch attempt of the Antares rocket and the Cygnus cargo spacecraft on the companys first resupply mission to the International Space Station due to an unusually high level of space radiation that exceeded constraints imposed on Antares.

Rollout of Space Shuttle Discovery and Crawler

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - At Launch Complex 37 on Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida, the core stage of a Delta IV rocket is reflected in the water along the roadway as it nears the pad.The rocket's core stage is the first stage mated to the second stage. This United Launch Alliance Delta IV rocket is slated to launch GOES-P, the latest Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite developed by NASA for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, or NOAA. Launch is targeted for no earlier than March 1.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- The crawler transporter, with its cargo of Space Shuttle Discovery and mobile launcher platform, leaves tracks on the crawlerway as it makes its way up Launch Pad 39B. Behind the Shuttle can be seen part of the rotating service structure and the 82-foot lightning mast (next to the solid rocket booster) on top of the fixed service structure. The two structures are used during prelaunch preparations at the pad. Earlier in the week, the Shuttle was rolled back to the VAB from the pad to repair hail damage on the external tank's foam insulation. Mission STS-96, the 94th launch in the Space Shuttle Program, is scheduled for liftoff May 27 at 6:48 a.m. EDT. STS-96 is a logistics and resupply mission for the International Space Station, carrying such payloads as a Russian crane, the Strela; a U.S.-built crane; the Spacehab Oceaneering Space System Box (SHOSS), a logistics items carrier; and STARSHINE, a student-shared experiment

Cape Canaveral, Florida, May 26, 2005 - Space Shuttle Discovery, resting on the Mobile Launcher Platform, turns the corner on the crawlerway as it rolls back from Launch Pad 39B to the Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB) at the Kennedy Space Center.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, Fla. -- After an early morning rollout from the Vehicle Assembly Building, Space Shuttle Discovery sits atop a mobile launcher platform on Launch Pad 39A. Discovery is scheduled to launch in early August on mission STS-105

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - Space shuttle Atlantis, attached to its external tank and solid rocket boosters, is illuminated as the sun rises over NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The shuttle is on its 3.4-mile trip, known as rollout, from the Vehicle Assembly Building to Launch Pad 39A. First motion was at 6:38 a.m. EDT Oct. 14. Rollout is expected to take about six hours.Liftoff of Atlantis on its STS-129 mission to the International Space Station is targeted for Nov. 12.

Space Shuttle Orbiter Enterprise mated to an external fuel tank and two solid rocket boosters on top of a Mobile Launcher Platform ca. 1980

S92-34862 (13 March 1992) --- An otter, surprised by the unexpected presence of the photographer, seems unaware of the Space Shuttle Endeavour rolling behind it to Launch Pad 39B. Endeavour is the newest orbiter in the Shuttle fleet. Still ahead for Endeavour (OV-105) is a Flight Readiness Firing of its three main engines, and the Terminal Countdown Demonstration Test with the flight crew. Endeavour's maiden voyage on NASA's mission STS-49 will occur in late spring.

Space Shuttle Discovery Begins Her Historic Return to Flight

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - A serene scene surrounds Space Shuttle Atlantis as it begins rolling off Launch Pad 39B to return to the Vehicle Assembly Building. First motion off the pad was at 10:04 a.m. EDT. The crawler is 131 feet long, 113 feet wide and 20 feet high. It weights 5.5 million pounds unloaded. The combined weight of crawler, mobile launcher platform and a space shuttle is 12 million pounds. Unloaded, the crawler moves at 2 mph. Loaded, the snail's pace slows to 1 mph. The rollback is a safety precaution as the area waits for the arrival of Tropical Storm Ernesto. The storm is forecast to be bringing 58-mph to 70-mph winds in the next 24 hours. The shuttle will be moved into high bay 2, on the southwest side of the VAB, for protection from the storm.

STS-131 DISCOVERY AT PAD 39A AFTER ROLLOUT - HARDDOWN

Space Shuttle Discovery Begins Her Historic Return to Flight

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- By midmorning, Space Shuttle Atlantis, mounted on a mobile launch platform, nears Launch Pad 39A atop a crawler transporter. First motion out of the Vehicle Assembly Building was at 5:02 a.m. EDT. In late February, while Atlantis was on the launch pad, Atlantis' external tank received hail damage during a severe thunderstorm that passed through the Kennedy Space Center Launch Complex 39 area. The hail caused visible divots in the giant tank's foam insulation, as well as minor surface damage to about 26 heat shield tiles on the shuttle's left wing. The shuttle was returned to the VAB for repairs. The launch of Space Shuttle Atlantis on mission STS-117 is now targeted for June 8. A flight readiness review will be held on May 30 and 31.

STS-132 ATLANTIS ROLLOUT FROM VAB TO PAD 39A

The Soyuz TMA-11 spacecraft was transported by railcar to its launch pad at the Baikonur Cosmodrome, Monday, Oct. 8, 2007, in Kazakhstan for an October 10th launch date. The Soyuz will carry Expedition 16 Commander Peggy Whitson, Flight Engineer and Soyuz Commander Yuri Malenchenko and Malaysian spaceflight participant Sheikh Muszaphar Shukor to the International Space Station. Whitson and Malenchenko will spend six months on the station. Shukor, who is flying under an agreement between Malaysia and the Russian Federal Space Agency, will return to Earth October 21 with two of the Expedition 15 crew members currently on the complex.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, Fla. -- Space Shuttle Discovery nears the ramp to the top of Launch Pad 39B. The early morning fog that had cleared for the rollout can be seen rolling back over the pad. Discovery will be flying on mission STS-102 to the International Space Station. Its payload is the Multi-Purpose Logistics Module Leonardo, a moving van,” to carry laboratory racks filled with equipment, experiments and supplies to and from the Space Station aboard the Space Shuttle. The flight will also carry the Expedition Two crew up to the Space Station, replacing Expedition One, who will return to Earth on Discovery. Launch is scheduled for March 8 at 6:45 a.m. EST

MOSCOW, RUSSIA - APRIL 23, 2019: Booster rocket Vostok at the pavilion Space on VDNCH. Walking Muscovites and tourists MOSCOW, RUSSIA - APRIL 23, 2019: Booster rocket Vostok at the pavilion Space on VDNCH. Walking Muscovites and tourists. Copyright: xZoonar.com/AlexanderxStrelax 17093203

Sunset on Shuttle Atlantis

NASAs Space Launch System (SLS) rocket with the Orion spacecraft aboard is seen atop a mobile launcher at Launch Complex 39B, Thursday, April 21, 2022, at NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- Nearing the end of its 4.2-mile trek from the Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB), Space Shuttle Discovery clears the gate to begin the climb to Launch Pad 39B aboard the mobile launcher platform and crawler transporter. Earlier in the week, the Shuttle was rolled back to the VAB from the pad to repair hail damage on the external tank's foam insulation. Mission STS-96, the 94th launch in the Space Shuttle Program, is scheduled for liftoff May 27 at 6:48 a.m. EDT. STS-96 is a logistics and resupply mission for the International Space Station, carrying such payloads as a Russian crane, the Strela; a U.S.-built crane; the Spacehab Oceaneering Space System Box (SHOSS), a logistics items carrier; and STARSHINE, a student-shared experiment

Space Shuttle Discovery Begins Her Historic Return to Flight

Aerials - STS-133 Discovery on Pad 39A, LEED Bldg., VAB

Aerials - STS-133 Discovery on Pad 39A, LEED Bldg., VAB

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- On its way back from Launch Pad 39A, Space Shuttle Atlantis, towering above the vehicles on the adjacent road, makes the turn on the crawlerway leading to the Vehicle Assembly Building. In the VAB workers will conduct inspections, make continuity checks and conduct X-ray analysis on the 36 solid rocket booster cables located inside each boosters external system tunnel. An extensive evaluation of NASAs SRB cable inventory revealed conductor damage in four (of about 200) cables on the shelf. Shuttle managers decided to prove the integrity of the system tunnel cables already on Atlantis. The launch has been rescheduled no earlier than Feb. 6

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, Fla. -- Atop the crawler/transporter, the Space Shuttle orbiter Atlantis rolls out to Launch Complex 39A in preparation for mission STS-86, which is targeted for a September launch. STS-86 will be the seventh of nine planned dockings of the Space Shuttle orbiter with the Russian Space Station Mir

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- At the Kennedy Space Center in Florida, the space shuttle Atlantis stands at Launch Complex 39A in preparation for its maiden flight, STS-51J.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - At the Shuttle Landing Facility at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, the space shuttle Endeavour, mounted atop NASA's Shuttle Carrier Aircraft, or SCA, is rolled back from the mate-demate device.The SCA, a modified 747 jetliner, will fly Endeavour to Los Angeles where it will be placed on public display at the California Science Center. This is the final ferry flight scheduled in the Space Shuttle Program era.

Black Knight Rocket, Missile Park, Woomera, Outback, South Australia, Australia

S67-43593 (26 Aug. 1967) --- The completely assembled Apollo Saturn 501 launch vehicle mated to the Apollo spacecraft 017 on Launch Complex 39A, Kennedy Space Center. The fully assembled vehicle was transported to the launch complex on the crawler.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- STS-39 Discovery

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLORIDASTS-82 PREPARATIONS VIEW --- Scattered clouds at dawn provide the backdrop for the Space Shuttle Discovery as it moves along the Kennedy Space Center (KSC) Crawlerway toward Launch Pad 39A in preparation for the STS-82 mission. The Space Shuttle is on a mobile launch platform, and the entire assemblage is being carried by a large tracked vehicle called the Crawler Transporter. A seven-member crew of astronauts will perform the second servicing of the orbiting Hubble Space Telescope (HST) during the scheduled ten-day STS-82 flight. Launch is currently targeted for February 11, 1997.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- Bathed in xenon lights, space shuttle Endeavour moves along the crawlerway from the Vehicle Assembly Building to Launch Pad 39A, illuminated in the background, at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Riding atop a crawler-transporter attached to its external fuel tank and solid rocket boosters, Endeavour's 3.4-mile trek, known as "rollout," began at 7:56 p.m. EST and will take about seven hours to complete. This is the final scheduled rollout for Endeavour. Endeavour and its six-member crew 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 on the shuttle's final spaceflight, STS-134. Launch is targeted for 7:48 p.m. EDT April 19.

A Lockheed Martin Titan IV A-17 launch vehicle is ready for launch from complex 41 at Cape Canaveral. The Titan will carry aloft a Department of Defense payload. Base: Cape Canaveral State: Florida (FL) Country: United States Of America (USA)

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - In the Vehicle Assembly Building, the forward assembly (nose cap and frustum) is lifted away from the solid rocket booster (SRBThe destacking is part of time and cycle activities. The SRB was part of the stack on Atlantis originally scheduled for a March 1, 2003, launch on mission STS-114. The SRBs and external tank were demated in February 2003. The mission is now scheduled to occur no earlier than Sept. 12, 2004, on Atlantis.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - Shortly before midnight Sept. 18, space shuttle Endeavour leaves the Vehicle Assembly Building at NASAs Kennedy Space Center, traveling at less than 1 mph atop a massive crawler-transporter. Endeavour sits on the mobile launcher platform with the crawler-transporter underneath. First motion was at 11:15 p.m. Sept. 18. Endeavour completed the 4.2-mile journey to Launch Pad 39B on Sept. 19 at 6:59 a.m. EDT. For the first time since July 2001, two shuttles are on the launch pads at the same time at the center. Endeavour will stand by at pad B in the unlikely event that a rescue mission is necessary during space shuttle Atlantis' upcoming mission to repair NASA's Hubble Space Telescope, targeted to launch Oct. 10. After Endeavour is cleared from its duty as a rescue spacecraft, it will be moved to Launch Pad 39A for the STS-126 mission to the International Space Station. That flight is targeted for launch Nov. 12.

S68-48787 (11 Oct. 1968) --- The Apollo 7/Saturn IB space vehicle is launched from the Kennedy Space Center's Launch Complex 34 at 11 03 a.m. on Oct. 11, 1968.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- Reflected in water in a drainage canal, Space Shuttle Atlantis, mounted on a mobile launch platform atop a crawler transporter, heads for Launch Pad 39A. This is the second rollout for the shuttle. First motion out of the Vehicle Assembly Building was at 5:02 a.m. EDT. In late February, while Atlantis was on the launch pad, Atlantis' external tank received hail damage during a severe thunderstorm that passed through the Kennedy Space Center Launch Complex 39 area. The hail caused visible divots in the giant tank's foam insulation, as well as minor surface damage to about 26 heat shield tiles on the shuttle's left wing. The shuttle was returned to the VAB for repairs. The launch of Space Shuttle Atlantis on mission STS-117 is now targeted for June 8. A flight readiness review will be held on May 30 and 31.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - This view shows the 154.2-foot-high external tank #120 as it is lowered in the transfer aisle of NASA Kennedy Space Centers Vehicle Assembly Building. It will be lowered to a horizontal position and placed on a transporter to wait for the return of the Pegasus barge from delivering tank #119 to Louisiana. In a few weeks, tank #120 also will be returned to NASAs Michoud Assembly Facility in Louisiana for routine testing and maintenance. This tank is the first of the newly designed tanks that were delivered to Kennedy. Previously stacked with Discovery, the tank has already gone through two tanking cycles during tanking tests but was replaced with tank #121 for Discoverys return to flight mission STS-114

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- Casting giant shadows just after sunrise, Space Shuttle Atlantis, mounted on a mobile launch platform, rolls a second time to Launch Pad 39A atop a crawler transporter. First motion out of the Vehicle Assembly Building was at 5:02 a.m. EDT. In late February, while Atlantis was on the launch pad, Atlantis' external tank received hail damage during a severe thunderstorm that passed through the Kennedy Space Center Launch Complex 39 area. The hail caused visible divots in the giant tank's foam insulation, as well as minor surface damage to about 26 heat shield tiles on the shuttle's left wing. The shuttle was returned to the VAB for repairs. The launch of Space Shuttle Atlantis on mission STS-117 is now targeted for June 8. A flight readiness review will be held on May 30 and 31.

The Soyuz TMA-18 spacecraft is raised into position shortly after it was rolled out by train to the launch pad at the Baikonur Cosmodrome, Kazakhstan, Wednesday, March, 31, 2010. The launch of the Soyuz spacecraft with Expedition 23 Soyuz Commander Alexander Skvortsov of Russia, Flight Engineer Mikhail Kornienko of Russia, and NASA Flight Engineer Tracy Caldwell Dyson is scheduled for Friday, April 2, 2010 at 10:04 a.m. Kazakhstan time.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. The right aft booster, comprised of the aft skirt and the aft motor segment, rolls out of the Rotation Processing and Surge Facility for transfer to the Vehicle Assembly Building where it will be lifted onto the mobile launcher platform. The booster is being assembled for the space shuttle Discovery on mission STS-121, the second space shuttle mission in the return-to-flight sequence. The booster assembly is a major milestone in the processing sequence that leads to launch. The launch date is targeted no earlier than May.

STS-132 ATLANTIS ROLLOUT FROM VAB TO PAD 39A

A NASA space shuttle in the museum in Houston, Texas HOUSTON, TEXAS - NOVEMBER 02, 2018: A NASA space shuttle in the museum in Houston, Texas, USA Copyright: xZoonar.com/imagoDensx 21724660

USA, Florida, Titusville, Kennedy Space Center rocket garden, NASA.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - After rotation in the Vehicle Assembly Building at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, space shuttle Atlantis is suspended vertically above the transfer aisle. The shuttle will be lifted into High Bay 3 where it will be attached to its external fuel tank and solid rocket boosters on the mobile launcher platform. After additional preparations are made, the shuttle will be rolled out to Launch Pad 39A for a targeted launch on May 12 on the STS-125 Hubble servicing mission.

October 26, 2009 - An Ares I-X rocket is seen on launch pad 39b at the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida.

An Air Force TITAN IV Centaur launch vehicle sits poised on Complex-40 ready to carry a MILSTAR communications satellite into orbit. Base: Cape Canaveral Air Force Station State: Florida (FL) Country: United States Of America (USA)

STS-130 ENDEAVOUR ROLLOUT - INCLUDES HARDDOWN

An aerial view of the rocket booster-mounted Columbia space shuttle being moved by a mobile launcher platform. Base: Cape Canaveral Air Force Station State: Florida (FL) Country: United States Of America (USA)

STS-132 ATLANTIS ROLLOUT FROM VAB TO PAD 39A

July 11, 2009 - The space shuttle Endeavour is seen on launch pad 39A at the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida.

Rear Assembly of Space Shuttle Discovery During Rollout

Model of Space Shuttle in Smithosonian, Washington, D.C., USA

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- At NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, a crawler-transporter moves a mobile launcher platform with two solid rocket boosters perched on top from the Vehicle Assembly Building's (VAB) High Bay 1 to High Bay 3. Inside the VAB, the boosters will be joined to an external fuel tank next month in preparation for space shuttle Endeavour's STS-134 mission to the International Space Station targeted to launch in February, 2011.

Exterior view of Launch Complex 39A

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, Fla. -- Space Shuttle Discovery, on its Mobile Launcher Platform, approaches the top of Launch Pad 39B. Fog is rolling in above the Fixed Service Structure, where the Shuttle will stand for launch. Discovery will be flying on mission STS-102 to the International Space Station. Its payload is the Multi-Purpose Logistics Module Leonardo, a moving van,” to carry laboratory racks filled with equipment, experiments and supplies to and from the Space Station aboard the Space Shuttle. The flight will also carry the Expedition Two crew up to the Space Station, replacing Expedition One, who will return to Earth on Discovery. Launch is scheduled for March 8 at 6:45 a.m. EST

Launch of a Delta standard launch vehicle. Base: Cape Canaveral Air Force Station State: Florida (FL) Country: United States Of America (USA)

DF-ST-87-03666. Base: Cape Canaveral State: Florida (FL) Country: United States Of America (USA)

Low angle view of a space shuttle taking off from a launch pad, Space Shuttle Challenger, Kennedy Space Center, Cape Canaveral, Florida, USA

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- Aboard a transporter, external tank No. 120 moves past the NASA News Center parking lot entrance in the Launch Complex 39 Area to the Vehicle Assembly Building, seen behind it. There it will be lifted into a checkout cell. The tank arrived from the Michoud Assembly Facility near New Orleans, making the journey around the Florida peninsula in tow by the JA Bisso II tugboat. ET-120 will be used for launching Space Shuttle Discovery on mission STS-120 in October. NASA/Amanda Diller

USA, Florida, Titusville, Saturn 1B rocket, Kennedy Space Center rocket garden, NASA.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - On Launch Pad 39B, the crawler-transporter moves Space Shuttle Atlantis away from the rotating and fixed service structures, at right, on its rollback to the Vehicle Assembly Building. First motion off the pad was at 10:04 a.m. EDT. The crawler is 131 feet long, 113 feet wide and 20 feet high. It weights 5.5 million pounds unloaded. The combined weight of crawler, mobile launcher platform and a space shuttle is 12 million pounds. Unloaded, the crawler moves at 2 mph. Loaded, the snail's pace slows to 1 mph. The rollback is a safety precaution as the area waits for the arrival of Tropical Storm Ernesto. The storm is forecast to be bringing 58-mph to 70-mph winds in the next 24 hours. The shuttle will be moved into high bay 2, on the southwest side of the VAB, for protection from the storm.

Replica of the start of the space shuttle Atlantis, Minimundus, Klagenfurt, Carinthia, Austria, Europe

The Saturn V carrying Apollo 11. 16 july 1969.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- Positioned on its 12-wheeled, 24-tire transporter, the payload canister with the STS-124 mission payload, Japanese Experiment Module - Pressurized Module and the Japanese Remote Manipulator System, or RMS, inside, approaches the ramp to Launch Pad 39A at NASA's Kennedy Space Center. The transporter is 65 feet long and 23 feet wide. The transporters wheels are independently steerable, permitting it to move forward, backward, sideways or diagonally and to turn on its own axis like a carousel. It is equipped with pneumatic-actuated braking and hydrostat¬ic leveling and drive systems. It is steered from a two-seat operator cab mounted at one end. From the payload changeout room, the pressurized module and RMS will be transferred into space shuttle Discoverys payload bay. Launch is targeted for May 31.

Usa, Florida, Kennedy Space Centre. Rocket Garden

An Orbital Sciences Corporation Antares rocket is seen on launch Pad-0A during sunrise at NASA's Wallops Flight Facility, Wednesday, January 8, 2014, Wallops Island, VA. Early this morning, Orbital Sciences Corp. decided to scrub todays launch attempt of the Antares rocket and the Cygnus cargo spacecraft on the companys first resupply mission to the International Space Station due to an unusually high level of space radiation that exceeded constraints imposed on Antares.

Space ships and rockets in front of the National Space Centre, Nur Sultan, formerly Astana, capital of Kazakhstan, Central Asia, Asia

The Soyuz rocket is seen on its launch pad shortly after being lifted into its upright position on Monday, Sept. 23, 2013, at the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. Launch of the Soyuz rocket is scheduled for September 26 and will send Expedition 37 Soyuz Commander Oleg Kotov, NASA Flight Engineer Michael Hopkins and Russian Flight Engineer Sergei Ryazansky on a five and a half-month mission aboard the International Space Station.

The Orbital Sciences Corporation Antares rocket, with the Cygnus spacecraft onboard, rolls from the Horizontal Integration Facility (HIF) to launch Pad-0A, Friday, Oct. 24, 2014, at NASA's Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia. The Antares will launch with the Cygnus spacecraft filled with over 5,000 pounds of supplies for the International Space Station, including science experiments, experiment hardware, spare parts, and crew provisions. The Orbital-3 mission is Orbital Sciences' third contracted cargo delivery flight to the space station for NASA.

USA, Florida, Cape Canaveral, Kennedy Space Center. Stage 1 of the Saturn V rocket. (Large format sizes available)

S96-07957 (16 April 1996) --- A road sign points to Launch Pad 39B, the final earthly destination for the Space Shuttle Endeavour and its final stepping stone into space. Endeavour began the slow journey from the Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB) at about 10:00a.m., April 16, 1996, perched atop the Mobile Launcher Platform and carried by the Crawler-Transporter. Upcoming activities at the pad to prepare Endeavour for flight on STS-77 include installation of the payloads in the Orbiters payload bay.

January 14, 2009 - Viewed across the waters of the Banana River at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida, Space Shuttle Discovery is secured on Launch Pad 39A.

Exterior view of Launch Complex 39A

Kennedy Space Center, Cape Canaveral, Florida, USA, North America

STS107-S-016 (16 January 2003) --- The Space Shuttle Columbia leaves Launch Pad 39A for STS-107. Following a flawless and uneventful countdown, liftoff occurred on-time at 10:39 a.m. (EST). This angle features the vehicle's starboard side.

A McDonnell Douglas Delta II 7925 vehicle carrying the Near Earth Asteroid Rendezvous (NEAR) spacecraft for NASA sits poised at Launch Pad 17B at Cape Canaveral Air Station. Base: Cape Canaveral Air Force Station State: Florida (FL) Country: United States Of America (USA)

The Soyuz rocket arrives at its launch pad by train on Tuesday, March 26, 2013, at the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. Launch of the Soyuz rocket is scheduled for March 29 and will send Expedition 35 Soyuz Commander Pavel Vinogradov, and Flight Engineers Chris Cassidy of NASA and Alexander Misurkin of Russia on a five and a half-month mission aboard the International Space Station.

The Saturn V Moon Rocket used by Nasa's Apollo and Skylab programs, located at John F. Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- A banner proclaims the sentiments of Kennedy's work force at Launch Pad 39A at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, after space shuttle Atlantis completed its historic and final journey from the Vehicle Assembly Building. Atlantis was secured or "hard down," at its seaside launch pad at 3:29 a.m. EDT on Wednesday, June 1.The milestone move, known as "rollout," paves the way for the launch of the STS-135 mission to the International Space Station, targeted for July 8. STS-135 will be the 33rd flight of Atlantis, the 37th shuttle mission to the space station, and the 135th and final mission of NASA's Space Shuttle Program.

The Soyuz rocket sits ready on the launch pad in Baikonur, Kazakhstan, Tuesday, Sept., 29, 2009 the day before Expedition 21 Flight Engineer Maxim Suraev, Expedition 21 Flight Engineer Jeffrey N. Williams and Spaceflight Participant Guy Laliberté are scheduled to launch to the International Space Station (ISS).

In preparation for Space Shuttle Mission STS-87, Columbia rolls out to Launch Complex 39B atop the crawler-transporter. STS-87 will be the fourth flight of the United States Microgravity Payload and the Spartan-201 deployable satellite. Launch is tentatively scheduled for Nov. 19

S69-17487 (3 Jan. 1969) --- Aerial view of the Apollo 9 (Spacecraft 104/Lunar Module 3/Saturn 504) space vehicle on the way from the Vehicle Assembly Building to Pad A, Launch Complex 39, Kennedy Space Center. The Saturn V stack and its mobile launch tower are atop a huge crawler-transporter. (view looking toward Pad A)

At the mate_demate device at KSCs Shuttle Landing Facility, Atlantis is lowered onto its wheels in preparation for being towed to the Orbiter Processing Facility. This view of Atlantis shows the tail cone that orbiters use when being carried piggyback on ferry flights atop a Shuttle Carrier Aircraft. The tail cone protects the aft engine area and provides a more efficient aeronautical dimension during flight. Atlantis returned from California atop the SCA after its Feb. 19 landing at Edwards Air Force Base concluding mission STS-98. The ferry flight began March 1; unfavorable weather conditions kept it on the ground at Altus AFB, Okla., until it could return to Florida. In the Orbiter Processing Facility, Atlantis will be prepared for mission STS-104, the 10th construction flight to the International Space Station, scheduled to launch June 8

S85-40820 (11 Sept 1985) --- The Space Shuttle Atlantis, scheduled to fly in early October on its first space mission, designated STS-51J, is seen being readied for launch in this low-angle night scene at launch Complex 39, at the Kennedy Space Center (KSC).

Space Shuttle Atlantis

Just after departing the Vehicle Assembly Building, the Space Shuttle Atlantis aboard the crawler-transporter wends its way to Launch Pad 39A. The crawler-transporter carries its cargo at 1 mph, taking about five hours to cover the 3.4 miles from the Vehicle Assembly Building to the launch pad. A leveling system on the crawler-transporter keeps the top of the Space Shuttle vertical, especially negotiating the ramp leading to the launch pads and when it is raised and lowered on pedestals at the pad. Liftoff of Atlantis on mission STS-101 is scheduled for April 17 at 7:03 p.m. EDT. STS-101 is a logistics and resupply mission for the International Space Station, to restore full redundancy to the International Space Station power system in preparation for the arrival of the next pressurized module, the Russian-built Zvezda

The Soyuz rocket is rolled out to the launch pad by train on Monday, December 17, 2012, at the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. Launch of the Soyuz rocket is scheduled for December 19 and will send Expedition 34/35 Flight Engineer Tom Marshburn of NASA, Soyuz Commander Roman Romanenko and Expedition 35 Commander Chris Hadfield of the Canadian Space Agency (CSA) on a five-month mission aboard the International Space Station.

Space Shuttle Endeavour is in place to launch, Kennedy Space Center, Cape Canaveral, Florida, USA

JSC2009-E-143028 (11 July 2009) --- Storm clouds approach launch pad 39A at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida on July 10, 2009, as Space Shuttle Endeavour stands awaiting Saturday's planned launch of the STS-127 mission.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - The Space Shuttle Columbia, undergoing final preparations for launch at Pad 39A, is reflected in the waters of the nearby ocean lagoon. The Rotating Service Structure is in the retracted position for launch.

Exterior view of Launch Complex 39A

This helicopter view of Space Launch Complex 37 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida shows the United Launch Alliance Delta IV Heavy rocket as it stands ready to boost NASA's Orion spacecraft on a 4.5-hour mission.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. The right aft booster, comprised of the aft skirt and the aft motor segment, rolls toward the Vehicle Assembly Building where it will be lifted onto the mobile launcher platform. The booster is being assembled for the space shuttle Discovery on mission STS-121, the second space shuttle mission in the return-to-flight sequence. The booster assembly is a major milestone in the processing sequence that leads to launch. The launch date is targeted no earlier than May.

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