Space Station Operations

Images of astronauts and workers inside the Space Station Processing Facility, focusing on mission preparation and equipment inspections.

In the Solid Motor Assembly Building, Cape Canaveral Air Station, looking over the Inertial Upper Stage booster being readied for their mission are (left to right) STS-93 Pilot Jeffrey S. Ashby and Mission Specialists Michel Tognini, who represents the Centre National d'Etudes Spatiales (CNES), and Steven A. Hawley. On the far right is Eric Herrburger, with Boeing. Other crew members (not shown) are Commander Eileen Collins and Mission Specialist Catherine G. Coleman. STS-93, scheduled to launch July 9 aboard Space Shuttle Columbia, has the primary mission of the deployment of the Chandra X-ray Observatory. Formerly called the Advanced X-ray Astrophysics Facility, Chandra comprises three major elements: the spacecraft, the science instrument module (SIM), and the world's most powerful X-ray telescope. Chandra will allow scientists from around the world to see previously invisible black holes and high-temperature gas clouds, giving the observatory the potential to rewrite the books on t

The Expedition Two crew, along with workers at the Space Station Processing Facility, inspect the air lock from the inside. From left are cosmonauts Yury Usachev (foreground, back to camera) and astronauts Susan Helms (seated) James Voss and John Young, who flew on mission STS-1. Voss, Helms and Usachev will be flying on mission STS-102, launching March 8, to the International Space Station. The air lock will be carried to the Station during their tenure in space. STS-102 will be Helms and Vosss fifth Shuttle flight, and Usachevs second. They will be replacing the Expedition One crew (Bill Shepherd, Yuri Gidzenko and Sergei Krikalev), who will return to Earth March 20 on Discovery along with the STS-102 crew

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- In the Space Station Processing Facility, the STS-112 crew looks over the payload for their mission as part of the Crew Equipment Interface Test. At right are Mission Specialists David Wolf and Piers Sellers. Mission STS-112 will be ferrying the S1 ITS to the International Space Station on its scheduled Aug. 22 flight. The S1 truss is the first starboard (right-side) truss segment, whose main job is providing structural support for the orbiting research facility's 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

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - STS-115 Mission Specialist Joseph Tanner (center) works a piece of equipment during Crew Equipment Interface Test activities in the Space Station Processing Facility. On the right is Mission Specialist Heidemarie Stefanyshyn-Piper. The mission will deliver the second port truss segment, the P3/P4 Truss, to attach to the first port truss segment, the P1 Truss, as well as deploy solar array set 2A and 4A. Launch on Space Shuttle Endeavour is scheduled for May 23, 2003.

Participating in the Crew Equipment Integration Test (CEIT) at Kennedy Space Center are STS-87 crew members, assisted by Glenda Laws, extravehicular activity (EVA) coordinator, Johnson Space Center, at left. Next to Laws is Mission Specialist Takao Doi, Ph.D., of the National Space Development Agency of Japan, who is looking on as Mission Specialist Winston Scott gets a hands-on look at some of the equipment. The STS-87 mission will be the fourth United States Microgravity Payload and flight of the Spartan-201 deployable satellite. During the mission, scheduled for a Nov. 19 liftoff from KSC, Dr. Doi and Scott will both perform spacewalks

In the Solid Motor Assembly Building, Cape Canaveral Air Station, looking over the Inertial Upper Stage booster being readied for their mission are (left to right) STS-93 Pilot Jeffrey S. Ashby and Mission Specialists Michel Tognini, who represents the Centre National d'Etudes Spatiales (CNES), and Steven A. Hawley. On the far right is Eric Herrburger, with Boeing. Other crew members (not shown) are Commander Eileen Collins and Mission Specialist Catherine G. Coleman. STS-93, scheduled to launch July 9 aboard Space Shuttle Columbia, has the primary mission of the deployment of the Chandra X-ray Observatory. Formerly called the Advanced X-ray Astrophysics Facility, Chandra comprises three major elements: the spacecraft, the science instrument module (SIM), and the world's most powerful X-ray telescope. Chandra will allow scientists from around the world to see previously invisible black holes and high-temperature gas clouds, giving the observatory the potential to rewrite the books on t

Included in the payload of science instruments for NASA's Europa Clipper is the Europa Imaging System (EIS) Wide Angle Camera (WAC). Here, mechanical engineers at the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory (APL) in Laurel, Maryland, set up the engineering model of the WAC telescope and electronics in a thermal-vacuum chamber for environmental testing. EIS will allow groundbreaking measurements and map most of Europa, an icy moon of Jupiter with an ocean under its crust, at resolutions previous missions could only achieve in small areas. EIS data will offer fresh insights into Europa's geological structure and processes and will be used to search for evidence of recent or current geologic activity, including potential erupting plumes. With an internal global ocean twice the size of Earth's oceans combined, Europa may have the potential to harbor life. NASA's Europa Clipper spacecraft will swoop around Jupiter on an elliptical path, dipping close to the moon on each flyby to collect da

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - STS-115 Mission Specialist Joseph Tanner (second from right) checks out a camera and cables for the Japanese Experiment Module (JEM) in the Space Station Processing Facility. Known as Kibo, the JEM consists of six components: two research facilities - the Pressurized Module and the Exposed Facility; a Logistics Module attached to each of them; a Remote Manipulator System; and an Inter-Orbit Communication System unit. Kibo also has a scientific airlock through which experiments are transferred and exposed to the external environment of space. The various components of JEM will be assembled in space over the course of three Space Shuttle missions. Equipment familiarization is a routine part of astronaut training and launch preparations.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- In the Space Station Processing Facility at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, technicians garbed in protective wear, commonly known as 'bunny suits,' check the protective wrapping of a piece of equipment prior to installation into the Raffaello multi-purpose logistics module for shuttle Atlantis' flight to the International Space Station.Atlantis and its payload is being prepared for the STS-135 mission, which will deliver the Raffaello multi-purpose logistics module packed with supplies and spare parts to the station. Atlantis is targeted to launch June 28, and will be the last shuttle flight for the Space Shuttle Program.

Technicians unpack and inspect a Nitrogen/Oxygen Recharge System (NORS) tank inside the Space Station Processing Facility high bay at NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida on July 16, 2020. The NORS tanks and their support fixtures are designed to connect to the International Space Stations existing air supply network to refill the previous generation of tanks installed during construction of the space station. These reusable tanks measure 3 feet long and 21 inches in diameter, and weigh about 200 pounds when filled. Once onboard, the tanks will be used to fill the oxygen and nitrogen tanks that supply the needed gases to the space stations airlock for spacewalks. They could also be used to replenish the atmosphere inside the station. The NORS tanks will launch to the station later in the year on a commercial resupply mission.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- In Orbiter Processing Facility (OPF) bay 2 during Crew Equipment Interface Test (CEIT), Mission Specialist Joe Tanner (left) gets instruction from a worker while Mission Specialist Carlos Noriega (right) practices working latches on the Orbital Docking System in Endeavours payload bay. The CEIT provides an opportunity for crew members to check equipment and facilities that will be on board the orbiter during their mission. The STS-97 mission will be the sixth construction flight to the International Space Station. The payload includes a photovoltaic (PV) module, providing solar power to the Station. STS-97 is scheduled to launch Nov. 30 from KSC for the 10-day mission

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- During a Crew Equipment Interface Test (CEIT) at SPACEHAB, in Titusville, Fla., STS-101 crew members check out the SPACEHAB Logistics Double Module that will be part of the payload for their mission. At right is Mission Specialist Mary Ellen Weber (Ph.D.), who is assisted by a SPACEHAB worker. Other crew members taking part in the CEIT are Commander James Donald Halsell Jr., Pilot Scott J. "Doc" Horowitz (Ph.D.), and Mission Specialists Edward Tsang Lu (Ph.D.), Jeffrey N. Williams, and Yuri Malenchenko and Boris W. Morukov, who are with the Russian Space Agency. The primary objective of the STS-101 mission is to complete the initial outfitting of the International Space Station, making it fully ready for the first long-term crew. The seven-member crew will transfer almost two tons of equipment and supplies from SPACEHAB. Additionally, they will unpack a shipment of supplies delivered earlier by a Russian Progress space tug and begin outfitting the newly ar

STS-131 MPLM LEONARDO HATCH CLOSURE

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - STS-118 Commander Scott Kelly (left) and Mission Specialist Lisa Nowak look over equipment in the Space Station Processing Facility Facility during Crew Equipment Interface Test activities. The mission to the International Space Station will be delivering the third starboard truss segment, the ITS S5, which will be attached to the station, and a SPACEHAB Single Cargo Module with supplies and equipment. Launch aboard Space Shuttle Columbia is scheduled for Nov. 13, 2003.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - In the Space Station Processing Facility at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, STS-130 Mission Specialist Robert Behnken (left) practices working on the Cupola, part of space shuttle Endeavour's payload on the mission to the International Space Station. At right is Mission Specialist Nicholas Patrick. Crew members are at Kennedy for familiarization with mission equipment and hardware, called the crew equipment interface test. The payload on the 32nd assembly flight to the International Space Station also includes the Tranquility Node 3. Cupola will provide a 360-degree panoramic view of activities outside the station and spectacular views of the Earth. Cupola has the capability for command and control workstations to be installed to assist in the space station remote manipulator system and extra vehicular activities. The final element of the space station core, Cupola is targeted for launch Feb. 4, 2010.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- In the Space Station Processing Facility, members of the STS-92 crew get a close look at some of the equipment, such as the Integrated Truss Structure Z1, to fly on their mission. STS-92 is the fifth U.S. flight in the construction of the International Space Station. At right are Mission Specialists Leroy Chiao and William S. McArthur Jr. (pointing). Other crew members are Commander Brian Duffy, Pilot Pamela A. Melroy, and Mission Specialists Koichi Wakata, Peter J.K. Wisoff, and Michael E. Lopez-Alegria. Wakata is with the National Space Development Agency of Japan. The Z1 is an early exterior framework to allow the first U.S. solar arrays on a future flight to be temporarily installed on Unity for early power. Another part of the payload is a pressurized mating adapter, PMA-3, to provide a Shuttle docking port for solar array installation on the sixth ISS flight and Lab installation on the seventh ISS flight. Launch of STS-92 is scheduled for Sept. 21, 2

VANDENBERG AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. -- In the Astrotech payload processing facility at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California, NASA's Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer, or WISE, spacecraft is lifted out of the bottom of the shipping container. The satellite will survey the entire sky at infrared wavelengths, creating a cosmic clearinghouse of hundreds of millions of objects, which will be catalogued, providing a vast storehouse of knowledge about the solar system, the Milky Way, and the universe. Launch is scheduled no earlier than Dec. 10.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- During a Crew Equipment Interface Test (CEIT) at SPACEHAB, in Titusville, Fla., STS-101 crew members check out the SPACEHAB Logistics Double Module that will be part of the payload for their mission. At left are Commander James Donald Halsell Jr. and Pilot Scott J. "Doc" Horowitz (Ph.D.); seated on the floor is Mission Specialist Edward Tsang Lu (Ph.D.). Other crew members who are taking part in the CEIT are Mission Specialists Mary Ellen Weber, (Ph.D.), Jeffrey N. Williams, and Boris W. Morukov and Yuri Malenchenko, who are with the Russian Space Agency. The primary objective of the STS-101 mission is to complete the initial outfitting of the International Space Station, making it fully ready for the first long-term crew. The seven-member crew will transfer almost two tons of equipment and supplies from SPACEHAB. Additionally, they will unpack a shipment of supplies delivered earlier by a Russian Progress space tug and begin outfitting the newly arrived Z

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - Members of the Space Shuttle Discoverys Return to Flight STS-114 crew are conducting a payload Crew Equipment Interface Test (CEIT) in the Space Station Processing Facility at NASAs Kennedy Space Center, Fla. Seen here inside the Multi-Purpose Logistics Module Raffaello are Mission Specialists Wendy Lawrence (left) and Soichi Noguchi (right), who is with the Japanese Aerospace Exploration Agency. The launch window for STS-114 is May 15 to June 3, 2005. During CEIT, the crew is inspecting the resupply stowage racks installed in the Italian-built Multi-Purpose Logistics Module Raffaello and performing tool and equipment interface checks with the Thermal Protection System (TPS) repair sample box, the Control Moment Gyroscope (CMG) and the External Stowage Platform-2 in preparation for the missions three scheduled spacewalks. The seven-member crew will fly to the International Space Station primarily to evaluate procedures for flight safety, including Shuttle i

STS-131 EVA SUITS STOWED IN DISCOVERY

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- In the Space Station Processing Facility, STS-122 crew members inspect the Multi-Purpose Experiment Support Structure - Non-Deployable (MPESS-ND), part of the payload on their mission. In the foreground are Mission Specialists Rex Walheim (left) and Stan Love. The crew is participating in a crew equipment interface test that provides opportunities for hands-on experience with payloads and equipment. The other crew members are Commander Steve Frick, Pilot Alan Poindexter and Mission Specialists Leland Melvin and Hans Schlegel, who represents the European Space Agency. The 24th mission to the International Space Station, STS-122 will also include the Columbus European Laboratory. Launch of STS-122 on Space Shuttle Discovery is scheduled no earlier than October.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- STS-122 Mission Specialist Stanley Love looks at the experiment racks inside the Columbus Research Laboratory in the Space Station Processing Facility. He and other crew members are at Kennedy to take part in a crew equipment interface test, which helps familiarize them with equipment and payloads for the mission. Among the activities standard to a CEIT are harness training, inspection of the thermal protection system and camera operation for planned extravehicular activities, or EVAs. The crew comprises Commander Stephen Frick, Pilot Alan Poindexter, and Mission Specialists Rex Walheim, Stanley Love, Leland Melvin and Hans Schlegel, who represents the European Space Agency. The Columbus Lab is Europes largest contribution to the construction of the International Space Station. It will support scientific and technological research in a microgravity environment. Columbus, a program of ESA, is a multifunctional, pressurized laboratory that will be perma

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - In the Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility at NASAs Kennedy Space Center, engineers prepare to install the gimbal on the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) solar panel. A gimbal is an appliance that allows an object to remain horizontal even as its support tips. In the PHSF, the spacecraft will undergo multiple mechanical assembly operations and electrical tests to verify its readiness for launch. A major deployment test will check out the spacecrafts large solar arrays. The MRO was built by Lockheed Martin for NASAs Jet Propulsion Laboratory in California. It is the next major step in Mars exploration and scheduled for launch from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in a window opening Aug. 10. The MRO is an important next step in fulfilling NASAs vision of space exploration and ultimately sending human explorers to Mars and beyond.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- A worker in the Space Assembly and Encapsulation Facility 2 (SAEF-2) checks the base of the Comet Nucleus Tour (CONTOUR) spacecraft before it is moved for mating with the upper stage of a Boeing Delta II rocket. CONTOUR will provide the first detailed look into the heart of a comet -- the nucleus. Flying as close as 60 miles (100 kilometers) to at least two comets, the spacecraft will take the sharpest pictures yet of a nucleus while analyzing the gas and dust that surround these rocky, icy building blocks of the solar system. Launch of CONTOUR aboard the Delta II is scheduled for July 1, 2002, from Launch Complex 17-A, Cape Canaveral Air Force Station

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- In the Space Station Processing Facility, STS-120 Commander Pamela Melroy (right) learns more about the Node 2, another element to be added to the International Space Station. With her is astronaut Peggy Whitson, who served on Expedition 5 aboard the space station. During her 6-month stay aboard the space station, Dr. Whitson installed the Mobile Base System, the S1 truss segment, and the P1 truss segment. She and other crew members are at KSC for equipment familiarization. Node 2 will provide a passageway between three station science experiment facilities: the U.S. Destiny Laboratory, the Kibo Japanese Experiment Module, and the European Columbus Laboratory. STS-120 is targeted for launch on October 20.

Inside the U.S. Lab, Destiny, members of the STS-98 crew work with technicians (in the background) to learn more about the equipment in the module. They are taking part in Crew Equipment Interface Test activities. At left, back to camera, is Mission Specialist Marsha Ivins. Standing are Mission Specialists Thomas Jones (left) and Robert Curbeam (right). Other crew members not seen are Commander Ken Cockrell and Pilot Mark Polansky. The mission will be transporting the Lab to the International Space Station with five system racks already installed inside of the module. With delivery of electronics in the lab, electrically powered attitude control for Control Moment Gyroscopes will be activated. The STS-98 launch is scheduled for Jan. 18, 2001

Pete Steigner, and Mike Golob (middle and right) assist an Chris Kolos in carefully moving a TIRS component across the clean room at Goddard. On the far right Robin Knight holds the component's 'grounding strap.' It's used to make sure that any static electricity that could possibly build up while the component is being moved doesn't affect the damage the sensitive electronics. The Thermal Infrared Sensor (TIRS) will fly on the next Landsat satellite, the Landsat Data Continuity Mission (LDCM). TIRS was built on an accelerated schedule at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Md. and will now be integrated into the LDCM spacecraft at Orbital Science Corp. in Gilbert, Ariz. The Landsat Program is a series of Earth observing satellite missions jointly managed by NASA and the U.S. Geological Survey. Landsat satellites have been consistently gathering data about our planet since 1972. They continue to improve and expand this unparalleled record of Earth's changing landscapes for t

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - In the Space Station Processing Facility at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, STS-130 Mission Specialist Robert Behnken (left) handles equipment that will be on the mission. Crew members are at Kennedy for familiarization with mission equipment and hardware, called the crew equipment interface test. The payload on the 32nd assembly flight to the International Space Station includes the Cupola and the Tranquility Node 3. Cupola will provide a 360-degree panoramic view of activities outside the station and spectacular views of the Earth. Cupola has the capability for command and control workstations to be installed to assist in the space station remote manipulator system and extra vehicular activities. The final element of the space station core, Cupola is targeted for launch Feb. 4, 2010.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - In the Space Station Processing Facility at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, STS-127 crew members get a close look at equipment for their mission, which will install final components of the Japanese Aerospace Exploration Agencys Japanese Experiment Module, or JEM. Equipment familiarization is part of a Crew Equipment Interface Test. The JEM components include the Inter Orbit Communication System Extended Facility, or ICS-EF, the Extended Facility and Experiment Logistics Module-Exposed Section. The payload will launch aboard space shuttle Endeavour targeted for May 15, 2009.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- In the Space Station Processing Facility at NASA's Kennedy Space Center, STS-124 Mission Specialist Michael Fossum (left) gets a close look at equipment on the Japanese Experiment Module, called Kibo, including the Remote Manipulator System, or RMS, two robotic arms that support operations on the outside of the Kibo. Crew members are at Kennedy for a crew equipment interface test that includes familiarization with tools and equipment that will be used on the mission. The STS-124 mission is the second of three flights that will launch components to complete the Japanese pressurized module, the Kibo laboratory. The mission will include two spacewalks to install the new lab and its remote manipulator system. The lab's logistics module, which will have been installed in a temporary location during STS-123, will be attached to the new lab.

In the Spacecraft Assembly and Encapsulation Facility 2 (SAEF 2), workers check the Thermal Emission Imaging System (THEMIS) before attaching to the 2001 Mars Odyssey Orbiter (background). THEMIS will map the mineralogy and morphology of the Martian surface using a high-resolution camera and a thermal infrared imaging spectrometer. The orbiter will carry three science instruments: THEMIS, the Gamma Ray Spectrometer (GRS), and the Mars Radiation Environment Experiment (MARIE). The GRS will achieve global mapping of the elemental composition of the surface and determine the abundance of hydrogen in the shallow subsurface. The MARIE will characterize aspects of the near-space radiation environment with regards to the radiation-related risk to human explorers. The Mars Odyssey Orbiter is scheduled for launch on April 7, 2001, aboard a Delta 7925 rocket from Launch Pad 17-A, Cape Canaveral Air Force Station

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, Fla. -- Members of the STS-107 crew take part in In-Flight Maintenance training for their mission. One of the payload elements on the mission is the SPACEHAB Double Module in its first research flight into space. Working with equipment inside the SPACEHAB Double Module are (left to right) SPACEHAB trainer David Butler, Pilot William C. Willie” McCool, Commander Rick D. Husband, and Payload Specialist Ilan Ramon, from Israel. Research mission STS-107 is scheduled to launch July 19, 2001

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - Workers at Vandenberg Air Force Base, Calif., prepare to move the SciSat-1 spacecraft. SciSat-1 weighs approximately 330 pounds and will be placed in a 400-mile-high polar orbit to investigate processes that control the distribution of ozone in the upper atmosphere. The scientific mission of SciSat-1 is to measure and understand the chemical processes that control the distribution of ozone in the Earths atmosphere, particularly at high altitudes. The data from the satellite will provide Canadian and international scientists with improved measurements relating to global ozone processes and help policymakers assess existing environmental policy and develop protective measures for improving the health of our atmosphere, preventing further ozone depletion. The mission is designed to last two years.

Dressed in protective clothing, STS-100 Mission Specialist Chris Hadfield looks at equipment in the payload bay of orbiter Endeavour during a Crew Equipment Interface Test (CEIT). Other crew members at KSC for the CEIT are Commander Kent V. Rominger, Pilot Jeffrey S. Ashby and Mission Specialists Scott Parazynski, John L. Phillips, Umberto Guidoni, who is with the European Space Agency, and Yuri Lonchakov, who is with the Russian Aviation and Space Agency. Hadfield is with the Canadian Space Agency. Endeavour is also carrying the Multi-Purpose Logistics Module Raffaello to the International Space Station. Raffaello carries six system racks and two storage racks for the U.S. Lab. Launch of mission STS-100 is scheduled for April 19 at 2 41 p.m. EDT from Launch Pad 39A

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- Inside the Multi-Purpose Logistics Module Leonardo, which is in the Space Station Processing Facility, workers remove one of the containers returned from the International Space Station on mission STS-102. The MPLM brought back to KSC nearly a ton of trash and excess equipment from the Space Station. Leonardo is one of three MPLMs built by the Italian Space Agency to serve as cargo vans to the Station, carrying supplies and equipment. In the SSPF, Leonardo will be prepared for a future mission

Kepler project; technicians from Ball Aerospace work on and in the test chamber assembled at Nasa Ames Research center testing components

Kepler project; technicians from Ball Aerospace work on and in the test chamber assembled at Nasa Ames Research center testing components

As part of Crew Equipment Interface Test (CEIT) activities, members of the STS-92 crew check out equipment they will be using on the mission to the International Space Station. Mission Specialists Michael Lopez-Alegria (center) and Jeff Wisoff (right) talk with Boeing technicians about the Integrated Truss Structure Z1, a component of the Station and payload on STS-92, in front of them. The Z1 truss is an early exterior framework to allow the first U.S. solar arrays on a future flight to be temporarily installed on Unity for early power. STS-92 is scheduled to launch Oct. 5 from launch Pad 39A

Members of JPL's assembly, test and launch operations team for NASA's Perseverance mission show appreciation for their newly named rover. The image was taken on March 4, 2020, at a payload processing facility at NASA's Kennedy Space Center. The plate is actually a rock and debris shield, designed to protect a cable that carries power and data from computers in the rover's body to actuators in the arm, as well as to the rotary percussive drill and instruments in the turret. Weighing in at about 104 grams (3.7 ounces), the 17-inch-long by 3.25-inch-wide (43-centimeter-long by 8.26-centimeter-wide) plate was cut using a water jet. The surface was coated with black thermal paint before a computer-guided laser generated the name Perseverance by ablating paint off the surface. The nameplate was attached to the rover on March 4, 2020.

LCROSS in Ames clean room N-240- cleaning and wrapping for transfer to Northrup Grumman Redondo Beach, CA where more calibration will be done before finally being sent for mating with the LRO spacecraft (with Steve Ord, Project Management Division (l) and Tony Colaprete (r) LCROSS P.I.)

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

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- In the Space Station Processing Facility at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, technicians cover the hatch of the Permanent Multipurpose Module, or PMM, with insulating blankets to protect it and its contents from the harsh environment and temperatures of space.Space shuttle Discovery and its STS-133 crew are targeted to launch Nov. 1 and will deliver the PMM, packed with supplies and critical spare parts, as well as Robonaut 2, the dexterous humanoid astronaut helper, to the International Space Station.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- Inside the Multi-Purpose Logistics Module Leonardo, which is in the Space Station Processing Facility, workers remove one of the containers returned from the International Space Station on mission STS-102. The MPLM brought back to KSC nearly a ton of trash and excess equipment from the Space Station. Leonardo is one of three MPLMs built by the Italian Space Agency to serve as cargo vans” to the Station, carrying supplies and equipment. In the SSPF, Leonardo will be prepared for a future mission

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- In the Space Station Processing Facility, as part of the Crew Equipment Interface Test, the STS-112 crew get a different view of the mission payload. from underneath. Second from left is Mission Specialist David Wolf; at right are Mission Specialists Piers Sellers (front) and Fyodor Yurchikhin (back), who is with the Russian Space Agency. Mission STS-112 will be ferrying the S1 ITS to the International Space Station on its scheduled Aug. 22 flight. The S1 truss is the first starboard (right-side) truss segment, whose main job is providing structural support for the orbiting research facility's 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

In the Space Station Processing Facility, STS-98 Mission Specialist Thomas D. Jones (Ph.D.) examines a power data grapple fixture outside the U.S. Lab Destiny. Jones is taking part in a Multi-Equipment Interface Test (MEIT), along with other crew members Commander Kenneth D. Cockrell and Pilot Mark Polansky. The remaining members of the crew (not present for the MEIT) are Mission Specialists Robert L. Curbeam Jr. and Marsha S. Ivins. During the STS-98 mission, the crew will install the Lab on the International Space Station during a series of three space walks. The grapple fixture will be the base of operations for the robotic arm on later flights The mission will provide the station with science research facilities and expand its power, life support and control capabilities. The U.S. Laboratory Module continues a long tradition of microgravity materials research, first conducted by Skylab and later Shuttle and Spacelab missions. Destiny is expected to be a major feature in future rese

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- At the Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility, workers integrate the landing radar with the Phoenix spacecraft. Testing will follow. The Phoenix mission is the first project in NASA's first openly competed program of Mars Scout missions. Phoenix will land in icy soils near the north polar permanent ice cap of Mars and explore the history of the water in these soils and any associated rocks, while monitoring polar climate. Landing is planned in May 2008 on arctic ground where a mission currently in orbit, Mars Odyssey, has detected high concentrations of ice just beneath the top layer of soil.

On Friday, May 18, 2018, at the Astrotech processing facility in Titusville, Florida, near NASA's Kennedy Space Center, scientists and engineers from the Applied Physics Laboratory at Johns Hopkins University install a computer chip on NASA's Parker Solar Probe. Throughout its seven-year mission, NASAs Parker Solar Probe will swoop through the Suns atmosphere, carrying more than scientific instruments on this historic journey — it will also hold more than 1.1 million names submitted by the public to go to the Sun. The submitted names were loaded into a memory card and mounted on a plaque bearing a dedication to the missions namesake, heliophysicist Dr. Eugene Parker. The Parker Solar Probe will launch on a United Launch Alliance Delta IV Heavy rocket from Space Launch Complex 37 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida no earlier than Aug. 4, 2018. The mission will perform the closest-ever observations of a star when it travels through the Sun's atmosphere, called the corona.

In the Space Station Processing Facility at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, Jacobs Test and Operations Support Contract, or TOSC, technician Rod Ostgrard helps fill portable breathing apparatuses, or PBAS. The PBAs are to be use on board the International Space Staton to provide astronauts with breathable air in the event of a fire or other emergency situation.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- Before removing the contents of the the Multi-Purpose Logistics Module Leonardo, which is in the Space Station Processing Facility, a worker takes inventory. The MPLM has just returned from its maiden voyage to the International Space Station aboard Discovery on mission STS-102. It has brought back to KSC nearly a ton of trash and excess equipment from the Space Station. Leonardo is one of three MPLMs built by the Italian Space Agency to serve as cargo vans” to the Station, carrying supplies and equipment. In the SSPF, Leonardo will be prepared for a future mission

STS-131 EVA SUITS STOWED IN DISCOVERY

VANDENBERG AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. -- Inside the Astrotech payload processing facility at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California, a technician begins to remove the protective covering surrounding NASA's Glory spacecraft. Next, the spacecraft will be encapsulated in its protective payload fairing before it is transported to Space Launch Complex 576-E and joined with the Taurus XL rocket's third stage. Once Glory reaches orbit, it will collect data on the properties of aerosols and black carbon. It also will help scientists understand how the sun's irradiance affects Earth's climate. Launch is scheduled for 5:09 a.m. EST Feb. 23. For information, visit www.nasa.gov/glory.

STS-131 LAUNCH L-4 CREW SHARP EDGE INSPECTION

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - Ball Aerospace technicians at Astrotech Space Operations in Titusville, Fla., attach equipment to the flight battery to move it to the Deep Impact flyby spacecraft for installation. About the size of a Ford Explorer, the flyby spacecraft is three-axis stabilized and uses a fixed solar array and a small NiH2 battery for its power system. A NASA Discovery mission, Deep Impact will probe beneath the surface of Comet Tempel 1 on July 4, 2005, when the comet is 83 million miles from Earth. During the encounter phase when the comet collides with the impactor projectile propelled into its path, the spacecrafts high-gain antenna will transmit near-real-time images of the impact back to Earth. The spacecraft is scheduled to launch Jan. 8 aboard a Boeing Delta II rocket from Launch Complex 17-B at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Fla.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- In the Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, spacecraft technicians examine the Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) rover, Curiosity, to ensure that the proper steps have been taken to stow the spacecraft's robotic arm.The arm will hold and maneuver instruments that will help scientists analyze Martian rocks and soil. Much like a human arm, the robotic arm has flexibility through shoulder, elbow, and wrist joints that permit the arm to extend, bend, and angle precisely against rocks and soil to grind away layers, take microscopic images and analyze their elemental composition. At the end of the arm is a hand-like structure, the turret, for holding various tools that can spin through a 350-degree turning range. A United Launch Alliance Atlas V-541 configuration will be used to loft MSL into space. Curiositys 10 science instruments are designed to search for evidence on whether Mars has had environments favorable to micro

At a work bench in the Spacecraft Assembly and Encapsulation Facility 2, workers test the Thermal Emission Imaging System (THEMIS) before attaching to the 2001 Mars Odyssey Orbiter. THEMIS will map the mineralogy and morphology of the Martian surface using a high-resolution camera and a thermal infrared imaging spectrometer. The orbiter will carry three science instruments THEMIS, the Gamma Ray Spectrometer (GRS), and the Mars Radiation Environment Experiment (MARIE). The GRS will achieve global mapping of the elemental composition of the surface and determine the abundance of hydrogen in the shallow subsurface. The MARIE will characterize aspects of the near-space radiation environment with regards to the radiation-related risk to human explorers. The Mars Odyssey Orbiter is scheduled for launch on April 7, 2001, aboard a Delta 7925 rocket from Launch Pad 17-A, Cape Canaveral Air Force Station

STS-133 EXPCA4 Lift to Work Stand

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- At SPACEHAB, STS-102 Mission Specialist Andrew S.W. Thomas practices using a tool on the Early Ammonia Servicer under the watchful eyes of a technician. Thomas and other crew members are at SPACEHAB to get acquainted with tools and equipment they will be using on their mission to the International Space Station. The second spacewalk of the mission will require the crew to transfer the Early Ammonia Servicer to the P6 truss. STS-102 is the 8th construction flight to the Space Station and will carry the Multi-Purpose Logistics Module Leonardo. On that flight, Leonardo will be filled with equipment and supplies to outfit the U.S. laboratory module Destiny. The mission will also be carrying the Expedition Two crew to the Space Station, replacing the Expedition One crew who will return on Shuttle Discovery. STS-102 is scheduled for launch March 8, 2001

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - In the clean room at NASAs Hangar AE on Cape Canaveral Air Force Station (CCAFS), a Spectrolab technician, Anna Herrera, places a new solar cell on the Swift spacecrafts solar array. Swift is a first-of-its-kind, multi-wavelength observatory dedicated to the study of gamma-ray burst (GRB) science. Its three instruments will work together to observe GRBs and afterglows in the gamma-ray, X-ray, ultraviolet and optical wavebands. The main mission objectives for Swift are to determine the origin of gamma-ray bursts, classify gamma-ray bursts and search for new types, determine how the blast wave evolves and interacts with the surroundings, use gamma-ray bursts to study the early universe and perform the first sensitive hard X-ray survey of the sky. Swift is scheduled to launch Oct. 26 from Launch Pad 17-A, CCAFS, on a Boeing Delta 7320 rocket.

MARSHALL SCIENTIST ED WEST ASSEMBLES THE OPTICAL SYSTEM OF THE SOLAR ULTRAVIOLET MAGNETOGRAPH INVESTIGATION TELESCOPE

Worker in protective mask and suit behind plastic wall

SOFIA (Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy) primary mirror being coated in the Ames N-211 Vacuum Chamber.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- In the Space Station Processing Facility at NASA's Kennedy Space Center, STS-120 Mission Specialist Scott Parazynski checks out the primary payload for the mission: the U.S. Node 2, another element to be added to the International Space Station. Parazynski and other crew members are familiarizing themselves with the payload. Node 2 will provide a passageway between three station science experiment facilities: the U.S. Destiny Laboratory, the Kibo Japanese Experiment Module, and the European Columbus Laboratory. STS-120 is targeted for launch on Sept. 7 with a crew of six, including Commander Pam Melroy, Pilot George Zamka, and Mission Specialist Mike Foreman.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- Members of the STS-107 crew take part in In-Flight Maintenance training for their mission. One of the payload elements on the mission is the SPACEHAB Double Module in its first research flight into space. Checking equipment and paperwork inside the SPACEHAB Double Module are (left to right) Mission Specialist David M. Brown, Pilot William C. Willie” McCool, Commander Rick D. Husband and Payload Specialist Ilan Ramon of Israel. STS-107 will carry a broad collection of experiments ranging from material science to life science. It is scheduled to launch July 19, 2001

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - STS-114 Mission Specialist Soichi Noguchi, who is with the Japanese Aerospace and Exploration Agency, looks at the inside of the Japanese Experiment Module (JEM) in the Space Station Processing Facility. He and other crew members are at KSC becoming familiar with Shuttle and mission equipment. The mission is Logistics Flight 1, which is scheduled to deliver supplies and equipment plus the external stowage platform to the International Space Station.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - Ball Aerospace technicians at Astrotech Space Operations in Titusville, Fla., take a final look at the flight battery before moving and installing it on the Deep Impact flyby spacecraft. About the size of a Ford Explorer, the flyby spacecraft is three-axis stabilized and uses a fixed solar array and a small NiH2 battery for its power system. A NASA Discovery mission, Deep Impact will probe beneath the surface of Comet Tempel 1 on July 4, 2005, when the comet is 83 million miles from Earth. During the encounter phase when the comet collides with the impactor projectile propelled into its path, the spacecrafts high-gain antenna will transmit near-real-time images of the impact back to Earth. The spacecraft is scheduled to launch Jan. 8 aboard a Boeing Delta II rocket from Launch Complex 17-B at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Fla.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- In the Space Station Processing Facility, members of the STS-92 crew examine equipment that will be part of their mission to the International Space Station (ISS). The fourth U.S. flight to the ISS, the mission payload includes the Integrated Truss Structure Z1, an early exterior framework to allow the first U.S. solar arrays on a future flight to be temporarily installed on Unity for early power; Ku-band communication to support early science capability and U.S. television; and PMA-3 to provide a Shuttle docking port for solar array installation on the sixth ISS flight and Lab installation on the seventh ISS flight. The crew comprises Mission Commander Brian Duffy, Pilot Pamela Melroy, and Mission Specialists Koichi Wakata, Leroy Chiao, Peter "Jeff" Wisoff, Michael Lopez-Alegria, and William McArthur. Launch of STS-92 is scheduled for Sept. 21, 2000. Wakata is with the National Space Development Agency of Japan

(Left to right) STS-100 Mission Specialist Chris Hadfield, Salimbeti Andrea of Alenia Aerospazio, observer Astronaut Winston Scott, and Mission Specialist Robert Curbeam examine the interior of the Multi-Purpose Logistics Module (MPLM) Leonardo. The Italian-built MPLM will be carried in the payload bay of the Shuttle orbiter, and will provide storage and additional work space for up to two astronauts when docked to the International Space Station. It is expected to fly on the Space Shuttle Endeavour scheduled for launch on Dec. 2, 1999. Leonardo is the first of three modules being provided by Alenia. The second MPLM, to be handed over in April 1999, is named Raffaello. A third module, to be named Donatello, is due to be delivered in October 2000 for launch in January 2001

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, Fla. -- At SPACEHAB, Cape Canaveral, members of the STS-107 crew look over elements in the SPACEHAB Double Module as part of equipment familiarization for their mission. The crew comprises Commander Rick Husband, Pilot William McCool, Payload Commander Michael Anderson, Mission Specialists Kalpana Chawla, David Brown and Laurel Clark, and Payload Specialist Ilan Ramon. STS-107 has two payload elements, the Double Module in its first flight into space and a Hitchhiker payload. The double module provides greater experiment capability than on previous flights, resulting for this mission in a very broad collection of experiments for NASA and commercial and European customers. The experiments range from material sciences to life sciences (many rats). The Hitchhiker carrier system is modular and expandable in accordance with payload requirements, which allows maximum efficiency in utilizing orbiter resources and increases the potential for early manifesting on the

In the Space Station Processing Facility, STS-98 Mission Specialist Marsha Ivins maneuvers a part of the U.S. Lab, Destiny. The crew is checking out equipment inside the lab as part of Crew Equipment Interface Test activities, becoming familiar with equipment it will be handling during the mission. Others in the crew are Commander Ken Cockrell, Pilot Mark Polansky and Mission Specialists Robert Curbeam and Thomas Jones. The mission will be transporting the Lab to the International Space Station with five system racks already installed inside of the module. With delivery of electronics in the lab, electrically powered attitude control for Control Moment Gyroscopes will be activated. The STS-98 launch is scheduled for Jan. 18, 2001

People working in aerospace industry control in sterile hall

Technicians perform work preparing the Low-Earth Orbit Flight Test of an Inflatable Decelerator (LOFTID) for launch on a work stand inside Building 836 at Vandenberg Space Force Base (VSFB) in California on Aug. 25, 2022. LOFTID is the secondary payload on NASA and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administrations (NOAA) Joint Polar Satellite System-2 (JPSS-2) satellite mission. JPSS-2 is the third satellite in the Joint Polar Satellite System series. It is scheduled to lift off from VSFB on Nov. 1 from Space Launch Complex-3. JPSS-2, which will be renamed NOAA-21 after reaching orbit, will join a constellation of JPSS satellites that orbit from the North to the South pole, circling Earth 14 times a day and providing a full view of the entire globe twice daily. The NOAA/NASA Suomi National Polar-orbiting Partnership (Suomi NPP) satellite, and NOAA-20, previously known as JPSS-1, are both already in orbit. Each satellite carries at least four advanced instruments to measure weather

In the Space Station Processing Facility, Marsha Ivins, a mission specialist on the STS-98 crew, inspects the U.S. Laboratory with members of the laboratory's processing team. The laboratory module, considered the centerpiece of the International Space Station (ISS), has been named "Destiny" in honor of its prominent role in the worlds largest science and technology effort. It is planned for launch aboard Space Shuttle Endeavour on the sixth ISS construction flight currently targeted for March 2000. From left to right are Ivins, Jerry Hopkins, Danny Whittington, Melissa Orozco, and Suzanne Fase

A worker (left) in the Space Station Processing Facility explains use of the equipment in the foreground to STS-100 Mission Specialist Umberto Guidoni (center) and Commander Kent Rominger (right). Guidoni is with the European Space Agency. Mission STS-100, scheduled to launch April 19, 2001, will include the Multi-Purpose Logistics Module (MPLM) Raffaello and the Space Station Remote Manipulator System (SSRMS) as its payload. MPLMs are pressurized modules that will serve as the International Space Station's moving vans,” carrying laboratory racks filled with equipment, experiments and supplies to and from the station aboard the Space Shuttle. The SSRMS is the primary means of transferring payloads between the orbiter payload bay and the International Space Station for assembly

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- In the Space Station Processing Facility, STS-88 Mission Specialists Sergei Krikalev (left), a Russian cosmonaut; James H. Newman (center); and Jerry L. Ross conduct a sharp-edge inspection of the Unity connecting module, which is the primary payload on their upcoming mission. The STS-88 crew members are participating in a Crew Equipment Interface Test (CEIT), familiarizing themselves with the orbiter's midbody and crew compartments. Targeted for liftoff on Dec. 3, 1998, STS-88 will be the first Space Shuttle launch for assembly of the International Space Station (ISS). The primary payload is the Unity connecting module which will be mated to the Russian-built Zarya control module, expected to be already on orbit after a November launch from Russia. The first major U.S.-built component of ISS, Unity will serve as a connecting passageway to living and working areas of the space station. Unity has two attached pressurized mating adapters (PMAs) and one stowa

S92-41073 (31 oct 1991) --- In the Operations and Checkout Building high bay, preflight processing continues on the Tethered Satellite System (TSS) which is scheduled to fly on Space Shuttle Mission STS-46. Italian firm Aeritalia built the research satellite under contract to the Italian Space Agency (ASI). A joint endeavor between Italy and the United States, the TSS will release a satellite tethered to a reel in the orbiter cargo bay, and experiments will be conducted while the spacecraft is positioned some 12 miles above the orbiter.

In the Space Station Processing Facility, STS-97 Mission Specialists Carlos Noriega (left) and Joe Tanner check out the mission payload, the P6 integrated truss segment. Mission STS-97 is the sixth construction flight to the International Space Station. The P6 comprises Solar Array Wing-3 and the Integrated Electronic Assembly, to be installed on the International Space Station. The Stations electrical power system will use eight photovoltaic solar arrays, each 112 feet long by 39 feet wide, to convert sunlight to electricity. The solar arrays are mounted on a “blanket” that can be folded like an accordion for delivery. Once in orbit, astronauts will deploy the blankets to their full size. Gimbals will be used to rotate the arrays so that they will face the Sun to provide maximum power to the Space Station. The mission includes two spacewalks by Noriega and Tanner to complete the solar array connections. STS-97 is scheduled to launch Nov. 30 at about 10:06 p.m. EST

VANDENBERG AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. In the Orbital Sciences Building 836 at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California, workers prepare the scale that will be used to weigh the three micro-satellites comprising the Space Technology 5 (ST5) spacecraft. ST5 will be launched by a Pegasus XL rocket. The satellites contain miniaturized redundant components and technologies. Each will validate New Millennium Program selected technologies, such as the Cold Gas Micro-Thruster and X-Band Transponder Communication System. After deployment from the Pegasus, the micro-satellites will be positioned in a “string of pearls” constellation that demonstrates the ability to position them to perform simultaneous multi-point measurements of the magnetic field using highly sensitive magnetometers. The data will help scientists understand and map the intensity and direction of the Earth’s magnetic field, its relation to space weather events, and affects on our planet. With such missions, NASA hopes to im

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- In the Orbiter Processing Facility bay 1, members of the STS-92 crew examine equipment that will be part of their mission to the International Space Station (ISS). The fourth U.S. flight to the ISS, the mission payload includes the Integrated Truss Structure Z1, an early exterior framework to allow the first U.S. solar arrays on a future flight to be temporarily installed on Unity for early power; Ku-band communication to support early science capability and U.S. television; and PMA-3 to provide a Shuttle docking port for solar array installation on the sixth ISS flight and Lab installation on the seventh ISS flight. The crew comprises Mission Commander Brian Duffy, Pilot Pamela Melroy, and Mission Specialists Koichi Wakata, Leroy Chiao, Peter "Jeff" Wisoff, Michael Lopez-Alegria, and William McArthur. Launch of STS-92 is scheduled for Sept. 21, 2000. Wakata is with the National Space Development Agency of Japan

PRIME-1 MSolo MLI Install. Engineers install multilayer insulation (MLI) on the Mass Spectrometer Observing Lunar Operations (MSolo) instrument inside Kennedy Space Centers Space Station Processing Facility on Oct. 20, 2022. The activity is in preparation for the Polar Resources Ice Mining Experiment-1 (PRIME-1) mission, which will be the first in-situ resource utilization demonstration on the Moon. MLI protects the instrument from thermal temperature extremes, helping to insulate at cold temperatures and to cool at higher temperatures when solar lighting conditions or lunar infrared reflects onto the instrument. Researchers and engineers are preparing MSolo instruments to launch on four robotic missions as part of NASAs Commercial Lunar Payload Services - commercial deliveries beginning in 2023 that will perform science experiments, test technologies, and demonstrate capabilities to help NASA explore the Moon and prepare for crewed missions to the lunar surface.

SOFIA (Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy) primary mirror being coated in the Ames N-211 Vacuum Chamber.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- KSC payloads processing employees work to reservice the Microgravity Science Laboratory-1 (MSL-1) Spacelab module in the Space Shuttle Orbiter Columbias payload bay for the STS-94 mission in Orbiter Processing Facility 1. That mission is now scheduled to lift off in early July. This was the first time that this type of payload was reserviced without removing it from the payload bay. This new procedure pioneers processing efforts for quick relaunch turnaround times for future payloads. The Spacelab module was scheduled to fly again with the full complement of STS-83 experiments after that mission was cut short due to a faulty fuel cell. During the scheduled 16-day STS-94 mission, the experiments will be used to test some of the hardware, facilities and procedures that are planned for use on the International Space Station while the flight crew conducts combustion, protein crystal growth and materials processing experiments

In the Space Shuttle Processing Facility, workers confer about the high-gain antenna in front of them that will be attached to the Integrated Truss Structure (ITS) Z1. The Z1, part of the payload on mission STS-92 (flight 3A) to be launched in mid-fall, is an early exterior framework for the International Space Station. It will allow the first U.S. solar arrays, on mission STS-97 (flight 4A), to be temporarily installed on Unity for early power

While trainers (bottom and right) look on, STS-98 Mission Specialist Thomas Jones practices handling a piece of equipment on the U.S. Lab, Destiny, while wearing the gloves he will wear in space. Watching next to him are other crew members Pilot Mark Polansky and Mission Specialists Robert Curbeam and Marsha Ivins. They are taking part in Crew Equipment Interface Test activities to become familiar with equipment they will be handling during the mission. With launch scheduled for Jan. 18, 2001, the STS-98 mission will be transporting the Lab to the International Space Station with five system racks already installed inside of the module. After delivery of electronics in the lab, electrically powered attitude control for Control Moment Gyroscopes will be activated

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- In Orbiter Processing Facility Bay 1, NASA Deputy Associate Administrator for Space Station and Shuttle Programs Michael Kostelnik (left) and United Space Alliance (USA) Vice President and Space Shuttle Program Manager Howard DeCastro (right) are briefed by a USA technician (center) on Shuttle processing in the payload bay of orbiter Atlantis. NASA and USA Space Shuttle program management are participating in a leadership workday. The day is intended to provide management with an in-depth, hands-on look at Shuttle processing activities at KSC.

SOFIA (Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astromony) primary mirror coating completed at the Ames Vacuum Chamber in N-211.

STS-92 Commander Brian Duffy (left) talks with a worker during inspection of the payload (behind them) in Space Shuttle Discoverys payload bay. He and other crew members Pilot Pamela Ann Melroy and Mission Specialists Koichi Wakata of Japan, Leroy Chiao, Peter J.K. “Jeff” Wisoff, Michael E. Lopez-Alegria and William S. McArthur Jr. are preparing for launch on Oct. 5, 2000. The mission is the fifth flight for the construction of the International Space Station. The payload includes the Integrated Truss Structure Z-1 and the third Pressurized Mating Adapter. During the 11-day mission, four extravehicular activities (EVAs), or space walks, are planned

STS-130 TCDT - PAYLOAD BAY WALKDOWN

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- On Launch Pad 17-A at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, the second half of the fairing (in the foreground) moves toward the Phoenix Mars Lander for installation. Phoenix is targeted for launch on Aug. 3 aboard a Delta II rocket. The fairing is a molded structure that fits flush with the outside surface of the Delta II upper stage booster and forms an aerodynamically smooth nose cone, protecting the spacecraft during launch and ascent. Phoenix will land in icy soils near the north polar, permanent ice cap of Mars and explore the history of the water in these soils and any associated rocks, while monitoring polar climate. Landing on Mars is planned in May 2008 on arctic ground where a mission currently in orbit, Mars Odyssey, has detected high concentrations of ice just beneath the top layer of soil. NASA/George Shelton

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- STS-88 First Crew at SSP

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - At Astrotech Space Operations in Titusville, Fla., technicians place the protective bag around the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter, or LRO, before it is mated with NASA's Lunar CRater Observation and Sensing Satellite, known as LCROSS, spacecraft. The satellite's primary mission is to search for water ice on the moon in a permanently shadowed crater near one of the lunar poles. LCROSS is a low-cost, accelerated-development, companion mission to NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter, or LRO. LCROSS and LRO are the first missions in NASA's plan to return humans to the moon and begin establishing a lunar outpost by 2020. Launch is targeted for no earlier than June 2 from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida.

OSIRIS-REx Sample Return. Curation teams process the sample return capsule from NASAs OSIRIS-REx mission in a cleanroom, Sunday, Sept. 24, 2023, at the Department of Defense's Utah Test and Training Range. The sample was collected from the asteroid Bennu in October 2020 by NASAs OSIRIS-REx spacecraft.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- During a Crew Equipment Interface Test (CEIT) at SPACEHAB, in Titusville, Fla., STS-101 crew members check out the SPACEHAB Logistics Double Module that will be part of the payload for their mission. From left are Commander James Donald Halsell Jr., Mission Specialist Mary Ellen Weber, (Ph.D.), Pilot Scott J. "Doc" Horowitz (Ph.D.), and Mission Specialist Edward Tsang Lu (Ph.D.). Other crew members who are taking part in the CEIT are Mission Specialists Jeffrey N. Williams, and Boris W. Morukov and Yuri Malenchenko, who are with the Russian Space Agency. The primary objective of the STS-101 mission is to complete the initial outfitting of the International Space Station, making it fully ready for the first long-term crew. The seven-member crew will transfer almost two tons of equipment and supplies from SPACEHAB. Additionally, they will unpack a shipment of supplies delivered earlier by a Russian Progress space tug and begin outfitting the newly arrived Zv

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- In the Space Station Processing Facility, STS-120 Mission Specialist Daniel Tani (center) learns more about the Node 2, another element to be added to the International Space Station. With him, at right, is astronaut Peggy Whitson, who served on Expedition 5 aboard the space station. During her 6-month stay aboard the space station, Dr. Whitson installed the Mobile Base System, the S1 truss segment, and the P1 truss segment.. He and other crew members are at KSC for equipment familiarization. Tani will be joining the Expedition 15 crew on the space station as flight engineer. Node 2 will provide a passageway between three station science experiment facilities: the U.S. Destiny Laboratory, the Kibo Japanese Experiment Module, and the European Columbus Laboratory. STS-120 is targeted for launch on October 20.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- In the Spacecraft Assembly and Encapsulation Facility -2 (SAEF-2), JPL workers prepare to mount a Mars microprobe onto the Mars Polar Lander. Two microprobes will hitchhike on the lander, scheduled to be launched Jan. 3, 1999, aboard a Delta II rocket. The solar-powered spacecraft is designed to touch down on the Martian surface near the northern-most boundary of the south pole in order to study the water cycle there. The lander also will help scientists learn more about climate change and current resources on Mars, studying such things as frost, dust, water vapor and condensates in the Martian atmosphere. The Mars microprobes, called Deep Space 2, are part of NASA's New Millennium Program. They will complement the climate-related scientific focus of the lander by demonstrating an advanced, rugged microlaser system for detecting subsurface water. Such data on polar subsurface water, in the form of ice, should help put limits on scientific projections for t

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- Crew members of mission STS-124 are in the Space Station Processing Facility to look over equipment. Here they watch a demonstration using some of the equipment. At left is Commander Mark Kelly. Other crew members are Pilot Kenneth Ham, and Mission Specialists Karen Nyberg, Ronald Garan, Michael Fossum, Stephen Bowen and Akihiko Hoshide, who represents the Japanese Aerospace and Exploration Agency. The STS-124 mission is the second of three flights that will launch components to complete the Japanese pressurized module, the Kibo laboratory. The mission will include two spacewalks to install the new lab and its remote manipulator system. The lab's logistics module, which will have been installed in a temporary location during STS-123, will be attached to the new lab. The mission is scheduled to launch in 2008.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, Fla. -- During In-Flight Maintenance training for their mission, STS-107 crew members check equipment and paperwork inside the SPACEHAB Double Module. From left to right are Pilot William C. "Willie" McCool; Payload Specialist Ilan Ramon; Mission Specialists Michael Anderson and David M. Brown; and Commander Rick D. Husband. As a research mission, STS-107 will carry the SPACEHAB Double Module in its first research flight into space and a broad collection of experiments ranging from material science to life science. STS-107 is scheduled to launch July 19, 2001

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- In the Space Station Processing Facility at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, the dexterous humanoid astronaut helper, Robonaut 2, or R2, is lowered to a base plate, which is part of its launch box called SLEEPR, or Structural Launch Enclosure to Effectively Protect Robonaut.R2 will fly to the International Space Station aboard space shuttle Discovery on the STS-133 mission. Although it will initially only participate in operational tests, upgrades could eventually allow the robot to realize its true purpose -- helping spacewalking astronauts with tasks outside the space station.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- In the Space Station Processing Facility, STS-122 crew members manipulate the cover on the Multi-Purpose Experiment Support Structure - Non-Deployable (MPESS-ND), part of the payload on their mission. Seen here is (left) Mission Specialist Stan Love.. The crew is participating in a crew equipment interface test that provides opportunities for hands-on experience with payloads and equipment. Other crew members are Commander Steve Frick, Pilot Alan Poindexter and Mission Specialists Rex Walheim, Leland Melvin and Hans Schlegel, who represents the European Space Agency. The 24th mission to the International Space Station, STS-122 will also include the Columbus European Laboratory. Launch of STS-122 on Space Shuttle Discovery is scheduled no earlier than October.

PRIME-1 MSolo MLI Install. Engineers install multilayer insulation (MLI) on the Mass Spectrometer Observing Lunar Operations (MSolo) instrument inside Kennedy Space Centers Space Station Processing Facility on Oct. 20, 2022. The activity is in preparation for the Polar Resources Ice Mining Experiment-1 (PRIME-1) mission, which will be the first in-situ resource utilization demonstration on the Moon. MLI protects the instrument from thermal temperature extremes, helping to insulate at cold temperatures and to cool at higher temperatures when solar lighting conditions or lunar infrared reflects onto the instrument. Researchers and engineers are preparing MSolo instruments to launch on four robotic missions as part of NASAs Commercial Lunar Payload Services - commercial deliveries beginning in 2023 that will perform science experiments, test technologies, and demonstrate capabilities to help NASA explore the Moon and prepare for crewed missions to the lunar surface.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, Fla. -- Workers at Launch Complex 17-B, Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, place protective covers around the Microwave Anisotropy Probe (MAP) spacecraft. Launch of MAP via a Boeing Delta II rocket is scheduled for June 30. The launch will place MAP into a lunar-assisted trajectory to the Sun-Earth for a 27-month mission. The probe will measure small fluctuations in the temperature of the cosmic microwave background radiation to an accuracy of one millionth of a degree. These measurements should reveal the size, matter content, age, geometry and fate of the universe. They will also reveal the primordial structure that grew to form galaxies and will test ideas about the origins of these primordial structures

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