JUNE 2009 CONTENTS i

CONTENTS 

Section Page 

STS-127 MISSION OVERVIEW ................................................................................................ 1

STS-127 TIMELINE OVERVIEW ............................................................................................... 11

MISSION PROFILE................................................................................................................... 15

MISSION OBJECTIVES AND PRIORITIES ................................................................................ 17

MISSION PERSONNEL ............................................................................................................. 21

STS-127 CREW........................................................................................................................ 23

PAYLOAD OVERVIEW .............................................................................................................. 33

KIBO JAPANESE EXEPRIMENT MODULE EXPOSED FACILITY ................................................................. 33

EXPOSED FACILITY AND EXPERIMENT LOGISTICS MODULE – EXPOSED SECTION................................ 3 7

INTEGRATED CARGO CARRIER – VERTICAL LIGHT DEPLOY (ICC-VLD) ................................................ 65

RENDEZVOUS & DOCKING....................................................................................................... 69

SPACEWALKS ......................................................................................................................... 73

EXPERIMENTS ......................................................................................................................... 83

DETAILED TEST OBJECTIVES ............................................................................................................... 83

SHORT-DURATION U.S. INTEGRATED RESEARCH TO BE COMPLETED DURING STS-127/2JA (4) .......... 8 5

SHUTTLE REFERENCE DATA .................................................................................................... 89

LAUNCH AND LANDING ........................................................................................................... 107

LAUNCH............................................................................................................................................... 107

ABORT-TO-ORBIT (ATO)......................................................................................................................

TRANSATLANTIC ABORT LANDING (TAL) ............................................................................................. 

RETURN-TO-LAUNCH-SITE (RTLS).......................................................................................................

ABORT ONCE AROUND (AOA)...............................................................................................................

LANDING .............................................................................................................................................

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ii CONTENTS JUNE 2009

MEDIA ASSISTANCE ............................................................................................................... 125

PUBLIC AFFAIRS CONTACTS .................................................................................................. 127

 

Section Page 
JUNE 2009 MISSION OVERVIEW 1

STS-127 MISSION OVERVIEW 

Against a black sky, the space shuttle Endeavour and its seven-member STS-126 crew head toward 

Earth orbit and a scheduled link-up with the International Space Station. 

There won’t be much time for relaxing during 

the next mission to the International Space 

Station, despite the fact that space shuttle 

Endeavour will be delivering the station’s 

porch. 

Endeavour, commanded by veteran space flier 

Mark Polansky, 53, is scheduled to launch at 

7:39:33 p.m. EDT on July 11 and arrive at the 

space station two days later. The shuttle will 

bring with it the final pieces of the Japanese 

Kibo complex and a load of large spares to keep 

the space station going after the shuttle’s 

retirement. 

The crew will conduct five spacewalks to install 

the new space station components and 

equipment, and to set up some storage 

locations on the station’s truss. 

The shuttle will also deliver a new flight 

engineer – Tim Kopra, 46 – to join the 

Expedition 20 crew, and return Expedition 20 

Flight Engineer Koichi Wakata, 45, of the Japan 

Aerospace Exploration Agency to Earth. 

Marine Col. Doug Hurley, 42, will serve as 
2 MISSION OVERVIEW JUNE 2009

Astronaut Mark Polansky, STS-127 commander, looks over a checklist during a training session 

in the Jake Garn Simulation and Training Facility at NASA’s Johnson Space Center. 

Endeavour’s pilot. The mission specialists are 

Navy Cmdr. Christopher Cassidy, 39; 

Tom Marshburn, 49; Dave Wolf, 52; and 

Julie Payette, 45, of the Canadian Space Agency. 

STS-127 will be the third space shuttle mission 

for Polansky, who flew on STS-98 and STS-116; 

the fourth trip to space for Wolf, who spent 

128 days on the Russian Space Station Mir (up 

on STS-86, down on STS-89) and was a member 

of the STS-58 and STS-112 crews; and the 

second for Payette, who served as an STS-96 

crew member. This will be the first flight for 

Hurley, Cassidy, Marshburn and Kopra. 

Endeavour’s cargo will span a wide range of 

uses. The big ticket item will be the Japanese 

Experiment Module – Exposed Facility – the 

porch for the Japanese Kibo complex, where 

science experiments will be exposed to the 

extreme environment of space. To store and 

transport the experiments that the exposed 

facility will accommodate, Endeavour will also 

carry a storage area similar to the logistics 

module on the Kibo laboratory, but 

unpressurized – the Experiment Logistics 

Module – Exposed Section. 

Also inside Endeavour’s cargo bay will be an 

integrated cargo carrier holding several pieces 

of spare equipment for the space station. Most 

of it – a spare space-to-ground antenna, a spare 

linear drive unit and a spare pump module – 

will be stored on an external storage platform 

on the station’s truss. But six batteries for the 

station’s oldest solar array will be installed over 

two of the spacewalks. 
JUNE 2009 MISSION OVERVIEW 3

This graphic depicts the location of the STS-127 payload hardware. 

A few hours after Endeavour’s docking on the 

third day of the flight, Kopra and Wakata will 

exchange custom-made Russian Soyuz 

spacecraft seat liners. With that exchange, 

Wakata will become part of Endeavour’s crew. 

Kopra, meanwhile, will join the Expedition 20 

crew – the first space station crew with a full 

complement of six astronauts. The commander, 

Russian cosmonaut Gennady Padalka, and 

NASA Flight Engineer Michael Barratt 

launched to the station in a Russian Soyuz 

vehicle in March. The second half of the 

crew – European Space Agency astronaut 

Frank De Winne, Russian cosmonaut 

Roman Romanenko, and Canadian Space 

Agency astronaut Robert Thirsk – took another 

Soyuz to the station in May. Wakata arrived 

aboard space shuttle Discovery during the 

STS-119 mission in March. 

In August, Kopra will return to Earth on shuttle 

mission STS-128, and Nicole Stott will take his 

place. 
4 MISSION OVERVIEW JUNE 2009

The day after Endeavour’s launch will be spent 

inspecting the shuttle’s heat shield, using the 

50-foot Orbiter Boom Sensor System, or OBSS, 

extension on the shuttle’s robotic arm. The 

OBSS uses laser devices and cameras to map 

the shuttle’s wings and nose cap. Experts on 

the ground will analyze the images obtained 

during the inspection, and if any problems are 

noticed, a focused inspection of specific areas 

can be performed on flight day 5. 

The shuttle will go through another sort of 

inspection on flight day 3, just before it docks at 

the space station. Polansky and Hurley will be 

at Endeavour’s aft flight deck controls as the 

shuttle approaches the station for docking and 

fly the shuttle just 600 feet below the space 

station. There, Endeavour will execute a slow 

backflip maneuver, presenting its belly and 

other areas of its heat protective tiles to station 

residents Barratt and Padalka, who will use 

digital cameras equipped with 400 and 

800 millimeter lenses to acquire detailed 

imagery. Those photos also will be reviewed 

by teams on the ground for any signs of 

damage to the shuttle’s heat shield. 

Endeavour will then dock to the forward 

docking port at the end of the station’s 

Harmony module at 3:25 p.m. EDT July 13. 

About two hours later, hatches will be opened 

between the two spacecraft to allow the 13 crew 

members to greet one another for the start of 

11 days of docked operations. 

Following a standard safety briefing by station 

Commander Padalka, the crews will exchange 

Kopra for Wakata as the new station crew 

member, prepare for the next day’s spacewalk, 

and activate a Station-to-Shuttle Power Transfer 

System to provide additional electricity for the 

longer operation of shuttle systems. 

Kopra will spend his first night in his new 

home inside the Quest airlock, along with Wolf, 

as part of the overnight “campout” procedure 

that spacewalkers take part in. By spending the 

night at a pressure of 10.2 pounds per square 

inch, rather than the 14.7 that the rest of the 

station stays at, the spacewalkers are able to 

purge nitrogen from their bloodstreams, 

preventing decompression sickness once they 

move out into the vacuum of space. The 

campout will be repeated on the nights before 

all spacewalks throughout the mission. 

Wolf, who conducted three spacewalks on 

STS-112 and one aboard the Russian Space 

Station Mir, will be designated EV 1, or 

extravehicular crew member 1. He will wear 

the suit bearing the solid red stripes for the 

spacewalks he will participate in on flight days 

4, 6 and 8. Kopra will act as extravehicular 

crew member 2, and will wear the solid white 

suit on flight day 4. Marshburn will serve as 

extravehicular crew member 3 and will wear 

the suit with broken red and white stripes for 

his spacewalks on flight days 6, 10 and 13. The 

extravehicular crew member 4 spot will be 

taken by Cassidy, who will wear a spacesuit 

with horizontal red stripes on flight days 8, 10 

and 13. Kopra, Marshburn and Cassidy are all 

first-time spacewalkers. 
JUNE 2009 MISSION OVERVIEW 5

Canadian Space Agency astronaut Julie Payette, STS-127 mission specialist, dons a training version 

of her shuttle launch and entry suit in preparation for a training session in the Space Vehicle 

Mock-up Facility at NASA’s Johnson Space Center. United Space Alliance suit technician 

Steve Cortinas assists Payette. 

On the fourth day of the flight, Wolf and Kopra 

plan to spend six and a half hours outside the 

station on the mission’s first spacewalk. They’ll 

be preparing the exposed facility for 

installation, as well as doing some work to get 

the berthing mechanism on the Kibo laboratory 

where it will be install-ready. Once that work 

is done, the robotic arm operators waiting 

inside the station will get to work. Polansky 

and Payette, who will be controlling the 

shuttle’s robotic arm from the shuttle’s flight 

deck, will pick up the exposed facility and lift it 

out of the payload bay to hand off to the 

station’s robotic arm. Hurley and Wakata will 

be standing by at the robotics workstation 

inside the Destiny laboratory to take over from 

there, flying the 9,000-pound porch to its home 

on the end of the Kibo laboratory. 
6 MISSION OVERVIEW JUNE 2009

Astronauts Tim Kopra (left), Dave Wolf and Tom Marshburn, all STS-127 mission specialists, attired 

in training versions of their shuttle launch and entry suits, prepare for a training session in the 

Mission Simulation Development Facility at NASA’s Johnson Space Center. United Space 

Alliance (USA) suit technician Fred Utley assists the crew members. 

While that installation is going on, Wolf will 

spend some time working on one of the 

station’s two Crew Equipment and Translation 

Aid carts to replace a coupler that’s interfering 

with the station’s port solar alpha rotary joint, 

and both spacewalkers will work together to 

deploy a cargo attachment system on the port 

truss that gave the STS-119 spacewalkers 

trouble. If time permits, they’ll also deploy one 

on the starboard side of the truss before coming 

in. 

Spacewalk activities will take a break on 

flight day 5, but robotic work will keep the 

crew busy inside. If a focused inspection is 

needed, Payette and Kopra will use the station’s 

robotic arm to lift the OBSS out of the shuttle’s 

cargo bay and hand it off to the shuttle’s robotic 

arm – clearances around the station modules 

prevent the shuttle arm from picking the OBSS 

up on its own. Polansky and Hurley will be 

waiting with the shuttle arm for that baton 

pass, and then Payette will join them to perform 

the inspection. She’ll meet back with Kopra at 

the station arm controls when it’s done to put 

the OBSS away with the station arm, and 

Polansky and Hurley will use the shuttle 

robotic arm to unload the integrated cargo 

carrier holding the station’s newly arrived 

spare equipment from the cargo bay, in 

preparation for the following day’s spacewalk. 
JUNE 2009 MISSION OVERVIEW 7

After that, Kopra and Wakata will round off the 

robotics work for the day by spending some 

time at the robotics workstation in the Kibo 

laboratory to calibrate the Japanese robotic arm, 

while the rest of the crew goes over procedures 

for the second spacewalk. 

On flight day 6, Wolf will go out for his second 

spacewalk of the mission, joined this time by 

Marshbun. Most of the 6.5-hour spacewalk will 

be spent transferring spare equipment from the 

newly unloaded integrated cargo carrier, which 

will have been handed off to the station’s 

robotic arm that morning and temporarily 

installed on the station’s mobile base system – 

the railcar that moves along the station’s truss. 

They’ll leave the batteries on the cargo carrier 

for later, and wrap up the spacewalk by 

installing vision equipment on the exposed 

facility, to be used as the experiment carrier is 

installed. 

The experiment carrier will be installed the 

following day, flight day 7, in another complex 

robotics operation. Polansky and Payette will 

work together to remove the module from the 

shuttle’s cargo bay using the shuttle’s robotic 

arm, and then hand it off to Hurley and 

Wakata, at the controls of the station’s robotic 

arm for installation on the end of the exposed 

facility. 

The third spacewalk, on flight day 8, will be 

performed by Wolf and Cassidy. They’ll spend 

about half an hour removing insulation on the 

Japanese external science experiments delivered 

by Endeavour and relocating handrails and 

worksite interfaces before moving on to the 

main task of the day. They’re scheduled to 

spend more than 4.5 hours swapping out the 

batteries on the last solar array on the station’s 

port side – the P6 solar array. The P6 solar 

array was the first United States solar array 

added to the station; it’s been in space since 

2000. 

After a relatively slow day on flight day 8, 

things will pick back up for the robotic arm 

operators on flight day 9. Wakata and Kopra 

will become the first to use the Japanese robotic 

arm for work – as opposed to the testing that’s 

been done up to this point – when they begin to 

transfer the systems and scientific experiments 

carried up inside the experiment carrier to the 

exposed facility. They’ll start with the 

interorbit communication system, which gives 

station another path for communication with 

the ground. Then they’ll maneuver the Monitor 

of All-sky X-ray Image, an X-ray camera 

designed to monitor astronomical objects and 

the universe, into place. 

Flight day 10 will mean more battery swap 

work, this time for Cassidy and Marshburn 

during the fourth spacewalk of the mission. 

There would be about three hours and 

40 minutes of battery work left, after which, 

they’ll be installing a second set of vision 

equipment for the exposed facility. After the 

spacewalkers come back inside, Polansky and 

Hurley will use the shuttle’s robotic arm to 

store the integrated cargo carrier back inside 

the shuttle’s cargo bay. 

After 10 straight days of hard work, 

Endeavours’ crew will spend flight day 11 

enjoying some well-earned off duty time. 
8 MISSION OVERVIEW JUNE 2009

Astronaut Christopher Cassidy, STS-127 mission specialist, attired in a training version of his 

Extravehicular Mobility Unit (EMU) spacesuit, awaits the start of a training session in the waters of 

the Neutral Buoyancy Laboratory (NBL) near NASA’s Johnson Space Center. 

Transfer of the exposed facility science 

experiments will wrap up on flight day 12, with 

Wakata and Kopra again at the controls of the 

Japanese robotic arm. Once they’ve unloaded 

the Space Environment Data Acquisition 

Equipment, which measures things like 

neutrons, plasma, heavy ions, high-energy light 

particles, atomic oxygen and cosmic dust in the 

space environment, the experiment carrier will 

be empty, and Wakata and Hurley can detach it 

from the exposed facility using the station’s 

robotic arm. They’ll then hand it off to 

Polansky and Payette, at the helm of the 

shuttle’s robotic arm for storage back inside the 

shuttle’s cargo bay. 

Marshburn and Cassidy will again venture 

outside the station on flight day 13 for the fifth 

and final spacewalk of the mission. Cassidy 

will start out by swapping some connectors on 

a patch panel on the station’s zenith truss 

segment, while Marshburn removes one and 

resecures two thermal covers on the special 

purpose dexterous manipulator. They’ll then 

work together to deploy two cargo attachment 

systems on the station’s starboard truss and 

install a video system that supports 

transmission of video from spacewalkers’ 

helmet cameras. The tasks should take a total 

of six and a half hours, with about 30 minutes 

to spare for “get-ahead” work. 
JUNE 2009 MISSION OVERVIEW 9

They’re scheduled to bid farewell to the 

Expedition 20 crew on flight day 14 after a joint 

press conference, and undock from the station 

at 7:33 a.m. EDT on July 25. Hurley, flying the 

shuttle from the aft flight deck, will make a 

loop around the station so that the shuttle crew 

can capture photos of the changes to the 

station’s configuration. 

Once the fly around is complete, Endeavour’s 

maneuvering jets will fire to separate it from 

the station. But before they get too far away, 

Polansky, Hurley and Payette will use the 

shuttle’s robotic arm and the OBSS to conduct a 

“late” inspection of the shuttle’s heat shield, a 

final opportunity to confirm Endeavour’s 

readiness to return to Earth. 

On flight day 16, Polansky, Hurley and Payette 

also will conduct the traditional checkout of the 

orbiter’s flight control surfaces and steering jets 

in preparation for landing the next day. The 

shuttle crew will stow equipment and supplies 

that were used during the mission, shut down 

the robotic arm, check out the spacesuits they 

will be wearing during re-entry and set up a 

special recumbent seat in the middeck for 

Wakata, to make landing easier on him as he 

readjusts to Earth’s gravity after three months 

of weightlessness. 

Cassidy and Marshburn will deploy two 

satellites. One, the DRAGONSAT – the Dual 

Autonomous Global Positioning System 

On-Orbit Navigator Satellite – will collect data 

on autonomous spacecraft rendezvous and 

docking capabilities. It actually consists of two 

picosatellites, the AggieSat2 and PARADIGM, 

which will acquire GPS data from a device 

provided by NASA and send it to ground 

stations at Texas A&M University and the 

University of Texas at Austin. The two schools 

are cosponsoring and operating the experiment. 

The two satellites will collect two orbits of GPS 

data while remaining in an attached 

configuration after they’re released. 

The second, ANDE-2 – Atmospheric Neutral 

Density Experiment 2 – is part of a Department 

of Defense project to provide high-quality 

satellites for calibrating techniques and models 

for precision orbit determination. They’ll also 

provide data on atmospheric composition for 

validating Air Force sensors. 

Endeavour is scheduled to return to Earth on 

Monday, July 27, at 12:16 p.m., landing at 

NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, and 

bringing to an end its 23rd mission, the 29th 

shuttle flight to the International Space Station 

and the 127th flight in shuttle program history. 
10 MISSION OVERVIEW JUNE 2009

With its drag chute deployed, space shuttle Endeavour slows to a stop after landing at NASA’s 

Dryden Flight Research Center at Edwards Air Force Base in California, concluding a successful 

mission to the International Space Station. 
JUNE 2009 TIMELINE OVERVIEW 11

STS-127 TIMELINE OVERVIEW 

Flight Day 1 

• Launch 

• Payload Bay Door Opening 

• Ku-Band Antenna Deployment 

• Shuttle Robotic Arm Activation 

• Umbilical Well and Handheld External 

Tank Photo and TV Downlink 

Flight Day 2 

• Endeavour Thermal Protection System 

Survey with Shuttle Robotic Arm/Orbiter 

Boom Sensor System (OBSS) 

• Extravehicular Mobility Unit Checkout 

• Centerline Camera Installation 

• Orbiter Docking System Ring Extension 

• Orbital Maneuvering System Pod Survey 

• Rendezvous Tools Checkout 

Flight Day 3 

• Rendezvous with the International Space 

Station 

• Rendezvous Pitch Maneuver Photography 

of Endeavour’s Thermal Protection System 

by the Expedition 20 Crew 

• Docking to Harmony/Pressurized Mating 

Adapter-2 

• Hatch Opening and Welcoming 

• Kopra and Wakata exchange Soyuz 

seatliners; Kopra joins Expedition 20, 

Wakata joins the STS-127 crew 

• U.S. spacesuit transfer from Endeavour to 

space station 

• Canadarm2 and Kibo robotic arm 

positioning for Spacewalk 1 

• Spacewalk 1 Procedure Review 

• Spacewalk 1 Campout by Wolf and Kopra 

Flight Day 4 

• Shuttle Robotic Arm Grapple and Unberth 

of Japanese Exposed Facility 

• Shuttle Robotic Arm Handoff of Japanese 

Exposed Facility to Canadarm2 

• Canadarm2 installation of Japanese 

Exposed Facility to Kibo 

• Spacewalk 1 by Wolf and Kopra (Japanese 

Exposed Facility Berthing, Port 3 Nadir 

Unpressurized Cargo Carrier Attach 

System (UCCASS) Deploy, Starboard 3 

Zenith Outboard Payload Attachment 

System (PAS) Deploy) 
12 TIMELINE OVERVIEW JUNE 2009

Flight Day 5 

• Focused Inspection of Endeavour’s 

Thermal Protection System, if required 

• Shuttle Robotic Arm grapple of the 

Integrated Cargo Carrier-Vertical Light 

Deploy (ICC-VLD) and handoff to 

Canadarm2 for installation on the 

Payload Orbital Replacement Unit 

Accommodation (POA) 

• Spacewalk 2 Procedure Review 

• Spacewalk 2 Campout by Wolf and 

Marshburn 

Flight Day 6 

• Spacewalk 2 by Wolf and Marshburn 

(Transfer of critical station spare 

components from ICC-VLD to External 

Stowage Platform-3, installation of 

Japanese Experiment Facility forward 

camera) 

Flight Day 7 

• Shuttle Robotic Arm grapple, unberth and 

handoff of Japanese Logistics ModuleExposed Section to Canadarm2 

• Canadarm2 installation of Japanese 

Exposed Section on Japanese Exposed 

Facility 

• Canadarm2 removal of ICC-VLD from POA 

and Mobile Transporter move to different 

worksite 

• Spacewalk 3 Procedure Review 

• Spacewalk 3 Campout by Wolf and Cassidy 

Flight Day 8 

• Spacewalk 3 by Wolf and Cassidy 

(Replacement of four out of six batteries 

in the Port 6 truss integrated electronics 

assembly) 

Flight Day 9 

• Kibo robotic arm transfer of three Japanese 

science payloads (Monitor of All-sky X-ray 

Image (MAXI), Space Environment Data 

Acquisition equipment – Attached Payload, 

or SEDA-AP and Interorbit Communication 

System – Exposed Facility, or ICS-EF) from 

the Japanese Exposed Section to the 

Japanese Exposed Facility 

• Spacewalk 4 Procedure Review 

• Spacewalk 4 Campout by Cassidy and 

Marshburn 

Flight Day 10 

• Spacewalk 4 by Cassidy and Marshburn 

(Replacement of the final pair of batteries 

in the Port 6 truss integrated electronics 

assembly, installation of the Japanese 

Experiment Facility aft camera) 

• Canadarm2 grapple and handoff of the 

ICC-VLD to the Shuttle robotic arm for 

berthing in Endeavour’s payload bay 

Flight Day 11 

• Crew Off Duty Day 
JUNE 2009 TIMELINE OVERVIEW 13

Flight Day 12 

• Canadarm2 grapple and handoff of 

Japanese Exposed Section to Shuttle 

robotic arm for berthing in Endeavour’s 

payload bay 

• Transfer of equipment and payloads from 

Endeavour to space station 

• Joint Crew News Conference 

• Spacewalk 5 Procedure Review 

• Spacewalk 5 Campout by Cassidy and 

Marshburn 

Flight Day 13 

• Spacewalk 5 by Cassidy and Marshburn 

(Zenith 1 Patch Panel reconfiguration, 

Starboard 3 nadir outboard and inboard 

PAS deployment, Starboard 3 wireless 

camera equipment installation, Dextre 

manipulator insulation removal) 

Flight Day 14 

• Canadarm2 unberth of OBSS and handoff 

to Shuttle robotic arm 

• Rendezvous tools checkout 

• Final Farewells and hatch closure 

Flight Day 15 

• Endeavour undocking from ISS 

• Flyaround of ISS and final separation 

• Late inspection of Endeavour’s thermal 

protection system with the OBSS 

Flight Day 16 

• Flight Control System Checkout 

• Reaction Control System hot-fire test 

• DRAGONSAT and ANDE-2 payload 

deployments 

• Crew Deorbit Briefing 

• Cabin Stowage 

• Recumbent Seat Setup for Wakata 

Flight Day 17 

• Deorbit preparations 

• Payload Bay Door closing 

• Deorbit burn 

• KSC Landing 
14 TIMELINE OVERVIEW JUNE 2009

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JUNE 2009 MISSION PROFILE 15

MISSION PROFILE 

CREW 

Commander: Mark Polansky 

Pilot: Doug Hurley 

Mission Specialist 1: Christopher Cassidy 

Mission Specialist 2: Julie Payette 

Mission Specialist 3: Tom Marshburn 

Mission Specialist 4: Dave Wolf 

Mission Specialist 5: Tim Kopra 

LAUNCH 

Orbiter: Endeavour (OV-105)

Launch Site: Kennedy Space Center 

Launch Pad 39A 

Launch Date: No Earlier Than 

July 11, 2009 

Launch Time: 7:39:33 p.m. EDT 

Launch Window: 5 minutes 

Altitude: 122 Nautical Miles 

(140 Miles) Orbital 

Insertion; 191 NM 

(220 Miles) Rendezvous 

Inclination: 51.6 Degrees 

Duration: 15 Days 16 Hours 

59 Minutes 

VEHICLE DATA 

Shuttle Liftoff Weight: 4,519,224

pounds 

Orbiter/Payload Liftoff Weight: 264,420 

pounds 

Orbiter/Payload Landing Weight: 214,707 

pounds 

Software Version: OI-33

Space Shuttle Main Engines: 

SSME 1: 2045 

SSME 2: 2060 

SSME 3: 2054 

External Tank: ET-131 

SRB Set: BI-138 

RSRM Set: 106 

SHUTTLE ABORTS 

Abort Landing Sites 

RTLS: Kennedy Space Center Shuttle 

Landing Facility 

TAL: Primary – Zaragoza, Spain. 

Alternates – Moron, Spain and 

Istres, France 

AOA: Primary – Kennedy Space Center 

Shuttle Landing Facility. 

Alternate – White Sands Space 

Harbor 

LANDING 

Landing Date: No Earlier Than 

July 27, 2009 

Landing Time: 12:16 p.m. EDT 

Primary landing Site: Kennedy Space Center 

Shuttle Landing Facility 

PAYLOADS 

2J/A – Kibo Japanese Experiment Module 

Exposed Facility (JEM EF), Kibo Japanese 

Experiment Logistics Module – Exposed 

Section (ELM-ES) ICC-VLD, ANDE-2; 

DRAGONSAT 
16 MISSION PROFILE JUNE 2009

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JUNE 2009 MISSION PRIORITIES 17

MISSION OBJECTIVES AND PRIORITIES 

MAJOR OBJECTIVES 

1. Perform space station crew rotation with 

NASA astronaut Tim Kopra replacing 

Koichi Wakata of the Japan Aerospace 

Exploration Agency 

2. Install Japanese Experiment ModuleExposed Facility (JEM-EF) to Japanese 

Experiment Module-Pressurized Module 

(JEM-PM) and activate (spacewalk) 

3. Deliver and install Japanese 

Experiment Logistics Module Exposed 

Section (ELM-ES) to JEM-EF 

− Install Japan Aerospace Exploration 

Agency EF Payloads and Inter-Satellite 

Communication System (ICS) to 

JEM-EF 

4. Install Integrated Cargo Carrier (ICC) to 

Payload Orbital Replacement Unit 

Accommodation (POA) 

− Remove and replace six Port 6 batteries 

(spacewalk) 

− Transfer PM-2, Linear Drive 

Unit (LDU) and Space-to-Ground 

Antenna (SGANT) to External Stowage 

Platform-3 (spacewalk) 

5. Return ICC (with six P6 batteries) to 

payload bay 

6. Return ELM-ES to payload bay 

7. Perform H-II Transfer Vehicle (HTV) 

readiness tasks 

8. Install and activate JEM-EF aft camera 

(spacewalk) 

9. Conduct other spacewalk tasks: 

− Perform Crew and Equipment 

Translation Aid Cart Modifications 

− Open Node 1 (Unity) Port Common 

Berthing Mechanism Window Flap 

− Reconfigure Grounding Tabs on JEM 

Robotic Arm End Effector 

− Relocate Grapple Bar to P1 Ammonia 

Tank Assembly Nadir 

− Deploy Starboard 3 (S3) Inboard Nadir 

Payload Attachment System (PAS) 

− Install floating connector sleeve 

− Relocate articulating portable foot 

restraint 

10. Deploy Atmosphere Neutral Density 

Experiment (ANDE) and Space Shuttle 

Picosat Launcher/Dual RF Autonomous 

GPS On-Orbit Navigator Satellite 

11. Resupply food, water, oxygen 
18 MISSION PRIORITIES JUNE 2009

MISSION PRIORITIES SUMMARY 

• Rotate Expedition 18/19 Flight Engineer-2 

(FE-2) Koichi Wakata with Expedition 19/20 

FE-2 crew member Tim Kopra and transfer 

mandatory crew rotation cargo 

• Transfer mandatory quantities of water 

from shuttle to space station 

• Transfer and stow critical items 

• Install JEM-EF to Japanese Pressurized 

Module (JPM) 

• Install ICC on the POA 

• Install ELM-ES onto JEM-EF 

• Remove and replace P6 batteries 

• Install ICS on JEM-EF using JEM robotic 

arm 

• Install SGANT, PM, and LDU onto External 

Stowage Platform-3 

• Return ICC to shuttle payload bay 

• Install Monitor of All-Sky X-ray 

Images (MAXI) and Space Environment 

Data Acquisition equipment – Attached 

Payload (SEDA-AP) on JEM-EF using JEM 

robotic arm 

• Return ELM-ES to orbiter payload bay 

• Perform minimum crew handover of 

12 hours 

• Transfer remaining cargo items 

• Install, activate and check out JEM-EF 

forward camera 

• Open Node 1 Port Centerline Berthing 

Camera System (CBCS) center disk cover 

flap 

• Perform HTV readiness tasks: 

− Install and activate JEM-EF aft camera 

− Open Node 2 Zenith CBCS center disk 

cover flap 

• Perform daily space station payload status 

checks as required 

• The following tasks are deemed to fit within 

existing timelines but may be deferred if the 

spacewalk is behind schedule: 

− Remove grounding tabs on the JEM 

robotic arm end effector 

− Deploy Port 3 Nadir Unpressurized 

Cargo Carrier Attach System (UCCAS) 

(for flight STS-129/ULF3) 

− Deploy Starboard 3 Upper Outboard 

PAS (for flight STS-129/ULF3) 

− Zenith 1 Patch Panel reconfiguration 

− Install 6 Station-to-Shuttle Power 

Transfer System (SSPTS) floating power 

connector grounding sleeves 

− Deploy Starboard 3 Lower Outboard 

PAS (for flight STS-133/ULF5) 

− Deploy Lower Inboard PAS and open 

target cover (for flight STS-133/ULF5) 

− Tuck down Lab/Node 2 cables 

− Install JPM spacewalk handrails and 

worksite interfaces 
JUNE 2009 MISSION PROFILE 19

• Deploy ANDE and DRAGONSAT payloads 

(post undocking) 

• Perform daily middeck activities to support 

payloads (includes when shuttle crew 

performs payloads on the space station) 

• Perform space station payload research 

operations tasks 

• Transfer nitrogen and oxygen from shuttle 

to space station airlock high-pressure gas 

tanks. Quantities shall be consistent with 

plan to have tanks full at shuttle retirement. 

• Perform Detailed Test Objective (DTO) 701, 

DragonEye 

• Perform DTO 695, Thrust Oscillation Seat 

• Perform program-approved spacewalk 

get-ahead tasks 

− Deploy S3 Upper Inboard PAS (for 

flight STS-133/ULF5) 

− Install Wireless Video System External 

Transceiver Assembly (WETA) No. 3 

− Install gap spanner to replace handrail 

on Harmony 

− Retrieve Articulating Portable Foot 

Restraint (APFR) No. 5, bring inside, 

remove heat shield, re-install on 

subsequent spacewalk 

• Reboost space station, if needed 

• Perform imagery survey during fly around 

• Perform an additional four hours of 

handover per rotating crew member 

• Perform Maui Analysis of Upper 

Atmosphere (MAUI), Shuttle Exhaust Ion 

Turbulence Experiments (SEITE), and 

SIMPLEX (payloads of opportunity – not 

during docked operations) 

• Perform Station Detailed Test Objective 

13005-U, ISS Structural Life Validation and 

Extension during Shuttle Mated Reboost 

and undocking 
20 MISSION PRIORITIES JUNE 2009

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JUNE 2009 MISSION PERSONNEL 21

MISSION PERSONNEL 

KEY CONSOLE POSITIONS FOR STS-127 

 Flt. Director CAPCOM PAO

Ascent Bryan Lunney Alan Poindexter 

TBD (Wx) 

Kylie Clem 

Orbit 1 (Lead) Paul Dye Greg (Box) Johnson Brandi Dean 

Orbit 2 Kwatsi Alibaruho Janice Voss Josh Byerly 

Planning Gary Horlacher 

Mike Sarafin 

Stan Love 

Shannon Lucid 

Kelly Humphries 

Entry Bryan Lunney Alan Poindexter 

TBD (Wx) 

Kylie Clem 

Shuttle Team 4 Richard Jones N/A N/A 

ISS Orbit 1 Brian Smith Hal Getzelman N/A 

ISS Orbit 2 (Lead) Holly Ridings Akihiko Hoshide N/A 

ISS Orbit 3 Derek Hassmann Jason Hutt N/A 

Station Team 4 Ron Spencer 

 

JSC PAO Representative at KSC for Launch – Kyle Herring 

KSC Launch Commentator – Mike Curie 

KSC Launch Director – Pete Nickolenko 

NASA Launch Test Director – Jeff Spaulding 
22 MISSION PERSONNEL JUNE 2009

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JUNE 2009 CREW 23

STS-127 CREW 

A crew spokesperson had the following words 

for the patch. “Bathed in sunlight, the blue 

Earth is represented without boundaries to 

remind us that we all share this world. In the 

center, the golden flight path of the space 

shuttle turns into the three distinctive rays 

of the astronaut symbol culminating in the 

star-like emblem characteristic of the Japanese 

Space Agency, yet soaring further into space as 

it paves the way for future voyages and 

discoveries for all humankind.” 
24 CREW JUNE 2009

Shown on the front row are astronauts Mark Polansky (right), commander, and Doug Hurley, pilot. 

Remaining crew members, pictured from left to right, are astronauts Dave Wolf, 

Christopher Cassidy, Canadian Space Agency’s Julie Payette, Tom Marshburn and Tim Kopra, 

all mission specialists. Kopra is scheduled to join Expedition 20 as flight engineer after 

launching to the International Space Station with the STS-127 crew. 

Short biographical sketches of the crew follow 

with detailed background available at: 

http://www.jsc.nasa.gov/Bios/
JUNE 2009 CREW 25

STS-127 CREW BIOGRAPHIES 

Mark Polansky 

Mark Polansky will lead the crew of STS-127. 

He served as the pilot on STS-98 in 2001 and as 

the commander of STS-116 in 2006. Polansky 

has overall responsibility for the safety and 

execution of this mission, orbiter systems 

operations and flight operations, including 

landing. He also will fly Endeavour through its 

rendezvous and docking to the International 

Space Station. 
26 CREW JUNE 2009

Doug Hurley 

Astronaut Doug Hurley, a Colonel in the 

Marine Corps, will serve as the pilot for 

Endeavour's mission. Selected by NASA in 

2000, this will be his first journey into space. 

With more than 3,200 hours in more than 

22 aircraft, Hurley will join Polansky on the 

flight deck and be responsible for orbiter 

system operations. He’ll also assist Polansky 

with the rendezvous and docking to the station 

and will perform the flyaround of the space 

station after undocking. He will also operate all 

three robotic arms throughout the mission. 

Hurley’s previous roles within the Astronaut 

Office have included serving as a lead ASP 

(Astronaut Support Personnel) for shuttle 

missions STS-107 and STS-121, served on the 

Columbia Reconstruction Team, and served on 

the Exploration Branch in support of the Orion 

Crew Exploration Vehicle (CEV). More 

recently, he served as the NASA Director of 

Operations at the Gagarin Cosmonaut Training 

Center in Star City, Russia. 
JUNE 2009 CREW 27

Dave Wolf 

Veteran astronaut Dave Wolf will serve as the 

lead spacewalker for this mission. He is tapped 

to conduct the first three of the five planned 

spacewalks. On the first, he will join 

Tim Kopra to prepare Kibo and the exposed 

facility for installation, then move on to tasks 

on the truss. For the second spacewalk, he and 

Marshburn will transport and install parts and 

hardware. And for the third, Wolf will be 

joined by Cassidy to work on the exposed 

facility and replace batteries. Wolf has flown 

on four prior shuttle flights and a long-duration 

stay on the Russian Mir Space Station. Wolf 

flew on STS-58 in 1993 and STS-112 in 2002, 

where he conducted three spacewalks to help 

with the installation of the S-1 Truss. He also 

flew on STS-86, his ride to Mir, where he spent 

128 days and conducted an emergency 

spacewalk in a Russian Orlan suit. He returned 

on STS-89. 
28 CREW JUNE 2009

Christopher Cassidy 

This is the first spaceflight for Navy Cmdr. 

Christopher Cassidy. He was selected as a 

NASA astronaut in 2004 and completed his 

initial training in February 2006. He is slated to 

perform three spacewalks on this mission. He 

will pair up with Wolf for the first spacewalk as 

they prepare the exposed facility for 

experiment transfers and replace batteries on 

the truss. He will join Tom Marshburn for his 

final two spacewalks to replace more batteries, 

install cameras, remove thermal covers and 

make electrical configurations. 
JUNE 2009 CREW 29

Julie Payette 

This will be the second spaceflight for 

Julie Payette of the Canadian Space Agency. 

She reported to NASA’s Johnson Space Center 

for training in 1996 and went on to represent 

the astronaut corps at the European and 

Russian space agencies, where she supervised 

procedure development, equipment verification 

and space hardware processing for the 

International Space Station and served as the 

chief astronaut for the Canadian Space Agency 

from 2000 to 2007. She flew on STS-96. During 

this mission, she will lead the intensive robotic 

arm operations. 
30 CREW JUNE 2009

Tom Marshburn 

Tom Marshburn will be new to spaceflight but 

not new to spaceflight medicine. Marshburn 

holds a medical degree and originally joined 

NASA back in 1994 as a flight surgeon. For 

10 years, he served various roles in NASA’s 

medical operations until he was selected as an 

astronaut in 2004. After nearly two years of 

initial training, he will now embark on his first 

spaceflight, where he will conduct three 

spacewalks. The first will be with Wolf, as they 

relocate parts on the station’s exterior. He will 

join his astronaut candidate classmate Cassidy 

for the final two spacewalks of the mission. 
JUNE 2009 CREW 31

Tim Kopra 

Tim Kopra, a colonel in the Army, also has a 

history at NASA that precedes his joining the 

astronaut corps. Kopra was assigned to NASA 

at the Johnson Space Center in September 1998 

as a vehicle integration test engineer. In this 

position, he served as an engineering liaison for 

space shuttle launch operations and space 

station hardware testing. He was selected as an 

astronaut in 2000. Since then, he has completed 

training at each of the international partner 

training sites and served as a backup crew 

member to Expeditions 16 and 17. Kopra will 

launch to the station with the crew of STS-127 

and, once docked, replace Koichi Wakata as the 

Expedition 20 flight engineer. He will remain 

on the station and return with the STS-128 

shuttle crew. 
32 CREW JUNE 2009

Koichi Wakata 

Koichi Wakata, the first Japanese mission 

specialist and now the first Japanese 

long-duration crew member on the space 

station, will be returning to Earth with the 

STS-127 crew. He rode up to the station with 

the STS-119 crew, his third flight, in March to 

begin his long-duration stay as a flight engineer 

on the Expedition 18, 19 and 20 crews. When 

he lands with the STS-127 crew, he’ll have spent 

more than 100 consecutive days in space. 

Wakata also flew on STS-72 in 1996 and STS-92 

in 2000. 
JUNE 2009 PAYLOAD OVERVIEW 33

PAYLOAD OVERVIEW 

The 2J/A mission patch (above) shows the element modules which constitute Kibo’s 

exposed facilities. Inscribed are the names of the element modules and 

JAXA astronaut Koichi Wakata who will participate in the assembly 

tasks during the mission.

KIBO JAPANESE EXEPRIMENT MODULE 

EXPOSED FACILITY 

The final components of Kibo will fly to the 

space station on STS-127. The STS-127 (2J/A) 

mission concludes the Kibo assembly, paving 

the way for the full utilization stage of Kibo 

On this third and last Kibo-designated 

assembly mission, Kibo’s final components, the 

Exposed Facility (EF) and the Experiment 

Logistics Module – Exposed Section (ELM-ES), 

will be delivered to the International Space 

Station. Installation of these components will 

conclude assembly of the Japanese complex 

facility on the station. 

The EF is a multipurpose experiment platform 

on which various scientific experiments can be 

performed using the microgravity and vacuum 

environment of space. 

The ELM-ES is a logistics carrier which will be 

launched and returned on the STS-127 mission. 

On this flight, the ELM-ES will carry three 

EF payloads to the station. 

The EF will become operational during the 

STS-127 mission. Kibo’s scientific capability 

will be doubled when the platform for 

space-exposed experiment activities is ready. 
34 PAYLOAD OVERVIEW JUNE 2009

Conceptual images: Kibo 
JUNE 2009 PAYLOAD OVERVIEW 35

Experiments on Kibo’s Exposed Facility (EF) begin 

The STS-127 mission will deliver MAXI and 

SEDA-AP, two of the three JEM Exposed 

Facility (EF) payloads developed for Kibo’s 

First Phase Utilization, to the station. These EF 

experiments will be installed on the EF during 

the docked mission, and then Kibo external 

experiment operations can begin. 

In 2008, the STS-123 mission installed Kibo’s 

pressurized logistics/stowage module, called 

the Experiment Logistics Module-Pressurized 

Section (ELM-PS), which carried JAXA’s two 

major experiment racks called the SAIBO Rack

and the RYUTAI Rack along with some of 

Kibo’s system payload racks, to the station. 

In the same year, the STS-124 mission installed 

Kibo’s main experiment module, the 

Pressurized Module (PM) with Kibo’s core 

systems and experiments, onto the station. 

During the STS-124 mission, the experiment 

and system racks were installed in the PM, and 

since then, JAXA’s science experiments have 

been performed using these two scientific 

experiment racks. 

SMILES – Another JAXA EF experiment, will 

be launched to the station on the H-II Transfer 

Vehicle (HTV) mission targeted to launch in 

September 2009. 

The KOBAIRO Rack – An additional 

experiment rack, which will be installed and 

operated on Kibo, is planned to be launched in 

2010 on an HTV mission. 

At this point, all the experiment facilities 

developed and prepared for the Kibo First 

Phase Utilization will be on board Kibo. After 

that, Kibo will move into its full utilization 

stage. 
36 PAYLOAD OVERVIEW JUNE 2009

FY2008 FY2009 FY2010 FY2011 

Satoshi Furukawa

Soichi Noguchi

Naoko Yamazaki

Takao Doi, Akihiko Hoshide

March 2009 to June 2009

Dec. 2009 to May 2010

2011 spring to fall

Feb. 2010

Mar.2008 June.2008

Koichi Wakata

Complete

Complete Complete

Satoshi Furukawa

Soichi Noguchi

Naoko Yamazaki

Takao Doi, Akihiko Hoshide

March 2009 to June 2009

Dec. 2009 to May 2010

2011 spring to fall

Feb. 2010

Mar.2008 June.2008

Koichi Wakata

Complete

Complete Complete

JAXA astronauts’ flight schedules * 

*These schedules may change depending on the launch schedules of NASA and the 

Russian Federal Space Agency 

JAXA astronauts Takao Doi and Akihiko 

Hoshide participated on the previous Kibo 

assembly missions, STS-123 and STS-124, 

respectively, and completed installation of 

Kibo’s two pressurized component modules. 

Wakata is the first Japanese astronaut to serve 

as a flight engineer for an Expedition mission. 

When the STS-127 mission arrives at the station 

delivering Kibo’s last components, Wakata will 

be on board the station and see through the 

completion of Kibo, the Japanese Experiment 

Module, in orbit. 

Soichi Noguchi and Satoshi Furukawa, 

assigned to future Expeditions, will spend more 

time on utilization activities on board the 

station while performing various station tasks. 

Naoko Yamazaki, assigned to the STS-131 

mission, will fly to the station in early 2010. 

When the STS-131 mission arrives at the station, 

Noguchi will be staying on board the station as 

a flight engineer for the Expedition 22/23 

mission. This will truly be a remarkable event 

in Japanese space development history because 

two JAXA astronauts will be on board the 

station at the same time, participating on 

missions to set the stage for the final 

completion of the space station. 

In 2008, JAXA selected two JAXA astronaut 

candidates with the purpose of promoting the 

next generation of JAXA astronauts for the 

station missions and future human space 

exploration. JAXA is contributing to the 

world’s human spaceflight by providing 
JUNE 2009 PAYLOAD OVERVIEW 37

Exposed Facility (Space Station Testing Building, Tsukuba Space Center (TKSC)) 

human space development technology as well 

as human resources. 

EXPOSED FACILITY AND EXPERIMENT 

LOGISTICS MODULE – EXPOSED 

SECTION 

Exposed Facility Overview 

Kibo’s Exposed Facility (EF) is a multipurpose 

experiment platform where various scientific 

activities (including earth observation, 

space environment monitoring, astronomical 

observation, data communications and material 

experiments) can be performed using the 

microgravity and vacuum environment of 

space. 

There are 12 payload attachment mechanisms 

called Equipment Exchange Units (EEU) on the 

EF, and therefore, a maximum of 12 payloads, 

such as the EF experiments, the ELM-ES, the 

Inter-orbit Communication System Exposed 

Facility (ICS-EF) and the HTV Exposed Pallet, 

can be accommodated on the EF. 

The EF experiments are exchangeable in orbit 

so that several different types of scientific 

experiments can be conducted on the EF in the 

future. In order to support space-exposed 

experiments on the EF, the EF can provide the 

necessary resources for each payload and 

experiment, such as power, cooling and 

communications capabilities. 
38 PAYLOAD OVERVIEW JUNE 2009

Configuration design and specifications of the EF 

Visual Equipment (Aft)

Visual Equipment (Fwd)

Shape Box shaped 

Size 5.0 m (width) by 5.2 m (length) by 3.8 m (height) 

Mass 4.1 t (launch configuration) 

Number of payload 

attachment places 

12 (9 for EF experiments, 2 for JEM systems, and 1 for 

temporary storage) 

Electrical power provided Max. 11 kW (max. 1 kW for systems, 10 kW for 

EF experiments) 120 V dc 

Data management system 16-bit computer system 

High-speed data link: max.100 Mbps 

Environment control Active thermal control system loop 

Life span More than 10 years 
JUNE 2009 PAYLOAD OVERVIEW 39

Close-up photo of the EFBM (Space Station Test Building, TKSC) 

Kibo-Unique Mechanisms on EF 

Exposed Facility Berthing Mechanism 

The EF Berthing Mechanism (EFBM) is a 

mechanism that connects the EF to the PM. The 

active half of the EFBM, which has four capture 

latch mechanisms and four motor-drive bolts 

(structural latch mechanisms), is located on the 

PM. The passive half is located on the EF. 

Once both the active half and passive half of the 

EFBM are berthed, channels for the electrical 

power system, data communications system, 

and thermal control system will be connected, 

and then power and data transfer will be 

initiated. 

Passive EFBM Passive EFBM

Active EFBM

Passive EFBM

Capture latch mechanisms

PM

EF
40 PAYLOAD OVERVIEW JUNE 2009

Close-up photo of the EFU (Space Station Testing Building, TKSC) 

When the EF arrives at the station, the EFBM 

(both active and passive) will be covered by 

Multi-Layer Insulation (MLI) covers. Before the 

installation of the EF, the covers on the EFBM 

will be removed by spacewalkers. 

Multi-layer Insulation cover 

Equipment Exchange Unit 

The EF Equipment Exchange Unit (EEU) is 

a mechanism to which EF experiments, the 

Inter-orbit Communication System – Exposed 

Facility (ICS-EF), the ELM-ES, and the HTV 

Exposed Pallet are attached. Once a payload is 

attached to the EEU, power will be provided 

through the EF, and transmission of commands 

and telemetries to and from the payload will be 

enabled. 

The EEU consists of an active side and a passive 

side. The active side of the EEU is called the 

Exposed Facility Unit (EFU) and is on the EF. 

The passive side of the EEU is called the 

Payload Interface Unit (PIU) and is on each 

EF payload, the ICS-EF, the ELM-ES, and the 

HTV Exposed Pallet. The EEU enables the 

exchange (removal and replacement) of the 

EF payloads in orbit, and thus, several different 

types of experiments can be conducted in the 

future. 
JUNE 2009 PAYLOAD OVERVIEW 41

Visual Equipment (Space Station Processing 

Facility, KSC): The VE is designed as an 

Orbital Replacement Unit (ORU). 

EF

EF Payload

PIU

EFU

Grapple Fixture

Power / fluid 

connectors

Capture Latch

Damper

Alignment 

spring Guide cone

EF

EF Payload

PIU

EFU

Grapple Fixture

Power / fluid 

connectors

Capture Latch

Damper

Alignment 

spring Guide cone

Configuration of the EEU 

Visual Equipment 

The Visual Equipment (VE) consists of a TV 

camera, a light, and a Pan/Tilt unit. The VE 

provides views of the EF experiments, 

payloads, and Orbital Replacement Units 

(ORUs) on the EF. Two units of the VE 

(forward and aft units) are installed on the EF. 

Locations of the VE units are as shown in the 

photo. During the launch, the VE units are 

stored in positions where they can receive 

heater power. 
42 PAYLOAD OVERVIEW JUNE 2009

Exposed Facility (Space Station Testing Building, TKSC) 

VE units will be 

installed here

Stored here during launch

PM

Exposed Facility (Space Station Testing Building, TKSC) 

Small Fine Arm Stowage Equipment 

The Small Fine Arm (SFA) Stowage 

Equipment (SSE) is a device that can stow the 

SFA when the SFA is not in use. The SFA 

receives heater power from the EF through the 

SSE when stored on the SSE. The SSE also 

provides communications interfaces. 

PM
JUNE 2009 PAYLOAD OVERVIEW 43

The SFA will be attached to the end of Kibo’s 

robotic arm, the JEM Remote Manipulator 

System (JEMRMS), when it is used for robotics 

operations. 

The SFA is used for exchanging the Orbiter 

Replacement Units (ORUs) on Kibo’s Exposed 

Facility. 

Exposed Facility’s Orbital Replacement 

Units – Extravehicular Activity ORU and Robot 

Essential ORU 

The electrical power system, communication 

and tracking system, and thermal control 

system are critical systems for operating the EF. 

Therefore, these system units are designed as 

ORUs. In case of failure, these units will be 

exchanged in orbit. There are three types of 

ORUs on the EF: 

• Extravehicular Activity ORU (E-ORU) 

• Robot Essential ORU (R-ORU) 

• Visual Equipment (VE), DC/DC converter 

unit (DDCU) 

E-ORU is attached to the nadir side of the EF, 

and will be exchanged by a spacewalker. 

R-ORU is attached to the zenith side and will 

be exchanged with the Small Fine 

Arm (SFA) attached to the end of Kibo’s robotic 

arm (JEMRMS). 
44 PAYLOAD OVERVIEW JUNE 2009

E-ORUs attached below the EF 

(Space Station Processing Facility, KSC) 

R-ORUs attached on the EF 

(Space Station Testing Building, TKSC) 
JUNE 2009 PAYLOAD OVERVIEW 45

Experiment Logistics Module-Exposed Section (Space Station Processing Facility, KSC) 

Experiment Logistics Module-Exposed 

Section Overview 

Kibo’s Experiment Logistics Module-Exposed 

Section (ELM-ES) is a logistics carrier which 

will carry Exposed Facility (EF) payloads. 

The ELM-ES is designed to be launched and 

returned on board the space shuttle. The 

ELM-ES will be attached to the EF while 

transferring the carried EF payloads to the EF in 

order to provide the best access for the robotics 

transfer operations with Kibo’s robotic arm. 

On STS-127, the ELM-ES will carry three EF 

payloads to the station and will return to the 

ground on board the same flight. 
46 PAYLOAD OVERVIEW JUNE 2009

Configuration design and specifications of the ELM-ES 

Structure type Frame 

Width 4.9 m 

Height 2.2 m (including the height of the attached payloads) 

Length 4.1 m 

Mass (dry weight) 1.2 t (excluding payloads) 

Number of payload 

accommodation places 3 EF payloads 

Electrical power supply Max. 1.0 kW 120 V dc 

Thermal control Heater and thermal insulator 

Life span More than 10 years 
JUNE 2009 PAYLOAD OVERVIEW 47

Conceptual images: The ELM-ES being attached to the EF (left) 

Kibo-Unique Mechanisms on ELM-ES 

Payload Interface Unit 

The Payload Interface Unit (PIU) is the passive 

side of the Experiment Exchange Unit (EEU) 

and will be used to attach the ELM-ES to the 

active side of the EEU, Exposed Facility 

Unit (EEU) on the EF. 

The heater power necessary for the EF payloads 

on the ELM-ES will be provided by the EF. 

STS-127 crew members checking the PIU during the Crew Equipment Interface Test (CEIT) 
48 PAYLOAD OVERVIEW JUNE 2009

EF payloads attached to the PAM 

(Space Station Processing Facility, KSC) 

Payload Attachment Mechanism 

The Payload Attachment Mechanism (PAM) is 

a mechanism which will be used to attach EF 

payloads to the ELM-ES during launch or travel 

on board the space shuttle. 

The PAM consists of the Structure Latch 

Mechanisms (SLMs) and the Umbilical 

Connector Mechanisms (UCMs). 

EF payloads can be attached or removed from 

the PAMs by Kibo’s robotic arm (JEMRMS). 

SLM

UCM

Alignment Guides

SLM SLM

SLM

Alignment Guides

SLM

UCM

Alignment Guides

SLM SLM

SLM

Alignment Guides

Close-up photo of the PAM (Space Station Testing Building, TKSC) 
JUNE 2009 PAYLOAD OVERVIEW 49

Umbilical Connector Mechanism 

The Umbilical Connector Mechanism (UCM) 

will enable heater power to be supplied to the 

EF payloads from the EF through the ELM-ES, 

and this will keep the payloads within the 

required temperature. 

Structure Latch Mechanism 

The Structure Latch Mechanisms (SLMs) catch 

onto and fasten an EF payload with four 

latches. 
50 PAYLOAD OVERVIEW JUNE 2009

EF Experiments and Payload Exposed 

Facility Experiments Monitor of 

All-sky X-ray Image 

The MAXI is an astronomical observatory 

which will monitor X-ray spectra from the 

station. The observations will encompass 

nearly the entire sky. The MAXI will scan 

space every 90 minutes with two types of X-ray 

detectors: a Gas Slit Camera (GSC) with 12 gas 

proportional counters and a Solid-state Slit 

Camera (SSC) with a peltier-cooled X-ray 

sensitive CCD. These slit cameras can scan by 

using the station’s attitude changes and so a 

pointing mechanism does not need to be used. 

Observation data can be distributed via the 

Internet when detecting X-ray transient 

phenomena so that observatories around the 

world can promptly receive and respond to the 

phenomena as well. Following is an overview 

of the MAXI. 
JUNE 2009 PAYLOAD OVERVIEW 51

Space Environment Data Acquisition 

Equipment-Attached Payload 

The Space Environment Data Acquisition 

Equipment-Attached Payload (SEDA-AP) will 

measure the space environment (neutrons, 

plasma, heavy ions, high-energy light particles, 

atomic oxygen, and cosmic dust) in the station’s 

orbit. It will also observe how the space 

environment affects materials and electronic 

devices. 

The SEDA-AP measurement units include 

(1) Neutron Monitor (NEM), (2) Heavy Ion 

Telescope (HIT), (3) Plasma Monitor (PLAM), 

(4) Standard Dose Monitor (SDOM), (5) Atomic 

Oxygen Monitor (AOM), (6) Electronic Device 

Evaluation Equipment (EDEE), and (7) MicroParticles Capture (MPAC) and Space 

Environment Exposure Device (SEED). The 

SEDA-AP will conduct measurement and 

monitoring by extending a mast, on which the 

NEM – Sensor and the PLAM-Sensor will be 

installed. Below is an overview of the 

SEDA-AP. 

 

(2)

(1)

(4)

(5)

(3)

(7)

(6) (1)

(2)

(1)

(4)

(5)

(3)

(7)

(6) (1)
52 PAYLOAD OVERVIEW JUNE 2009

Superconducting Submillimeter-Wave 

Limb-Emission Sounder (SMILES) 

This EF experiment will be delivered to the 

station on the HTV mission targeted to launch 

in September 2009. 

The objective of SMILES is to conduct global 

mappings of stratospheric trace gases using an 

extremely sensitive submillimeter receiver. The 

Superconductor Insulator Superconductor (SIS) 

mixer in a dedicated cryostat with a mechanical 

cooler achieves SMILES’s super high 

sensitivity. SMILES will observe ozonedepletion-related molecules such as ClO, HCl, 

HO2, HNO3, BrO. A scanning antenna will 

cover tangent altitudes from 10 to 60 km every 

53 seconds, while tracing the latitudes from 

38 S to 65 N along its orbit. 

With global coverage capability, SMILES can 

observe low- and mid-latitudinal areas as well 

as the Arctic peripheral region. 

SMILES data will enable us to investigate the 

chlorine and bromine chemistry in the 

atmosphere and will also provide a database 

for ozone variations in time and position 

around the upper troposphere and lower 

stratosphere. 
JUNE 2009 PAYLOAD OVERVIEW 53

Exposed Facility Payload Inter-orbit 

Communication System-Exposed 

Facility (ICS-EF) 

The Inter-orbit Communication System (ICS) is 

the Kibo-specific communications system for 

uplink/downlink data, images, and voice data 

between Kibo and the Mission Control Room 

(MCR) at the Tsukuba Space Center (TKSC) by 

way of Japan’s own relay satellite, the Data 

Relay Test Satellite (DRTS). The ICS consists of 

the ICS Pressurized Module (ICS-PM) 

subsystem installed on the PM (provides data 

communications) and the ICS Exposed 

Module (ICS-EF) subsystem to be installed on 

the EF. 

The ICS-EF consists of an antenna, a 

pointing mechanism, frequency converters, a 

high-power amplifier, and various sensors 

including an Earth sensor, a sun sensor, and an 

inertial reference unit. The ICS antenna can 

automatically track DRTS using the Antenna 

Pointing Mechanism by determining the 

antenna’s attitude based on the data from the 

Earth sensor, sun sensor and Inertial Reference 

Unit, while at the same time calculating the 

antenna’s direction based on the station and the 

orbital positions of DRTS. 

Installation of the ICS-EF on the EF paves the 

way for direct communications between Kibo 

and the Mission Control Room at TKSC 

through DRTS. It will be an efficient network 

resource, especially when huge amounts of 

data (such as experiment video data) are 

downlinked to the ground from Kibo. 

 
54 PAYLOAD OVERVIEW JUNE 2009

Installations of the EF, the ELM-ES, and 

EF payloads 

Kibo’s Exposed Facility (EF) and Experiment 

Logistics Module-Exposed Section (ELM-ES) 

will be launched in the space shuttle 

Endeavour’s payload bay. 

Heat necessary for the EF and Visual 

Equipment (VE) will be provided by the 

Assembly Power Converter Unit (APCU) on the 

shuttle. Heater power for the ELM-ES and the 

payloads will be supplied by the Remotely 

Operated Electrical Unit (ROEU) on the shuttle. 

On flight day 4, the EF will be installed 

on Kibo’s PM with the Exposed Facility 

Berthing Mechanism (EFBM). Prior to the EF 

installation, several preparation activities will 

be carried out by spacewalkers: removal of the 

MLI covers from the EFBM (both the active half 

and the passive half) and disconnection of the 

heater cable between the EF and the APCU in 

the payload bay. Once the EF is berthed to the 

PM with the EFBM bolts, the EF will be 

powered and activated; the EF subsystems, 

such as Command and Data Handling (C&DH), 

the Electrical Power System (EPS), and the 

Thermal Control System (TCS), will be 

activated in that order. 

On flight day 7, the ELM-ES will be attached to 

the EF to provide access for the robotic transfer 

of the EF payloads on the ELM-ES. Before the 

space shuttle’s robot arm lifts the ELM-ES from 

the payload bay, the heater power provided by 

the ROEU on the shuttle will be disconnected. 

Once the ELM-ES is attached to the EF, the 

power will be provided by the EF, and 

channels for commands and telemetries 

(sending/receiving) will be enabled. 

On flight day 9, three EF payloads on the 

ELM-ES will be transferred to the EF by Kibo’s 

robotic arm. Before this transfer operation, the 

MLI covers and contamination covers on the EF 

payloads will have to be removed during a 

spacewalk on flight day 8. 

On flight day 12, the ELM-ES will be unberthed 

from the EF and returned to the shuttle’s 

payload bay for the trip back to the ground. 

KIBO MISSION CONTROL CENTER 

Kibo operations are monitored and controlled 

from the Space Station Operations Facility 

(SSOF) at JAXA’s Tsukuba Space Center (TKSC) 

and from the Mission Control Center at 

NASA’s Johnson Space Center (JSC), where the 

overall operations of the space station are 

controlled. 

JAXA FLIGHT CONTROL TEAM 

The JAXA Flight Control Team (JFCT) consists 

of flight directors and flight controllers (a 

total of more than 60 members) assigned to 

10 technical disciplines required to support 

Kibo flight operations. 

The team monitors the status of command 

uplinks, data downlinks, systems, payloads, 

and experiment on board Kibo. The team has 

the capability of making real-time operations 

planning changes and communicating with the 

crew on board Kibo and also with the 

international partners’ mission control centers. 

The team can troubleshoot problems or 

anomalies that may occur on board Kibo during 

flight operations. 
JUNE 2009 PAYLOAD OVERVIEW 55

Kibo Mission Control Room 
56 PAYLOAD OVERVIEW JUNE 2009

The team is also responsible for the preparation 

and evaluation of all plans and procedures 

which will be performed by the crew on board 

Kibo and by controllers on the ground. The 

roles of the respective sections of JFCT are as 

follows: 

JAXA Flight Director 

The JAXA flight director (J-FLIGHT) is the 

leader of the team. 

The J-FLIGHT directs the overall operations of 

Kibo, including operations planning, systems, 

and experiment operations, as well as other 

tasks performed by the crew on board Kibo. 

STS-127 Lead J-FLIGHT Masao Nakai 

The flight controllers assigned to each control 

section must ensure that the J-FLIGHT is given 

the current status of every detail of Kibo 

operations. 

The lead J-FLIGHT is responsible for the crew 

safety in the Kibo module and takes the leading 

role to integrate the mission. 

Control and Network Systems, Electrical Power, 

and ICS Communication Officer 

The Control and Network Systems, Electrical 

Power, and ICS Communication Officer 

(CANSEI) is responsible for Kibo flight control, 

network systems, electrical power, and ICS 

communications. The CANSEI monitors the 

control status of on-board computers, network 

systems, and electrical power systems through 

data downlinked from Kibo on a real-time 

basis. 

Fluid and Thermal Officer 

The Fluid and Thermal Officer (FLAT) is 

responsible for monitoring the status of the 

ECLSS and the TCS which regulate the heat 

generated from the equipment on board Kibo. 

These systems are monitored through telemetry 

data downlinked from Kibo on a real-time 

basis. 

Kibo Robotics Officer 

The Kibo Robotics Officer (KIBOTT) is 

responsible for the overall operation of Kibo’s 

robotic arm systems, the scientific airlock, and 

other associated mechanisms. During robotic 

arm and airlock operations, the KIBOTT will 

prepare and monitor the related systems 

necessary for the flight crew to perform the 

appropriate tasks on board Kibo. 

Operations Planner 

The Operations Planner (J-PLAN) is responsible 

for planning the actual flight operations. When 

Kibo is in a flight operations mode, the J-PLAN 

monitors the status and progress of Kibo 
JUNE 2009 PAYLOAD OVERVIEW 57

operations and, if necessary, amends or 

modifies the operation plans as required. 

System Element Investigation and Integration 

Officer 

The System Element Investigation and 

Integration Officer (SENIN) is responsible for 

Kibo’s system elements. The SENIN monitors 

and ensures that each Kibo system is running 

smoothly and integrates all systems 

information provided by each flight control 

section. 

Tsukuba Ground Controller 

The Tsukuba Ground Controller is responsible 

for the overall operation and maintenance of 

the ground support facilities that are essential 

for Kibo flight operations. This includes the 

operations control systems and the operations 

network systems. 

JEM Communicator 

The JEM Communicator (J‐COM) is responsible 

for voice communication with the crew on 

board Kibo. The J‐COM communicates all 

essential information to the crew for operating 

Kibo systems and experiments and/or responds 

to Kibo‐specific inquiries from the crew. 

Astronaut-Related IVA and Equipment Support 

Astronaut‐Related IVA and Equipment Support 

(ARIES) is responsible for Intra‐Vehicular 

Activity (IVA) operations on board Kibo. The 

ARIES manages the tools and other IVA‐related 

support equipment on Kibo. 

JEM Payload Officer 

The JEM Payload Officer (JEM PAYLOADS) is 

responsible for Kibo’s experiment payload 

operations and coordinates payload activities 

with the primary investigators of each 

experiment. 

JAXA Extravehicular Activity 

The JAXA Extravehicular Activity (JAXA EVA) 

team is for Kibo‐related EVA operations and 

provides technical support to the crew 

members who perform Kibo‐related 

spacewalks. 

The JAXA EVA console is not in the Space 

Station Operations Facility (SSOF) at TKSC. 

Instead, the JAXA EVA flight controllers are 

stationed at NASA’s JSC. 

JEM ENGINEERING TEAM 

The JEM Engineering Team (JET) is responsible 

for providing technical support to the flight 

control team and technical evaluation of 

real‐time data and pre‐ and post‐flight analysis. 

JET consists of the JET lead and engineers for 

Kibo’s electrical subsystem, fluid subsystem 

and IVAs, who are the members of the JEM 

Development Project Team. JET engineers also 

work in the NASA Mission Evaluation Room at 

NASA JSC in order to perform joint 

troubleshooting and anomaly resolution. 

PAYLOAD FLIGHT CONTROL TEAM 

All scientific experiments and educational 

operations on board Kibo are conducted by the 

Payload Flight Control Team (PL FCT) 

stationed at the User Operations Area (UOA) 

under the direction of the JEM PAYLOADS. 

The PL FCT consists of ten expert groups who 

have special knowledge in order to support 

each experiment operation. 
58 PAYLOAD OVERVIEW JUNE 2009

JAXA Payload Operations Conductor 

The JAXA Payload Operations Conductor 

(JPOC) is the leader of the PLFCT. The JPOC 

oversees and manages experiment operations 

on board Kibo. This role includes evaluating 

and decision-making concerning experiment 

planning, operations procedures, readiness, 

and actual operations. 

Fluid Science and Crystallization Science Ops 

Lead 

The Fluid Science and Crystallization Science 

Ops Lead team (FISICS) is responsible for the 

operations of the Fluid Physics Experiment 

Facility (FPEF), the Solution Crystallization 

Observation Facility (SCOF), the Protein 

Crystallization Research Facility (PCRF), and 

the Image Processing Unit (IPU) installed on 

the RYUTAI Rack. 

Biology Ops Lead 

The Biology Ops Lead team (BIO) is responsible 

for overall operations of the Cell Biology 

Experiment Facility (CBEF) and the Clean 

Bench (CB) installed on the SAIBO Rack. 

RYUTAI Rack User Integrator/Principal 

Investigator/Engineer (UI/PI/Eng.) 

The RYUTAI Rack UI/PI/Eng. team consists of a 

research team and an engineering team and is 

responsible for all the experiment operations 

that use the RYUTAI Rack. 

For each experiment program, the team 

prepares sample specimen and equipment for 

the experiment in support of the principal 

investigator (PI) and those who manufacture 

the experiment. The engineering team includes 

the User Integrator (UI) and engineers who 

have been involved in the development of the 

experiment operated in the RYUTAI Rack. 
JUNE 2009 PAYLOAD OVERVIEW 59

SAIBO Rack User Integrator/Principal 

Investigator/Engineer (UI/PI/Eng.) 

The SAIBO Rack UI/PI/Eng. team consists of a 

research team and an engineering team and is 

responsible for experiment operations that use 

the SAIBO Rack. 

For each experiment program, the team 

prepares sample specimen and equipment 

for the experiment in support of the PI and 

those who manufacture the experiment. The 

engineering team includes the UI and engineers 

who have been involved in the development of 

the experiment operated in the SAIBO Rack. 

Education Payload Observation Officer 

The Education Payload Observation Officer 

team (EPO/Medical) is responsible for JAXA’s 

Educational Payload Observation (EPO) and 

medical research operations. 

On board Kibo, educational programs (art and 

culture) and human space flight technology 

development programs (the astronauts’ health 

care and medical management) are performed 

using the space-unique environment. 

The team monitors and operates each program 

in support of the project leader and the 

researcher/principal investigator of the 

program, and collaborates with the JEM 

PAYLOADS and the JPOC. 

SEDA-AP, MAXI 1 AND 2, SMILES 

SPACE ENVIRONMENT DATA 

ACQUISITION EQUIPMENT – 

ATTACHED PAYLOAD, MONITOR OF 

ALL-SKY X-RAY IMAGE, 

SUPERCONDUCTING SUBMILLIMETERWAVE LIMB-EMISSION SOUNDER 

This team is responsible for the EF experiment 

operations, namely the SEDA-AP, MAXI and 

SMILES. 

TSUKUBA SPACE CENTER 

Tsukuba Space Center is JAXA’s largest space 

development and utilization research complex. 

As Japan’s primary site for human spaceflight 

research and operations, it operates the 

following facilities in support of the Kibo 

mission. 

 
60 PAYLOAD OVERVIEW JUNE 2009

Space Station Test Building 

Comprehensive Kibo systems’ tests were 

conducted in this building. The main purpose 

of the tests was to verify function, physical 

interface, and performance of the entire Kibo 

system including all the associated elements. In 

addition, subsystems, payloads, and ground 

support equipment were all tested in this 

building. Currently, this building is used to 

provide engineering support for Kibo 

operations. 

 

Space Experiment Laboratory (SEL) 

The following activities are conducted in this 

building: 

• Development of technologies required for 

space experiments 

• Preparation of Kibo experiment programs 

• Experiment data analysis and support 
JUNE 2009 PAYLOAD OVERVIEW 61

Astronaut Training Facility (ATF) 

The following activities are conducted in this 

building: 

• JAXA astronaut candidate training 

• Astronaut training and health care 

This building is also the primary site for Japan’s 

space medicine research. 

 

Weightless Environment Test Building (WET) 

This facility provides a simulated weightless 

environment using water buoyancy for 

astronaut training. Design verification tests 

on various Kibo element modules and the 

development of preliminary spacewalk 

procedures were conducted in this facility. 
62 PAYLOAD OVERVIEW JUNE 2009

Exposed Facility Mockup in the WET pool 
JUNE 2009 PAYLOAD OVERVIEW 63

SPACE STATION OPERATION FACILITY 

The Space Station Operation Facility (SSOF) is 

used for the control of Kibo operations. At the 

SSOF, operation of Kibo systems and payloads 

are supervised, and Kibo operation plans are 

prepared in cooperation with NASA’s Space 

Station Control Center (SSCC) and Payload 

Operation Integration Center (POIC). 

The SSOF is responsible for the following: 

• Monitoring and controlling Kibo operating 

systems 

• Monitoring and controlling Japanese 

experiments on Kibo 

• Implementing operation plans 

• Supporting launch preparation 

The SSOF consists of the following sections: 

Mission Control Room 

This is the location of real‐time Kibo support on 

a 24‐hour basis. This includes monitoring the 

health and status of Kibo’s operating systems 

and payloads, sending commands, and 

real‐time operational planning. 

User Operations Area 

The User Operations Area is designated as the 

distribution point for the status of Japanese 

experiments, and where collected data is 

released to the respective users who are 

responsible for the experiments and their 

subsequent analyses. 
64 PAYLOAD OVERVIEW JUNE 2009

Operations Planning Room 

This is the location of the planning of in-orbit 

and ground operations based on the power 

distribution, crew resources, and data 

transmission capacity. If the baseline plans 

need to be changed, adjustments will be 

conducted in collaboration with the control 

room, the User Operations, and NASA. 

Operations Rehearsal Room 

Training for flight controllers, integrated 

rehearsals, and joint simulations with NASA 

take place in this room. 

Engineering Support Room 

This is the location of the engineering support 

for Kibo operations. In this room, the JEM 

Engineering Team monitors the data 

downlinked to the MCR from Kibo and 

provides engineering support as required. 
JUNE 2009 PAYLOAD OVERVIEW 65

INTEGRATED CARGO CARRIER – VERTICAL LIGHT DEPLOY (ICC-VLD) 

Astronauts use the Integrated Cargo 

Carrier (ICC) to help transfer unpressurized 

cargo such as Orbital Replacement 

Units (ORUs) from the space shuttle to the 

International Space Station and from the station 

to worksites on the truss assemblies. The 

carrier also is used to return items for 

refurbishment. 

The Astrium ICC, formerly provided by 

SPACEHAB Inc., is an unpressurized flatbed 

pallet and keel yoke assembly housed in 

the shuttle’s payload bay. Constructed of 

aluminum, it is approximately 8 feet long 

(105 inches), 13 feet wide (165 inches), and 

10 inches thick, and carries cargo on both the 

top and bottom faces of the pallet. Using 

modular elements, several pallet configurations 

are available, accommodating various mass 

capabilities and cargo envelopes. 

The ICC configuration flown on STS-127 is 

called the ICC-VLD and provides heater power 

and electrical connections for the ORUs. The 

empty weight of the ICC-VLD is 2,645 pounds. 

The total weight of the ORUs and ICC-VLD is 

approximately 8,330 pounds. The STS-127/2JA 

assembly mission ICC-VLD will carry 

replacement components and spare parts for 

the space station. 

The ICC is grabbed by the space shuttle and the 

space station robotic arms during its move from 

the payload bay. It is attached to the station’s 

mobile transporter and can be held at the 

various worksites by the station’s robotic arm 

while the ORUs are transferred. 
66 PAYLOAD OVERVIEW JUNE 2009

The ICC-VLD will carry six batteries for the 

Port 6 (P6) solar array. Thirty-eight individual 

pressure vessel (IPV) nickel hydrogen (NiH2) 

battery cells are connected in series and 

packaged in a Battery ORU. Two ORUs are 

connected in series, utilizing a total of 76 cells 

to form one battery. The P6 Integrated 

Equipment Assembly (IEA) containing the 

initial ISS high-power components was 

launched on Nov. 30, 2000. The IEA contains 

12 Battery Subassembly ORUs (6 batteries) that 

provide station power during eclipse and 

maintenance periods. Each battery is designed 

to deliver more than 25 Amps in a low-demand 

orbit to as high as 75 Amps to meet short 

peaking load requirements at a battery 

operating voltage range of 76 to 123 V dc. The 

batteries will be replaced during two 

spacewalks and the old ones will be returned. 

The six batteries weigh 2,204 pounds and have 

a design life of approximately six and a half 

years. 

In addition to the batteries, the ICC-VLD will 

have three Flight Releasable Attachment 

Mechanism (FRAM)-based ORUs called the 

Space-to-Ground Antenna (SGANT), Pump 

Module Assembly (PMA) and Linear Drive 

Unit (LDU). These components will be stored 

on External Stowage Platform 3 (ESP-3) on the 

Port 3 truss. When the ICC-VLD with the old 

batteries is returned to Earth aboard the space 

shuttle, it will weigh 6,017 pounds. 

The SGANT provides Ku-band communication 

between the space station and the Tracking 

Data and Relay (TDRS) satellites for payload 

data, video to the ground and the crew 

Orbiter Communications Adapter (OCA). The 

OCA allows for telephone calls, emails and 

other two-way communications services. The 
JUNE 2009 PAYLOAD OVERVIEW 67

SGANT currently is mounted on top of the 

Zenith 1 (Z1) truss. Eventually, a second Z1 

boom will be mounted with an additional 

SGANT in a standby backup mode. If ever 

needed, it could be brought on line quickly. 

The SGANT launched on flight STS-127/2JA 

will be a spare for the other two ORUs 

mounted on the Z1 Truss. The SGANT dish 

measures 6 feet (72 inches) in diameter, is 6 feet 

(72 inches) high, including gimbals, and weighs 

194 pounds. 

The LDU is the drive system for the mobile 

transporter that moves back and forth (port to 

starboard, starboard to port) along the 

integrated rails on the external structure of 

the space station (i.e., trusses P3 through S3). 

The transporter is a movable platform 

that shifts the space station robotic arm, work 

carts or massive station components along 

the main truss. The LDU features two 

independent drive and engagement systems. 

Built by Northrop Grumman ASTRO 

Aerospace in Carpeinteria, Calif., the LDU 

weighs approximately 255 pounds and 

measures approximately 4 feet wide by 3 feet 

high, and just under 2 feet in depth. 

The PMA is part of the station’s complex Active 

Thermal Control System (ATCS), which 

provides vital cooling to internal and external 

avionics, crew members, and payloads. The 

station has two independent cooling loops. The 

external loops use an ammonia-based coolant 

and the internal loops use water cooling. At the 

heart of the ATCS is the pump module, which 

pumps the ammonia through the external 

system to provide cooling and eventually reject 

the residual heat into space via the radiators. 

The heat is generated by the electronic boxes 

throughout the station. Manufactured by 

Boeing, the pump module weighs 780 pounds 

and measures approximately 5 1/2 feet 

(69 inches) long by 4 feet (50 inches) wide by 

3 feet (36 inches) high. 
68 PAYLOAD OVERVIEW JUNE 2009
JUNE 2009 RENDEZVOUS & DOCKING 69

RENDEZVOUS & DOCKING 

The above image depicts space shuttle Endeavour on final docking approach with the 

International Space Station. 

Rendezvous begins with a precisely timed 

launch that puts the space shuttle on a 

trajectory to chase the International Space 

Station. A series of engine firings over the next 

two days will bring Endeavour to a point about 

50,000 feet behind the station. Once there, 

Endeavour will start its final approach. About 

2.5 hours before docking, the shuttle’s jets will 

be fired during what is called the terminal 

initiation burn. The shuttle will cover the final 

miles to the station during the next orbit. 

As Endeavour moves closer to the station, its 

rendezvous radar system and trajectory control 

sensor will provide the crew with range and 

closing-rate data. Several small correction 

burns will place Endeavour about 1,000 feet 

below the station. 

Commander Mark Polansky, with help from 

Pilot Doug Hurley and other crew members, 

will manually fly the shuttle for the remainder 

of the approach and docking. 
70 RENDEZVOUS & DOCKING JUNE 2009

Polansky will stop Endeavour about 600 feet 

below the station. Once he determines there is 

proper lighting, he will maneuver Endeavour 

through a nine-minute backflip called the 

Rendezvous Pitch Maneuver. That allows the 

station crew to take as many as 300 digital 

pictures of the shuttle’s heat shield. 

Station crew members Mike Barratt and 

Gennady Padalka will use digital cameras with 

400mm and 800mm lenses to photograph 

Endeavour’s upper and bottom surfaces 

through windows of the Zvezda Service 

Module. The 400mm lens provides up to 

three-inch resolution and the 800mm lens up to 

one-inch resolution. Padalka will use the 

400mm and Barratt will use the 800. 

The photography is one of several techniques 

used to inspect the shuttle’s thermal protection 

system for possible damage. Areas of special 

interest include the thermal protection tiles, the 

reinforced carbon-carbon of the nose and 

leading edges of the wings, landing gear doors 

and the elevon cove. 

The photos will be downlinked through the 

station’s Ku-band communications system for 

analysis by systems engineers and mission 

managers. 

When Endeavour completes its backflip, it will 

be back where it started, with its payload bay 

facing the station. Polansky then will fly 

Endeavour through a quarter circle to a 

position about 400 feet directly in front of the 

station. From that point he will begin the final 

approach to docking to the Pressurized Mating 

Adapter 2 at the forward end of the Harmony 

node. 

The shuttle crew members will operate laptop 

computers that process the navigational data, 

the laser range systems and Endeavour’s 

docking mechanism. 

Using a video camera mounted in the center of 

the Orbiter Docking System, Polansky will line 

up the docking ports of the two spacecraft. 

If necessary, Polansky will pause Endeavour 

30 feet from the station to ensure proper 

alignment of the docking mechanisms. He will 

maintain the shuttle’s speed relative to the 

station at about one-tenth of a foot per second, 

while both Endeavour and the station are 

moving at about 17,500 mph. Polansky will 

keep the docking mechanisms aligned to a 

tolerance of three inches. 

When Endeavour makes contact with the 

station, preliminary latches will automatically 

attach the two spacecraft. The shuttle’s steering 

jets will be deactivated to reduce the forces 

acting at the docking interface. Shock absorber 

springs in the docking mechanism will dampen 

any relative motion between the shuttle and 

station. 

Once motion between the shuttle and the 

station has been stopped, the docking ring will 

be retracted to close a final set of latches 

between the two vehicles. 

UNDOCKING, SEPARATION AND 

DEPARTURE 

At undocking time, the hooks and latches will 

be opened and springs will push the shuttle 

away from the station. Endeavour’s steering 

jets will be shut off to avoid any inadvertent 

firings during the initial separation. 

Once Endeavour is about two feet from the 

station and the docking devices are clear of one 

another, Hurley will turn the steering jets back 
7 

JUNE 2009 RENDEZVOUS & DOCKING 71

Backdropped by the blackness of space, the International Space Station is seen from space shuttle 

Discovery as the two spacecraft begin their relative separation. 

on and will manually control Endeavour within 

a tight corridor as the shuttle separates from the 

station. 

Endeavour will move to a distance of about 

450 feet, where Hurley will begin to fly around 

the station. This maneuver will occur only if 

propellant margins and mission timeline 

activities permit. 

Once Endeavour completes 1.5 revolutions of 

the complex, Hurley will fire Endeavour’s jets 

to leave the area. The shuttle will move about 

46 miles from the station and remain there 

while ground teams analyze data from the late 

inspection of the shuttle’s heat shield. The 

distance is close enough to allow the shuttle to 

return to the station in the unlikely event that 

the heat shield is damaged, preventing the 

shuttle’s safe re-entry. 
72 RENDEZVOUS & DOCKING JUNE 2009

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JUNE 2009 SPACEWALKS 73

SPACEWALKS 

Dave Wolf, STS-112 mission specialist, his feet secured to a foot restraint on the end of the 

Space Station Remote Manipulator System or Canadarm2, participates in a six-hour, 

four-minute session of extravehicular activity. 

There are five spacewalks scheduled for the 

STS-127 mission – only the second time that a 

crew has gone into a space station mission 

planning to perform so many. The main event 

will be the installation of the Japanese Kibo 

laboratory’s exposed section on the first 

spacewalk, but that’s only a small slice of the 

work to be done. The spacewalkers will also 

deliver spare equipment, change out batteries 

and finish up some work that wasn’t 

accomplished during the last shuttle mission to 

the space station. 

Mission Specialists Dave Wolf, Tim Kopra, 

Tom Marshburn and Christopher Cassidy will 

spend a combined total of 32.5 hours outside 

the station on flight days 4, 6, 8, 10 and 13. 

Wolf, the lead spacewalker for the mission, will 

suit up for the first, second and third 

spacewalks in a spacesuit marked with solid 
74 SPACEWALKS JUNE 2009

red stripes. He is a veteran spacewalker with 

three extravehicular activities, or EVAs, 

performed during the STS-112 mission in 2002, 

and one performed from the Russian Mir space 

station. 

Kopra, Marshburn and Cassidy will perform 

their first spacewalks. Kopra will participate in 

the first spacewalk, wearing an all white 

spacesuit. Marshburn will take part in 

spacewalks two, four and five and wear a 

spacesuit marked with a broken red stripe. 

And Cassidy will wear a spacesuit with a line 

of horizontal red stripes for spacewalks three, 

four and five. 

On each EVA day, a spacewalker inside the 

station will act as the intravehicular officer, or 

spacewalk choreographer. And all but the fifth 

spacewalk will require at least two crew 

members inside the station or shuttle to be at 

the controls of one or more of the robotic arms – 

the station’s 58-foot-long robotic arm or the 

shuttle’s 50-foot-long one – to carry and 

maneuver equipment and spacewalkers. 

Preparations will start the night before each 

spacewalk, when the astronauts spend time in 

the station’s Quest Airlock. This practice is 

called the campout prebreathe protocol and is 

used to purge nitrogen from the spacewalkers’ 

systems and prevent decompression sickness, 

also known as “the bends.” 

During the campout, the two astronauts 

performing the spacewalk will isolate 

themselves inside the airlock while the air 

pressure is lowered to 10.2 pounds per square 

inch, or psi. The station is kept at the near-sealevel pressure of 14.7 psi. The morning of the 

spacewalk, the astronauts will wear oxygen 

masks while the airlock’s pressure is raised 

back to 14.7 psi for an hour and the hatch 

between the airlock and the rest of the station is 

opened. That allows the spacewalkers to 

perform their morning routines before 

returning to the airlock, where the air pressure 

is lowered again. Approximately 50 minutes 

after the spacewalkers don their spacesuits, the 

prebreathe protocol will be complete. 

The procedure enables spacewalks to begin 

earlier in the crew’s day than was possible 

before the protocol was adopted. 
JUNE 2009 SPACEWALKS 75

EVA-1 

Duration: 6 hours, 30 minutes 

Crew: Wolf and Kopra 

IV Crew: Cassidy 

Robotic Arm 

Operators: Polanksy (shuttle), 

Hurley (station), 

Payette (shuttle) and 

Wakata (station) 

EVA Operations 

• Kibo/exposed facility berthing mechanism 

prep 

• ICC prep 

• CETA cart modification 

• Japanese robotic arm maintenance 

• Exposed facility experiment prep 

• P3 Nadir UCCAS and S3 Zenith Outboard 

PAS deploy 

Although the actual installation of Kibo’s 

exposed facility will be done robotically, Wolf 

and Kopra will begin the first spacewalk by 

making preparations for that installation at 

both ends. Wolf will make his way to the 

laboratory to remove some insulation currently 

covering its berthing mechanism that the 

exposed facility will be attached to. To do so, 
76 SPACEWALKS JUNE 2009

he’ll release four fasteners and jettison the 

insulation. While he’s in the area, he’ll also 

tuck two grounding tabs on the Japanese 

robotic arm out of the way of the arm’s camera 

– they’re currently interfering with the view. 

At the same time, Kopra will be working inside 

the shuttle’s cargo bay on the exposed facility 

end of that preparation. He’ll start by 

removing insulation from its berthing 

mechanism where it will attach to the Kibo 

laboratory, by releasing four fasteners and 

storing the insulation. He’ll then disconnect the 

power cable that keeps the exposed facility 

running while it’s in the cargo bay. 

The shuttle’s robotic arm will have already 

latched onto the exposed facility before the 

spacewalk started, and after the power cable is 

disconnected, the spacewalkers will have done 

their part in the preparations for its installation. 

Afterward, the station robotic arm will 

maneuver into place, and the shuttle robotic 

arm will pick up the facility from the shuttle’s 

cargo bay and hand it off to the station robotic 

arm. The station arm will then fly it to the Kibo 

laboratory for installation. 

Meanwhile, Wolf and Kopra will continue on 

with their spacewalk activities. Already in the 

shuttle’s cargo bay, Kopra will go ahead and 

disconnect the power cables providing 

electricity to the integrated cargo carrier to 

which the spare station equipment that 

Endeavour is carrying are attached. And he’ll 

remove a contamination cover on one of the 

experiments the exposed facility’s experiment 

carrier is carrying – MAXI, or Monitor of 

All-sky X-ray Image. 

After that, Kopra will move to the top of the 

Harmony node to secure a cover on its common 

berthing mechanism. He’ll move farther aft on 

station to pick up some tools on the station’s 

zenith truss segment, and then to the left side of 

the Unity node to open another cover on its 

common berthing mechanism. 

Wolf will move from the Kibo laboratory to the 

station’s port, or left, truss. He’ll pause at the 

innermost section of the truss to loosen four 

bolts on the grapple bar of an ammonia tank 

assembly to speed up another task during the 

second spacewalk, then continue on to the port 

crew equipment and translation aid, or CETA, 

cart. There he’ll be moving and restraining a 

foot restraint and brake handles out of the way 

to prevent them from interfering with the 

rotating solar alpha rotary joint. 

For the rest of the spacewalk, Wolf and Kopra 

will work together to set up two systems for 

attaching cargo to the station’s truss – an 

unpressurized cargo carrier attachment system, 

or UCCAS, and a payload attachment system, 

or PAS. Though they have different names, the 

two systems are almost identical. During the 

last shuttle mission to the space station, 

spacewalkers ran into problems when they 

tried to set up the UCCAS on the port 3, or P3, 

segment of the station’s truss. A jammed 

detent pin kept it from unfolding as it was 

supposed to. So Wolf and Kopra will come 

back for another try during their spacewalk. 

They’ll use a specially built detent release tool 

to help clear the jam and allow them to fully 

install the UCCAS. 

After getting the UCCAS into place, Wolf and 

Kopra will move to the starboard side of the 

truss to set up a PAS on the S3 truss segment. If 

this one goes as planned, the spacewalkers will 

first remove brackets and pins holding the latch 

in place, move the latch into position and then 

reinstall the brackets and pins. 
JUNE 2009 SPACEWALKS 77

EVA-2 

Duration: 6 hours, 30 minutes 

Crew: Wolf and Marshburn

IV Crew: Cassidy 

Robotic Arm 

Operators: Hurley, Payette and Wakata 

(all station) 

EVA Operations 

• Spare equipment transfer 

• Exposed facility vision equipment 

installation 

The second spacewalk will focus primarily on 

transferring the spare equipment brought up by 

the shuttle to a storage location on the station’s 

truss segment. 

Between the first and second spacewalk, 

Polansky and Hurley will use the shuttle 

robotic arm to unpack the integrated cargo 

carrier that holds all the spare equipment the 

shuttle is delivering to the space station. On 

flight day 6, before the second spacewalk starts, 

Payette and Wakata will take over using the 

station robotic arm and maneuver the carrier to 

be installed temporarily on the truss. 
78 SPACEWALKS JUNE 2009

This must be done before the spacewalk starts, 

because Wolf’s first task will be to climb into a 

foot restraint on the station’s robotic arm so that 

he can transfer the equipment from the carrier 

to an external stowage platform. 

Together, Wolf and Marshburn will detach first 

the spare space-to-ground antenna from the 

cargo carrier. Wolf will then carry it via the 

robotic arm to the stowage platform, where he 

and Marshburn will install it. They’ll then 

repeat the process with the spare pump module 

and the spare linear drive unit. The process is 

expected to take about three and a half hours. 

They’ll spend their remaining time outside 

adding vision equipment on the newly installed 

exposed facility, which will help with the 

installation of the exposed facility’s experiment 

carrier the following day. For launch, it will be 

locked into a temporary spot on the exposed 

facility, and Wolf and Marshburn will need to 

release six bolts, remove some insulation and 

disconnect a power cable to retrieve it. To 

install it in its permanent location on the 

forward end of the exposed facility, they’ll use 

two bolts to secure it and then reconnect its 

power cable. 

EVA-3 

Duration: 6 hours, 30 minutes 

Crew: Wolf and Cassidy 

IV Crew: Marshburn 

Robotic Arm 

Operators: Hurley and Payette (station) 
JUNE 2009 SPACEWALKS 79

EVA Operations: 

• WIF relocation 

• Handrail and worksite interface installation 

• Safety tether pack relocation 

• Exposed facility experiment and 

communications system preparation 

• P6 battery swap, part one 

The battery change out work for the port 6, or 

P6, solar array, will take about 30 minutes of 

the allotted work time for the third spacewalk 

of the mission, but Wolf and Cassidy will cram 

several tasks into that first 30 minutes. 

Wolf will relocate a worksite interface and a 

handrail from their current location on the 

Harmony node to a new site on the Columbus 

laboratory. Cassidy, meanwhile, will prepare 

the experiments and equipment brought up 

inside the exposed facility’s experiment carrier 

to be transferred to the exposed facility itself by 

removing insulation. The carrier will have been 

installed on flight day 7 by Polansky and 

Payette at the shuttle’s robotic arm and Hurley 

and Wakata at the station’s. 

Cassidy will start with the interorbit 

communication system, which has two covers 

for Cassidy to remove and jettison and one to 

bring back inside. He’ll also need to release the 

equipment’s antenna holding mechanism, 

which requires removing two bolts. Cassidy 

will then move on to the space environment 

data acquisition equipment – attached payload. 

From there, both spacewalkers will move to the 

end of the port side of the station’s truss for the 

battery work. Before the spacewalk starts, 

Hurley and Payette will use the station’s robotic 

arm to maneuver the integrated cargo carrier, 

to which the new batteries for the P6 solar array 

will be attached, as close to Wolf and Cassidy’s 

worksite as possible – almost as far out as the 

arm can reach. 

Wolf and Cassidy will replace four of the six 

batteries during this spacewalk. The new 

batteries will be designated by letters A 

through F, and the old batteries numbered one 

through six. Cassidy will remove an old 

battery from the solar array’s integrated 

electrical assembly by installing two “scoops” 

that will be used by the spacewalkers to 

maneuver the batteries, and then removing two 

bolts. He’ll then hand it off, get out of the foot 

restraint he was working in, move closer to 

Wolf and take hold of the battery. Wolf will 

release the battery, move slightly further down 

the truss and position himself to take hold of 

the battery. Cassidy will hand the battery to 

Wolf and then move himself closer to once 

again take hold and control the battery. The 

process is called “shepherding,” and might 

appear as “inch-worming” the battery along 

except that one person is always holding a 

367-pound battery. 

To install the battery in a temporary storage 

location on the integrated electrical assembly, 

Wolf will use one of the scoops to attach it to a 

multi-use tether, or ball-stack, and end 

effectors. The spacewalkers will then remove 

battery A from the integrated cargo carrier and 

shepherd it back to the integrated electrical 

assembly for installation in slot 1. The next step 

will be to remove battery 4, shepherd it to the 

cargo carrier to be installed in slot A, and 

remove battery B to be installed in slot 4. 

The process will continue until four batteries 

have been installed, then the first battery will be 
80 SPACEWALKS JUNE 2009

removed from its temporary storage location 

and installed in the vacant spot on the cargo 

carrier. The order will be as follows: 

Battery 1 to temporary storage 

Battery A to Slot 1 

Battery 4 to Slot A 

Battery B to Slot 4 

Battery 3 to Slot B 

Battery C to Slot 3 

Battery 2 to Slot C 

Battery D to Slot 2 

Battery 1 to Slot D 

EVA-4 

Duration: 6 hours, 30 minutes 

Crew: Marshburn and Cassidy 

IV Crew: Kopra 

Robotic Arm 

Operators: Polansky (shuttle), 

Hurley (shuttle), 

Payette (station) and 

Wakata (station) 

EVA Operations: 

• Battery swap, part two 

• Exposed facility vision equipment 

installation 
JUNE 2009 SPACEWALKS 81

Marshburn and Cassidy will spend the first half 

of spacewalk four finishing up the battery swap 

work that Wolf and Cassidy started. They’ll use 

the same procedure and perform the work in 

the following order: 

Battery 5 to temporary storage 

Battery E to Slot 5 

Battery 6 to Slot E 

Battery F to Slot 6 

Battery 5 to Slot F 

The spacewalkers will then wrap up their work 

by installing the exposed facility’s aft vision 

equipment, in a process similar to that 

performed by Marshburn and Wolf during the 

second spacewalk. 

EVA-5 

Duration: 5 hours, 45 minutes 

Crew: Marshburn and Cassidy 

IV Crew: Wolf 

Robotic Arm 

Operators: None 

EVA Operations: 

• SPDM insulation covers reconfiguration 

• Z1 patch panel reconfiguration 

• S3 PAS deploy (three) 

• WETA installation 

The last spacewalk of the mission will be 

devoted primarily to get-ahead tasks that were 

not able to be finished during the last shuttle 

mission to the space station. Marshburn’s first 

job will take him to the station’s special 

purpose dexterous manipulator – also known 

as Dextre – on the exterior of the Destiny 

laboratory. He’ll be resecuring two thermal 

covers on Dextre’s orbital replacement unit tool 

changeout mechanisms – in other words, one of 

the robot’s wrist joints. 

While he does so, Cassidy will swap two 

connectors on a patch panel on the station’s 

zenith truss segment. 

The two will then work together to first set up 

two more payload attachment systems – on the 

inboard and outboard sides of the nadir portion 

of the S3 truss – following the procedure that 

Wolf and Kopra used during the first 

spacewalk, and install a wireless video system 

external transceiver assembly, or WETA, on 

the same segment. WETAs support the 

transmission of video from spacewalkers’ 

helmet cameras. To do so, Marshburn will 

remove a dummy box currently in the location, 

and then attach the WETA to a stanchion. 

Cassidy will connect three cables to the 

assembly. 
82 SPACEWALKS JUNE 2009

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JUNE 2009 EXPERIMENTS 83

EXPERIMENTS 

The space shuttle and International Space 

Station have an integrated research program 

that optimizes use of shuttle crew members and 

long-duration space station crew members to 

address research questions in a variety of 

disciplines. 

For information on science on the station, visit 

http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/

science/index.html

or 

http://iss-science.jsc.nasa.gov/index.cfm

Detailed information is located at 

http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/

science/experiments/Expedition.html

DETAILED TEST OBJECTIVES 

Detailed Test Objectives (DTOs) are aimed at 

testing, evaluating or documenting systems or 

hardware or proposed improvements to 

hardware, systems and operations. 

DTO 701B DRAGONEYE FLASH LIDAR 

On behalf of SpaceX of Hawthorne, Calif., 

NASA’s Commercial Crew and Cargo Program 

Office (C3PO) is sponsoring the investigation of 

“DragonEye,” a pulsed laser navigation sensor 

that SpaceX’s Dragon vehicle would use to 

approach the International Space Station. The 

test is to gain confidence and experience with 

how the DragonEye sensor performs before the 

system is used on the vehicle’s third 

demonstration which includes rendezvous with 

the station. 

The C3PO office manages the Commercial 

Orbital Transportation Services (COTS) projects 

which has a Space Act Agreement with SpaceX. 

COTS is an effort by NASA to stimulate a 

commercial market for spaceflight services. 

According to SpaceX, its recoverable Dragon 

spacecraft is being designed to carry both 

pressurized and unpressurized cargo to the 

station. 

The Advanced Scientific Concepts (ASCs) 

“DragonEye” flash Light Intensification 

Detection and Ranging (LIDAR) relative 

navigation sensor is being tested on this 

mission. DragonEye has been baselined as 

SpaceX's primary relative navigation sensor. 

The DragonEye will mount to the shuttle’s 

existing Trajectory Control System (TCS) carrier 

assembly on the Orbiter Docking System 

(ODS). SpaceX will be taking data in parallel 

with the shuttle’s Trajectory Control Sensor 

(TCS) system. Both TCS and DragonEye will be 

“looking” at the retroreflectors that are on the 

station. After the flight, SpaceX will compare 

the data DragonEye collected against the data 

TCS collected and evaluate DragonEye’s 

performance. 

The DragonEye will use a flash Light 

Intensification Detection and Ranging (Range) 

(LIDAR), which provides a three-dimensional 

image based on the time of flight of a single 

laser pulse from the sensor to the target and 

back. It provides both range and bearing 

information from targets that can reflect the 

light back such as the Pressurized Mating 

Adapter (PMA)2 and those on the nadir side of 

station’s Japanese Experiment Module (JEM). 
84 EXPERIMENTS JUNE 2009

The DragonEye sensor unit will also be able to 

operate with retroreflectors in the Field Of 

View (FOV) even at close range. The 

DragonEye sensor is eye-safe and will also be 

unpowered when docked to the station, so 

there are no safety concerns for spacewalks. 

SpaceX also will perform a ground-based space 

qualification program to ensure the sensor can 

withstand the rigors of launch and operation in 

a space environment, including tests such as 

vibration and thermal-vac. 

About SpaceX 

SpaceX is developing a family of launch 

vehicles and spacecraft intended to increase the 

reliability and reduce the cost of both manned 

and unmanned space transportation, ultimately 

by a factor of 10. With the Falcon 1 and 

Falcon 9 vehicles, SpaceX offers highly 

reliable/cost-efficient launch capabilities for 

spacecraft insertion into any orbital altitude and 

inclination. Starting in 2010, SpaceX’s Dragon 

spacecraft will provide Earth–to-LEO transport 

of pressurized and unpressurized cargo, 

including resupply to the space station. 

Founded in 2002, the SpaceX team now 

numbers over 700, with corporate headquarters 

in Hawthorne, Calif. 

Space Shuttle Solid Rocket Motor 

Pressure Oscillation Data Gathering 

The Space Shuttle Program is gathering data on 

five shuttle flights, beginning with STS-126, to 

gain a greater understanding of the pressure 

oscillation, or periodic variation, phenomena 

that regularly occurs within solid rocket 

motors. The pressure oscillation that is 

observed in solid rocket motors is similar to the 

hum made when blowing into a bottle. At 

1.5 psi, or pounds per square inch, a pressure 

wave will move up and down the motor from 

the front to the rear, generating acoustic noise 

as well as physical loads in the structure. These 

data are necessary to help propulsion engineers 

confirm modeling techniques of pressure 

oscillations and the loads they create. As 

NASA engineers develop alternate propulsion 

designs for use in NASA, they will take 

advantage of current designs from which they 

can learn and measure. In an effort to obtain 

data to correlate pressure oscillation with the 

loads it can generate, the shuttle program is 

using two data systems to gather detailed 

information. Both systems are located on the 

top of the solid rocket motors inside the 

forward skirt. 

The Intelligent Pressure Transducer, or IPT, is 

a stand-alone pressure transducer with an 

internal data acquisition system that will record 

pressure data to an internal memory chip. The 

data will be downloaded to a computer after 

the booster has been recovered and returned to 

the Solid Rocket Booster Assembly and 

Refurbishment Facility at NASA’s Kennedy 

Space Center, Fla. This system has been used 

on numerous full-scale static test motors in 

Utah and will provide engineers with a 

common base to compare flight data to ground 

test data. 

The Enhanced Data Acquisition System, or 

EDAS, is a data acquisition system that will 

record pressure data from one of the Reusable 

Solid Rocket Booster Operational Pressure 

Transducers, or OPT, and from accelerometers 

and strain gauges placed on the forward skirt 

walls. These data will provide engineers with 

time-synchronized data that will allow them to 

determine the accelerations and loads that are 

transferred through the structure due to the 

pressure oscillation forces. 
JUNE 2009 EXPERIMENTS 85

Intelligent Pressure Transducer 

SHORT-DURATION U.S. INTEGRATED 

RESEARCH TO BE COMPLETED DURING 

STS-127/2JA (4) 

Atmospheric Neutral Density Experiment – 2 

(ANDE-2) consists of two microsatellites 

launched from the shuttle payload bay that will 

measure the density and composition of the 

Low-Earth Orbit (LEO) atmosphere while being 

tracked from the ground. The data will be used 

to better predict the movement and decay of 

objects in orbit. 

Dual RF Astrodynamic GPS Orbital Navigator 

Satellite (DRAGONSat) will demonstrate 

Autonomous Rendezvous and Docking (ARD) 

in LEO and gather flight data with a Global 

Positioning System (GPS) receiver strictly 

designed for space applications. ARD is the 

capability of two independent spacecraft to 

rendezvous in orbit and dock without crew 

intervention. DRAGONSat consists of two 

picosatellites (one built by the University of 

Texas and one built by Texas A&M University) 

and the Space Shuttle Payload Launcher (SSPL). 

Maui Analysis of Upper Atmospheric 

Injections (MAUI) will observe the space 

shuttle engine exhaust plumes from the Maui 

Space Surveillance Site in Hawaii. The 

observations will occur when the space shuttle 

fires its engines at night or twilight. A 

telescope and all-sky imagers will take images 

and data while the space shuttle flies over the 

Maui site. The images will be analyzed to 

better understand the interaction between the 
86 EXPERIMENTS JUNE 2009

spacecraft plume and the upper atmosphere of 

Earth. 

Shuttle Exhaust Ion Turbulence Experiments 

(SEITE) will use space-based sensors to detect 

the ionospheric turbulence inferred from the 

radar observations from a previous Space 

Shuttle Orbital Maneuvering System (OMS) 

burn experiment using ground-based radar. 

Shuttle Ionospheric Modification with Pulsed 

Localized Exhaust Experiments (SIMPLEX)

will investigate plasma turbulence driven by 

rocket exhaust in the ionosphere using groundbased radars. 

Samples Returning from Station on 

STS-127/2JA 

Bisphosphonates as a Countermeasure to 

Space Flight Induced Bone Loss 

(Bisphosphonates) will study the effectiveness 

of bisphosphonates (medications that block the 

breakdown of bone) used in conjunction with 

the routine in-flight exercise program to protect 

space station crew members from the regional 

decreases in bone mineral density documented 

on previous station missions. 

Long Term Microgravity: A Model for 

Investigating Mechanisms of Heart Disease 

with New Portable Equipment (Card) is a 

European Space Agency experiment that 

studies blood pressure decreases when the 

human body is exposed to microgravity. In 

order to increase the blood pressure to the level 

it was on Earth, salt is added to the crew 

members’ diet. To monitor this, blood pressure 

readings and urine samples are performed at 

different intervals during the mission. 

DomeGene Experiment (DomeGene) Two 

kinds of amphibian cultured cell lines are 

cultured in DomeGene as part of Japanese 

Aerospace Exploration Agency research. Cell 

lines derived from kidney and liver cells are 

used. They show different types of cell 

differentiation and morphogenesis. While 

they are cultured under microgravity, 

researchers observe the shape and state of the 

cells and examine the known and unknown 

gene expression by DNA array assay using 

fixed and frozen recovery sample. 

Validation of Procedures for Monitoring Crew 

Member Immune Function (Integrated 

Immune) will assess the clinical risks resulting 

from the adverse effects of spaceflight on the 

human immune system and will validate a 

flight-compatible immune monitoring strategy. 

Researchers will collect and analyze blood, 

urine and saliva samples from crew members 

before, during and after spaceflight to monitor 

changes in the immune system. Changes in the 

immune system will be monitored by collecting 

and analyzing blood and saliva samples from 

crew members during flight and blood, urine, 

and saliva samples before and after spaceflight. 

Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency – 

Commercial Payload Program (JAXACommercial) is a “to be determined” 

commercial investigation sponsored by the 

Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency. 

Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency – 

Education Payload Observation (JAXA-EPO)

aims to excite everyone’s interest in 

microgravity research. Activities will include 

educational events and artistic activities with 

astronauts in orbit. These Japan Aerospace 

Exploration Agency-sponsored artistic activities 

will enlighten the general public about 

microgravity research and human spaceflight. 
JUNE 2009 EXPERIMENTS 87

Study of Lower Back Pain in Crewmembers 

during Space Flight (Mus) is a European Space 

Agency Experiment that will study the details 

on development of lower back pain during 

flight in astronauts/cosmonauts. According to 

biomechanical model, strain on the ilio-lumbar 

ligaments increases with backward tilt of the 

pelvis combined with forward flexion of the 

spine. This is what astronauts may experience 

due to loss of curvature. The objective is to 

assess astronaut deep muscle corset atrophy in 

response to microgravity exposure. 

Nutritional Status Assessment (Nutrition) is 

the most comprehensive in-flight study done by 

NASA to date of human physiologic changes 

during long-duration spaceflight; this includes 

measures of bone metabolism, oxidative 

damage, nutritional assessments, and hormonal 

changes. This study will affect both the 

definition of nutritional requirements and 

development of food systems for future space 

exploration missions to the moon and Mars. 

This experiment also will help to understand 

the impact of countermeasures (exercise and 

pharmaceuticals) on nutritional status and 

nutrient requirements for astronauts. 

Protein Crystallization Diagnostics Facility 

(PCDF) is a multi-user European Space Agency 

facility for the investigation of protein 

crystal growth and other biological macromolecules under microgravity. Crystallization 

experiments using the dialysis or the batch 

method can be performed. PCDF is designed 

for accommodation in the European Drawer 

Rack (EDR) on the station. 

NASA Biological Specimen Repository 

(Repository) is a storage bank that is used to 

maintain biological specimens over extended 

periods of time and under well-controlled 

conditions. Biological samples from the 

International Space Station, including blood 

and urine, will be collected, processed and 

archived during the preflight, in-flight and 

post-flight phases of station missions. This 

investigation has been developed to archive 

biosamples for use as a resource for future 

spaceflight-related research. 

Sleep-Wake Actigraphy and Light Exposure 

during Spaceflight – Long (Sleep-Long)

examines the effects of spaceflight and ambient 

light exposure on the sleep-wake cycles of the 

crew members during long-duration stays on 

the space station. This experiment uses stateof-the-art ambulatory technology to monitor 

sleep-wake activity patterns and light exposure 

in crew members. Subjects will wear a small, 

light-weight activity and light recording device 

(Actiwatch) for the entire duration of their 

mission and record data in log books. 

SOdium LOading in Microgravity (SOLO) is a 

continuation of extensive research into the 

mechanisms of fluid and salt retention in the 

body during bed rest and spaceflights. During 

long-term space missions astronauts will 

participate in two metabolically controlled 

study phases, five days each. Subjects follow a 

diet of constant either low or normal sodium 

intake, fairly high fluid consumption and 

isocaloric nutrition. 

Mental Representation of Spatial Cues during 

Space Flight (3D-Space) is a European Space 

Agency investigation into the effects of 

exposure to microgravity on the mental 

representation of spatial cues by astronauts 

during and after spaceflight. The absence of 

the gravitational frame of reference during 

spaceflight could be responsible for 

disturbances in the mental representation of 
88 EXPERIMENTS JUNE 2009

spatial cues, such as the perception of 

horizontal and vertical lines, the perception of 

objects’ depth, and the perception of targets’ 

distance. 

Experiments Being Delivered to the 

Station on STS-127/2JA 

Dose Distribution Inside ISS – Dosimetry for 

Biological Experiments in Space (DOSISDOBIES) consists of two European Space 

Agency investigations. The DOSIS portion of 

the experiment will provide documentation of 

the actual nature and distribution of the 

radiation field inside the spacecraft. Integral 

measurements of energy, charge and spectra of 

the heavy ion component will be done by the 

use of different nuclear track detectors. The 

objective of DOBIES is to develop a standard 

dosimetric method (as a combination of 

different techniques) to measure the absorbed 

doses and equivalent doses in biological 

samples. 

Validation of Procedures for Monitoring Crew 

Member Immune Function (Integrated 

Immune) will assess the clinical risks resulting 

from the adverse effects of spaceflight on the 

human immune system and will validate a 

flight-compatible immune monitoring strategy. 

Researchers collect and analyze blood, urine 

and saliva samples from crew members before, 

during and after spaceflight to monitor changes 

in the immune system. 

IRIS (Image Reversal in Space) is a Canadian 

Space Agency experiment that will investigate 

whether the perception of three-dimensional 

ambiguous figures is affected when the 

observer is in a reduced gravity environment. 

Nutritional Status Assessment (Nutrition) is 

the most comprehensive in-flight study done by 

NASA to date of human physiologic changes 

during long-duration spaceflight; this includes 

measures of bone metabolism, oxidative 

damage, nutritional assessments, and hormonal 

changes. This study will impact both the 

definition of nutritional requirements and 

development of food systems for future space 

exploration missions to the moon and Mars. 

This experiment also will help to understand 

the effect of countermeasures (exercise and 

pharmaceuticals) on nutritional status and 

nutrient requirements for astronauts. 

NASA Biological Specimen Repository 

(Repository) is a storage bank that is used to 

maintain biological specimens over extended 

periods of time and under well-controlled 

conditions. Samples from the International 

Space Station, including blood and urine, will 

be collected, processed and archived during the 

preflight, in-flight and post-flight phases of 

the space station missions. This investigation 

has been developed to archive biosamples for 

use as a resource for future spaceflight-related 

research. 

Tomatosphere-II is a Canadian Space Agency 

experiment that will send tomato seeds to the 

station for exposure. The seeds will be returned 

to Earth for use in classrooms throughout 

Canada as a learning resource. 
SHUTTLE REFERENCE DATA 

JUNE 2009 SHUTTLE REFERENCE DATA 89

SHUTTLE ABORT MODES 

Redundant Sequence Launch Sequencer 

(RSLS) Aborts 

These occur when the on-board shuttle 

computers detect a problem and command a 

halt in the launch sequence after taking over 

from the ground launch sequencer and before 

solid rocket booster ignition. 

Ascent Aborts 

Selection of an ascent abort mode may become 

necessary if there is a failure that affects vehicle 

performance, such as the failure of a space 

shuttle main engine or an orbital maneuvering 

system engine. Other failures requiring early 

termination of a flight, such as a cabin leak, 

might also require the selection of an abort 

mode. There are two basic types of ascent abort 

modes for space shuttle missions: intact aborts 

and contingency aborts. Intact aborts are 

designed to provide a safe return of the orbiter 

to a planned landing site. Contingency aborts 

are designed to permit flight crew survival 

following more severe failures when an intact 

abort is not possible. A contingency abort 

would generally result in a ditch operation. 

Intact Aborts 

There are four types of intact aborts: abort to 

orbit (ATO), abort once around (AOA), 

transoceanic abort landing (TAL) and return to 

launch site (RTLS). 

Return to Launch Site 

The RTLS abort mode is designed to allow the 

return of the orbiter, crew, and payload to the 

launch site, KSC, approximately 25 minutes 

after liftoff. 

The RTLS profile is designed to accommodate 

the loss of thrust from one space shuttle main 

engine between liftoff and approximately 

four minutes 20 seconds, after which not 

enough main propulsion system propellant 

remains to return to the launch site. An RTLS 

can be considered to consist of three stages – a 

powered stage, during which the space shuttle 

main engines are still thrusting; an external 

tank separation phase; and the glide phase, 

during which the orbiter glides to a landing at 

the KSC. The powered RTLS phase begins with 

the crew selection of the RTLS abort, after solid 

rocket booster separation. The crew selects the 

abort mode by positioning the abort rotary 

switch to RTLS and depressing the abort push 

button. The time at which the RTLS is selected 

depends on the reason for the abort. For 

example, a three-engine RTLS is selected at the 

last moment, about 3 minutes, 34 seconds into 

the mission; whereas an RTLS chosen due to an 

engine out at liftoff is selected at the earliest 

time, about 2 minutes, 20 seconds into the 

mission (after solid rocket booster separation). 

After RTLS is selected, the vehicle continues 

downrange to dissipate excess main propulsion 

system propellant. The goal is to leave only 

enough main propulsion system propellant to 

be able to turn the vehicle around, fly back 

toward the KSC and achieve the proper main 

engine cutoff conditions so the vehicle can glide 

to the KSC after external tank separation. 

During the downrange phase, a pitch-around 

maneuver is initiated (the time depends in part 

on the time of a space shuttle main engine 
90 SHUTTLE REFERENCE DATA JUNE 2009

failure) to orient the orbiter/external tank 

configuration to a heads-up attitude, pointing 

toward the launch site. At this time, the vehicle 

is still moving away from the launch site, but 

the space shuttle main engines are now 

thrusting to null the downrange velocity. In 

addition, excess orbital maneuvering system 

and reaction control system propellants are 

dumped by continuous orbital maneuvering 

system and reaction control system engine 

thrustings to improve the orbiter weight and 

center of gravity for the glide phase and 

landing. 

The vehicle will reach the desired main engine 

cutoff point with less than 2 percent excess 

propellant remaining in the external tank. At 

main engine cutoff minus 20 seconds, a pitch 

down maneuver (called powered pitch-down) 

takes the mated vehicle to the required external 

tank separation attitude and pitch rate. After 

main engine cutoff has been commanded, the 

external tank separation sequence begins, 

including a reaction control system maneuver 

that ensures that the orbiter does not recontact 

the external tank and that the orbiter has 

achieved the necessary pitch attitude to begin 

the glide phase of the RTLS. 

After the reaction control system maneuver has 

been completed, the glide phase of the RTLS 

begins. From then on, the RTLS is handled 

similarly to a normal entry. 

Transoceanic Abort Landing 

The TAL abort mode was developed to 

improve the options available when a space 

shuttle main engine fails after the last RTLS 

opportunity but before the first time that an 

AOA can be accomplished with only two space 

shuttle main engines or when a major orbiter 

system failure, for example, a large cabin 

pressure leak or cooling system failure, occurs 

after the last RTLS opportunity, making it 

imperative to land as quickly as possible. 

In a TAL abort, the vehicle continues on a 

ballistic trajectory across the Atlantic Ocean to 

land at a predetermined runway. Landing 

occurs about 45 minutes after launch. The 

landing site is selected near the normal ascent 

ground track of the orbiter to make the most 

efficient use of space shuttle main engine 

propellant. The landing site also must have the 

necessary runway length, weather conditions 

and U.S. State Department approval. The three 

landing sites that have been identified for a 

launch are Zaragoza, Spain; Moron, Spain; and 

Istres, France. 

To select the TAL abort mode, the crew must 

place the abort rotary switch in the TAL/AOA 

position and depress the abort push button 

before main engine cutoff (depressing it after 

main engine cutoff selects the AOA abort 

mode). The TAL abort mode begins sending 

commands to steer the vehicle toward the plane 

of the landing site. It also rolls the vehicle 

heads up before main engine cutoff and sends 

commands to begin an orbital maneuvering 

system propellant dump (by burning the 

propellants through the orbital maneuvering 

system engines and the reaction control system 

engines). This dump is necessary to increase 

vehicle performance (by decreasing weight) to 

place the center of gravity in the proper place 

for vehicle control and to decrease the vehicle’s 

landing weight. TAL is handled like a normal 

entry. 

Abort to Orbit 

An ATO is an abort mode used to boost the 

orbiter to a safe orbital altitude when 

performance has been lost and it is impossible 
JUNE 2009 SHUTTLE REFERENCE DATA 91

to reach the planned orbital altitude. If a space 

shuttle main engine fails in a region that results 

in a main engine cutoff under speed, the MCC 

will determine that an abort mode is necessary 

and will inform the crew. The orbital 

maneuvering system engines would be used to 

place the orbiter in a circular orbit. 

Abort Once Around 

The AOA abort mode is used in cases in which 

vehicle performance has been lost to such an 

extent that either it is impossible to achieve a 

viable orbit or not enough orbital maneuvering 

system propellant is available to accomplish the 

orbital maneuvering system thrusting 

maneuver to place the orbiter on orbit and the 

deorbit thrusting maneuver. In addition, an 

AOA is used in cases in which a major systems 

problem (cabin leak, loss of cooling) makes it 

necessary to land quickly. In the AOA abort 

mode, one orbital maneuvering system 

thrusting sequence is made to adjust the 

post-main engine cutoff orbit so a second 

orbital maneuvering system thrusting sequence 

will result in the vehicle deorbiting and landing 

at the AOA landing site (White Sands, N.M.; 

Edwards Air Force Base, Calif.; or the Kennedy 

Space Center, Fla). Thus, an AOA results in the 

orbiter circling the Earth once and landing 

about 90 minutes after liftoff. 

After the deorbit thrusting sequence has been 

executed, the flight crew flies to a landing at the 

planned site much as it would for a nominal 

entry. 

Contingency Aborts 

Contingency aborts are caused by loss of more 

than one main engine or failures in other 

systems. Loss of one main engine while 

another is stuck at a low thrust setting also may 

necessitate a contingency abort. Such an abort 

would maintain orbiter integrity for in-flight 

crew escape if a landing cannot be achieved at a 

suitable landing field. 

Contingency aborts due to system failures other 

than those involving the main engines would 

normally result in an intact recovery of vehicle 

and crew. Loss of more than one main engine 

may, depending on engine failure times, result 

in a safe runway landing. However, in most 

three-engine-out cases during ascent, the 

orbiter would have to be ditched. The inflight 

crew escape system would be used before 

ditching the orbiter. 

Abort Decisions 

There is a definite order of preference for the 

various abort modes. The type of failure and the 

time of the failure determine which type of abort 

is selected. In cases where performance loss is 

the only factor, the preferred modes are ATO, 

AOA, TAL and RTLS, in that order. The mode 

chosen is the highest one that can be completed 

with the remaining vehicle performance. 

In the case of some support system failures, 

such as cabin leaks or vehicle cooling problems, 

the preferred mode might be the one that will 

end the mission most quickly. In these cases, 

TAL or RTLS might be preferable to AOA or 

ATO. A contingency abort is never chosen if 

another abort option exists. 

Mission Control Houston is prime for calling 

these aborts because it has a more precise 

knowledge of the orbiter’s position than the 

crew can obtain from on-board systems. Before 

main engine cutoff, Mission Control makes 

periodic calls to the crew to identify which 

abort mode is (or is not) available. If ground 

communications are lost, the flight crew has 
92 SHUTTLE REFERENCE DATA JUNE 2009

onboard methods, such as cue cards, dedicated 

displays and display information, to determine 

the abort region. Which abort mode is selected 

depends on the cause and timing of the failure 

causing the abort and which mode is safest or 

improves mission success. If the problem is a 

space shuttle main engine failure, the flight 

crew and Mission Control Center select the best 

option available at the time a main engine fails. 

If the problem is a system failure that 

jeopardizes the vehicle, the fastest abort mode 

that results in the earliest vehicle landing is 

chosen. RTLS and TAL are the quickest options 

(35 minutes), whereas an AOA requires about 

90 minutes. Which of these is selected depends 

on the time of the failure with three good space 

shuttle main engines. 

The flight crew selects the abort mode by 

positioning an abort mode switch and 

depressing an abort push button. 

SHUTTLE ABORT HISTORY 

RSLS Abort History 

(STS-41 D) June 26, 1984 

The countdown for the second launch attempt 

for Discovery’s maiden flight ended at T-4 

seconds when the orbiter’s computers detected 

a sluggish valve in main engine No. 3. The 

main engine was replaced and Discovery was 

finally launched on Aug. 30, 1984. 

(STS-51 F) July 12, 1985 

The countdown for Challenger’s launch was 

halted at T-3 seconds when onboard computers 

detected a problem with a coolant valve on 

main engine No. 2. The valve was replaced and 

Challenger was launched on July 29, 1985. 

(STS-55) March 22, 1993 

The countdown for Columbia’s launch was 

halted by onboard computers at T-3 seconds 

following a problem with purge pressure 

readings in the oxidizer preburner on main 

engine No. 2. Columbia’s three main engines 

were replaced on the launch pad, and the flight 

was rescheduled behind Discovery’s launch 

on STS-56. Columbia finally launched on 

April 26, 1993. 

(STS-51) Aug. 12, 1993 

The countdown for Discovery’s third launch 

attempt ended at the T-3 second mark when 

onboard computers detected the failure of one 

of four sensors in main engine No. 2 which 

monitor the flow of hydrogen fuel to the 

engine. All of Discovery’s main engines were 

ordered replaced on the launch pad, delaying 

the shuttle’s fourth launch attempt until Sept. 

12, 1993. 

(STS-68) Aug. 18, 1994 

The countdown for Endeavour’s first launch 

attempt ended 1.9 seconds before liftoff when 

onboard computers detected higher than 

acceptable readings in one channel of a sensor 

monitoring the discharge temperature of the 

high pressure oxidizer turbopump in main 

engine No. 3. A test firing of the engine at the 

Stennis Space Center in Mississippi on 

September 2nd confirmed that a slight drift in a 

fuel flow meter in the engine caused a slight 

increase in the turbopump’s temperature. The 

test firing also confirmed a slightly slower start 

for main engine No. 3 during the pad abort, 

which could have contributed to the higher 

temperatures. After Endeavour was brought 

back to the Vehicle Assembly Building to be 

outfitted with three replacement engines, 
JUNE 2009 SHUTTLE REFERENCE DATA 93

NASA managers set Oct. 2 as the date for 

Endeavour’s second launch attempt. 

Abort to Orbit History 

(STS-51 F) July 29, 1985 

After an RSLS abort on July 12, 1985, 

Challenger was launched on July 29, 1985. 

Five minutes and 45 seconds after launch, a 

sensor problem resulted in the shutdown of 

center engine No. 1, resulting in a safe “abort to 

orbit” and successful completion of the mission. 

SPACE SHUTTLE MAIN ENGINES 

Developed in the 1970s by NASA’s Marshall 

Space Flight Center, MSFC in Huntsville, Ala., 

the space shuttle main engine is the most 

advanced liquid-fueled rocket engine ever built. 

Every space shuttle main engine is tested and 

proven flight worthy at NASA’s Stennis Space 

Center in south Mississippi, before installation 

on an orbiter. Its main features include variable 

thrust, high performance reusability, high 

redundancy and a fully integrated engine 

controller. 

The shuttle’s three main engines are mounted 

on the orbiter aft fuselage in a triangular 

pattern. Spaced so that they are movable 

during launch, the engines are used, in 

conjunction with the solid rocket boosters, to 

steer the shuttle vehicle. 

Each of these powerful main engines is 14 feet 

long, weighs about 7,000 pounds and is 7.5 feet 

in diameter at the end of its nozzle. 

The engines operate for about 8.5 minutes 

during liftoff and ascent, burning more than 

500,000 gallons of super-cold liquid hydrogen 

and liquid oxygen propellants stored in the 

external tank attached to the underside of the 

shuttle. The engines shut down just before the 

shuttle, traveling at about 17,000 miles per 

hour, reaches orbit. 

The main engine operates at greater 

temperature extremes than any mechanical 

system in common use today. The fuel, 

liquefied hydrogen at -423 degrees Fahrenheit, 

is the second coldest liquid on Earth. When it 

and the liquid oxygen are combusted, the 

temperature in the main combustion chamber is 

6,000 degrees Fahrenheit, hotter than the 

boiling point of iron. 

The main engines use a staged combustion 

cycle so that all propellants entering the engines 

are used to produce thrust, or power, more 

efficiently than any previous rocket engine. In 

a staged combustion cycle, propellants are first 

burned partially at high pressure and relatively 

low temperature, and then burned completely 

at high temperature and pressure in the main 

combustion chamber. The rapid mixing of the 

propellants under these conditions is so 

complete that 99 percent of the fuel is burned. 

At normal operating level, each engine 

generates 490,847 pounds of thrust, measured 

in a vacuum. Full power is 512,900 pounds of 

thrust; minimum power is 316,100 pounds of 

thrust. 

The engine can be throttled by varying the 

output of the preburners, thus varying the 

speed of the high-pressure turbopumps and, 

therefore, the flow of the propellant. 

At about 26 seconds into ascent, the main 

engines are throttled down to 316,000 pounds 

of thrust to keep the dynamic pressure on the 

vehicle below a specified level, about 

580 pounds per square foot, known as max q. 

Then, the engines are throttled back up to 
94 SHUTTLE REFERENCE DATA JUNE 2009

normal operating level at about 60 seconds. 

This reduces stress on the vehicle. The main 

engines are throttled down again at about 

seven minutes, 40 seconds into the mission to 

maintain three g’s, three times the Earth’s 

gravitational pull, reducing stress on the crew 

and the vehicle. This acceleration level is about 

one-third the acceleration experienced on 

previous crewed space vehicles. 

About 10 seconds before main engine cutoff, or 

MECO, the cutoff sequence begins. About 

three seconds later the main engines are 

commanded to begin throttling at 10 percent 

thrust per second until they achieve 65 percent 

thrust. This is held for about 6.7 seconds, and 

the engines are shut down. 

The engine performance has the highest thrust 

for its weight of any engine yet developed. In 

fact, one space shuttle main engine generates 

sufficient thrust to maintain the flight of two 

and one-half Boeing 747 airplanes. 

The space shuttle main engine also is the first 

rocket engine to use a built-in electronic digital 

controller, or computer. The controller accepts 

commands from the orbiter for engine start, 

change in throttle, shutdown and monitoring of 

engine operation. 

NASA continues to increase the reliability and 

safety of shuttle flights through a series of 

enhancements to the space shuttle main 

engines. The engines were modified in 1988, 

1995, 1998, 2001 and 2007. Modifications 

include new high-pressure fuel and oxidizer 

turbopumps that reduce maintenance and 

operating costs of the engine, a two-duct 

powerhead that reduces pressure and 

turbulence in the engine, and a single-coil heat 

exchanger that lowers the number of post flight 

inspections required. Another modification 

incorporates a large-throat main combustion 

chamber that improves the engine’s reliability 

by reducing pressure and temperature in the 

chamber. 

The most recent engine enhancement is the 

Advanced Health Management System, or 

AHMS, which made its first flight in 2007. 

AHMS is a controller upgrade that provides 

new monitoring and insight into the health of 

the two most complex components of the space 

shuttle main engine—the high pressure fuel 

turbopump and the high pressure oxidizer 

turbopump. New advanced digital signal 

processors monitor engine vibration and have 

the ability to shut down an engine if vibration 

exceeds safe limits. AHMS was developed by 

engineers at Marshall. 

After the orbiter lands, the engines are removed 

and returned to a processing facility at 

Kennedy Space Center, Fla., where they are 

rechecked and readied for the next flight. Some 

components are returned to the main engine’s 

prime contractor, Pratt & Whitney Rocketdyne, 

West Palm Beach, Fla., for regular maintenance. 

The main engines are designed to operate for 

7.5 accumulated hours. 

SPACE SHUTTLE SOLID ROCKET 

BOOSTERS (SRB) 

The two solid rocket boosters required for a 

space shuttle launch and first two minutes 

of powered flight boast the largest 

solid-propellant motors ever flown. They are 

the first large rockets designed for reuse and 

are the only solid rocket motors rated for 

human flight. The SRBs have the capacity to 

carry the entire weight of the external tank, or 

ET, and orbiter, and to transmit the weight load 
JUNE 2009 SHUTTLE REFERENCE DATA 95

through their structure to the mobile launch 

platform, or MLP.

The SRBs provide 71.4 percent of the thrust 

required to lift the space shuttle off the launch 

pad and during first-stage ascent to an altitude 

of about 150,000 feet, or 28 miles. At launch, 

each booster has a sea level thrust of 

approximately 3.3 million pounds and is 

ignited after the ignition and verification of the 

three space shuttle main engines, or SSMEs. 

SRB apogee occurs at an altitude of about 

230,000 feet, or 43 miles, 75 seconds after 

separation from the main vehicle. At booster 

separation, the space shuttle orbiter has reached 

an altitude of 24 miles and is traveling at a 

speed in excess of 3,000 miles per hour. 

The primary elements of each booster are nose 

cap, housing the pilot and drogue parachute; 

frustum, housing the three main parachutes in 

a cluster; forward skirt, housing the booster 

flight avionics, altitude sensing, recovery 

avionics, parachute cameras and range safety 

destruct system; four motor segments, 

containing the solid propellant; motor nozzle; 

and aft skirt, housing the nozzle and thrust 

vector control systems required for guidance. 

Each SRB possesses its own redundant 

auxiliary power units and hydraulic pumps. 

SRB impact occurs in the ocean approximately 

140 miles downrange. SRB retrieval is 

provided after each flight by specifically 

designed and built ships. The frustums, 

drogue and main parachutes are loaded onto 

the ships along with the boosters and towed 

back to the Kennedy Space Center, where they 

are disassembled and refurbished for reuse. 

Before retirement, each booster can be used as 

many as 20 times. 

Each booster is just over 149 feet long and 

12.17 feet in diameter. Both boosters have a 

combined weight of 1,303,314 pounds at lift-off. 

They are attached to the ET at the SRB aft attach 

ring by an upper and lower attach strut and a 

diagonal attach strut. The forward end of each 

SRB is affixed to the ET by one attach bolt and 

ET ball fitting on the forward skirt. While 

positioned on the launch pad, the space shuttle 

is attached to the MLP by four bolts and 

explosive nuts equally spaced around each SRB. 

After ignition of the solid rocket motors, the 

nuts are severed by small explosives that allow 

the space shuttle vehicle to perform lift off. 

United Space Alliance (USA) 

USA, at KSC facilities, is responsible for all SRB 

operations except the motor and nozzle 

portions. In conjunction with maintaining 

sole responsibility for manufacturing and 

processing of the non-motor hardware and 

vehicle integration, USA provides the service 

of retrieval, post flight inspection and 

analysis, disassembly and refurbishment of the 

hardware. USA also exclusively retains 

comprehensive responsibility for the orbiter. 

The reusable solid rocket motor segments are 

shipped from ATK Launch Systems in Utah to 

KSC, where they are mated by USA personnel 

to the other structural components – the 

forward assembly, aft skirt, frustum and nose 

cap – in the Vehicle Assembly Building. Work 

involves the complete disassembly and 

refurbishment of the major SRB structures – the 

aft skirts, frustums, forward skirts and all 

ancillary hardware – required to complete an 

SRB stack and mate to the ET. Work then 

proceeds to ET/SRB mate, mate with the orbiter 

and finally, space shuttle close out operations. 

After hardware restoration concerning flight 
96 SHUTTLE REFERENCE DATA JUNE 2009

configuration is complete, automated checkout 

and hot fire are performed early in hardware 

flow to ensure that the refurbished components 

satisfy all flight performance requirements. 

ATK Launch Systems (ATK) 

ATK Launch Systems of Brigham City, Utah, 

manufactures space shuttle reusable solid 

rocket motors, or RSRMs, at their Utah facility. 

Each RSRM – just over 126 feet long and 12 feet 

in diameter – consists of four rocket motor 

segments and an aft exit cone assembly is. 

From ignition to end of burn, each RSRM 

generates an average thrust of 2.6 million 

pounds and burns for approximately 

123 seconds. Of the motor's total weight of 

1.25 million pounds, propellant accounts for 

1.1 million pounds. The four motor segments 

are matched by loading each from the same 

batches of propellant ingredients to minimize 

any thrust imbalance. The segmented casing 

design assures maximum flexibility in 

fabrication and ease of transportation and 

handling. Each segment is shipped to KSC on a 

heavy-duty rail car with a specialty built cover. 

SRB Hardware Design Summary 

Hold-Down Posts 

Each SRB has four hold-down posts that fit into 

corresponding support posts on the MLP. 

Hold-down bolts secure the SRB and MLP posts 

together. Each bolt has a nut at each end, but 

the top nut is frangible, or breakable. The top 

nut contains two NASA Standard detonators, 

or NSDs, that, when ignited at solid rocket 

motor ignition command, split the upper nut in 

half. 

Splitting the upper nuts allow the hold-down 

bolts to be released and travel downward 

because of NSD gas pressure, gravity and the 

release of tension in the bolt, which is 

pretensioned before launch. The bolt is 

stopped by the stud deceleration stand which 

contains sand to absorb the shock of the bolt 

dropping down several feet. The SRB bolt is 

28 inches long, 3.5 inches in diameter and 

weighs approximately 90 pounds. The 

frangible nut is captured in a blast container on 

the aft skirt specifically designed to absorb the 

impact and prevent pieces of the nut from 

liberating and becoming debris that could 

damage the space shuttle. 

Integrated Electronic Assembly (IEA) 

The aft IEA, mounted in the ET/SRB attach ring, 

provides the electrical interface between the 

SRB systems and the obiter. The aft IEA 

receives data, commands, and electrical power 

from the orbiter and distributes these inputs 

throughout each SRB. Components located in 

the forward assemblies of each SRB are 

powered by the aft IEA through the forward 

IEA, except for those utilizing the recovery and 

range safety batteries located in the forward 

assemblies. The forward IEA communicates 

with and receives power from the orbiter 

through the aft IEA, but has no direct electrical 

connection to the orbiter. 

Electrical Power Distribution 

Electrical power distribution in each SRB 

consists of orbiter-supplied main dc bus power 

to each SRB via SRB buses A, B and C. Orbiter 

main dc buses A, B and C supply main dc bus 

power to corresponding SRB buses A, B and C. 

In addition, orbiter main dc, bus C supplies 

backup power to SRB buses A and B, and 

orbiter bus B supplies backup power to SRB 

bus C. This electrical power distribution 
JUNE 2009 SHUTTLE REFERENCE DATA 97

arrangement allows all SRB buses to remain 

powered in the event one orbiter main bus fails. 

The nominal dc voltage is 28 V dc, with an 

upper limit of 32 V dc and a lower limit of 

24 V dc. 

Hydraulic Power Units (HPUs) 

There are two self-contained, independent 

HPUs on each SRB. Each HPU consists of an 

auxiliary power unit, or APU; Fuel Supply 

Module, or FSM; hydraulic pump; hydraulic 

reservoir; and hydraulic fluid manifold 

assembly. The APUs are fueled by hydrazine 

and generate mechanical shaft power to a 

hydraulic pump that produces hydraulic 

pressure for the SRB hydraulic system. The 

APU controller electronics are located in the 

SRB aft integrated electronic assemblies on the 

aft ET attach rings. The two separate HPUs 

and two hydraulic systems are located inside 

the aft skirt of each SRB between the SRB 

nozzle and skirt. The HPU components are 

mounted on the aft skirt between the rock and 

tilt actuators. The two systems operate from 

T minus 28 seconds until SRB separation from 

the orbiter and ET. The two independent 

hydraulic systems are connected to the rock 

and tilt servoactuators. 

The HPUs and their fuel systems are isolated 

from each other. Each fuel supply module, or 

tank, contains 22 pounds of hydrazine. The 

fuel tank is pressurized with gaseous nitrogen 

at 400 psi to provide the force to expel via 

positive expulsion the fuel from the tank to the 

fuel distribution line. A positive fuel supply to 

the APU throughout its operation is 

maintained. 

The fuel isolation valve is opened at APU 

startup to allow fuel to flow to the APU fuel 

pump and control valves and then to the gas 

generator. The gas generator’s catalytic action 

decomposes the fuel and creates a hot gas. It 

feeds the hot gas exhaust product to the APU 

two-stage gas turbine. Fuel flows primarily 

through the startup bypass line until the APU 

speed is such that the fuel pump outlet pressure 

is greater than the bypass line’s, at which point 

all the fuel is supplied to the fuel pump. 

The APU turbine assembly provides 

mechanical power to the APU gearbox, which 

drives the APU fuel pump, hydraulic pump 

and lube oil pump. The APU lube oil pump 

lubricates the gearbox. The turbine exhaust of 

each APU flows over the exterior of the gas 

generator, cooling it and directing it overboard 

through an exhaust duct. 

When the APU speed reaches 100 percent, the 

APU primary control valve closes and the 

APU speed is controlled by the APU controller 

electronics. If the primary control valve logic 

fails to the open state, the secondary control 

valve assumes control of the APU at 

112 percent speed. Each HPU on an SRB is 

connected to both servoactuators. One HPU 

serves as the primary hydraulic source for the 

servoactuator and the other HPU serves as the 

secondary hydraulics for the servoactuator. 

Each servoactuator has a switching valve that 

allows the secondary hydraulics to power the 

actuator if the primary hydraulic pressure 

drops below 2,050 psi. A switch contact on the 

switching valve will close when the valve is in 

the secondary position. When the valve is 

closed, a signal is sent to the APU controller 

that inhibits the 100 percent APU speed control 

logic and enables the 112 percent APU speed 

control logic. The 100 percent APU speed 

enables one APU/HPU to supply sufficient 
98 SHUTTLE REFERENCE DATA JUNE 2009

operating hydraulic pressure to both 

servoactuators of that SRB. 

The APU 100 percent speed corresponds to 

72,000 rpm, 110 percent to 79,200 rpm and 

112 percent to 80,640 rpm. 

The hydraulic pump speed is 3,600 rpm and 

supplies hydraulic pressure of 3,050, plus or 

minus 50 psi. A high-pressure relief valve 

provides overpressure protection to the 

hydraulic system and relieves at 3,750 psi. 

The APUs/HPUs and hydraulic systems are 

reusable for 20 missions. 

Thrust Vector Control (TVC) 

Each SRB has two hydraulic gimbal 

servoactuators: one for rock and one for tilt. 

The servoactuators provide the force and 

control to gimbal the nozzle for TVC. The 

all-axis gimbaling capability is 8 degrees. Each 

nozzle has a carbon cloth liner that erodes 

and chars during firing. The nozzle is a 

convergent-divergent, movable design in which 

an aft pivot-point flexible bearing is the 

gimbal mechanism. 

The space shuttle ascent TVC portion of the 

flight control system directs the thrust of the 

three SSMEs and the two SRB nozzles to control 

shuttle attitude and trajectory during liftoff and 

ascent. Commands from the guidance system 

are transmitted to the ascent TVC, or ATVC, 

drivers, which transmit signals proportional to 

the commands to each servoactuator of the 

main engines and SRBs. Four independent 

flight control system channels and four ATVC 

channels control six main engine and four 

SRB ATVC drivers, with each driver controlling 

one hydraulic port on each main and SRB 

servoactuator. 

Each SRB servoactuator consists of four 

independent, two-stage servovalves that 

receive signals from the drivers. Each 

servovalve controls one power spool in each 

actuator, which positions an actuator ram and 

the nozzle to control the direction of thrust. 

The four servovalves in each actuator provide a 

force-summed majority voting arrangement to 

position the power spool. With four identical 

commands to the four servovalves, the actuator 

force-sum action prevents a single erroneous 

command from affecting power ram motion. If 

the erroneous command persists for more than 

a predetermined time, differential pressure 

sensing activates a selector valve to isolate and 

remove the defective servovalve hydraulic 

pressure. This permits the remaining channels 

and servovalves to control the actuator ram 

spool. 

Failure monitors are provided for each channel 

to indicate which channel has been bypassed. 

An isolation valve on each channel provides the 

capability of resetting a failed or bypassed 

channel. 

Each actuator ram is equipped with transducers 

for position feedback to the thrust vector 

control system. Within each servoactuator ram 

is a splashdown load relief assembly to cushion 

the nozzle at water splashdown and prevent 

damage to the nozzle flexible bearing. 

SRB Rate Gyro Assemblies (RGAs) 

Each SRB contains two RGAs mounted in the 

forward skirt watertight compartment. Each 

RGA contains two orthogonally mounted 

gyroscopes – pitch and yaw axes. In 

conjunction with the orbiter roll rate gyros, they 

provide angular rate information that describes 

the inertial motion of the vehicle cluster to the 
JUNE 2009 SHUTTLE REFERENCE DATA 99

orbiter computers and the guidance, navigation 

and control system during first stage ascent 

to SRB separation. At SRB separation, all 

guidance control data is handed off from the 

SRB RGAs to the orbiter RGAs. The RGAs are 

designed and qualified for 20 missions. 

Propellant 

The propellant mixture in each SRB motor 

consists of ammonium perchlorate, an oxidizer, 

69.6 percent by weight; aluminum, a fuel, 

16 percent by weight; iron oxide, a catalyst, 

0.4 percent by weight; polymer, a binder that 

holds the mixture together, 12.04 percent by 

weight; and epoxy curing agent, 1.96 percent by 

weight. The propellant is an 11-point 

star-shaped perforation in the forward motor 

segment and a double truncated cone 

perforation in each of the aft segments and aft 

closure. This configuration provides high 

thrust at ignition and then reduces the thrust by 

about one-third 50 seconds after liftoff to 

prevent overstressing the vehicle during 

maximum dynamic pressure. 

SRB Ignition 

SRB ignition can occur only when a manual 

lock pin from each SRB safe and arm device has 

been removed by the ground crew during 

prelaunch activities. At T minus 5 minutes, the 

SRB safe and arm device is rotated to the arm 

position. The solid rocket motor ignition 

commands are issued when the three SSMEs 

are at or above 90 percent rated thrust; no 

SSME fail and/or SRB ignition pyrotechnic 

initiator controller, or PIC low voltage is 

indicated; and there are no holds from the 

launch processing system, or LPS. 

The solid rocket motor ignition commands are 

sent by the orbiter computers through the 

master events controllers, or MECs, to the 

NSDs installed in the safe and arm device in 

each SRB. A pyrotechnic initiation controller, 

or PIC, is a single-channel capacitor discharge 

device that controls the firing of each 

pyrotechnic device. Three signals must be 

present simultaneously for the PIC to generate 

the pyro firing output. These signals — arm, 

fire 1 and fire 2 — originate in the orbiter 

general-purpose computers and are transmitted 

to the MECs. The MECs reformat them to 

28 V dc signals for the PICs. The arm signal 

charges the PIC capacitor to 40 V dc, minimum 

20 V dc. 

The fire 2 commands cause the redundant 

NSDs to fire through a thin barrier seal down a 

flame tunnel. This ignites a pyro booster 

charge, which is retained in the safe and arm 

device behind a perforated plate. The booster 

charge ignites the propellant in the igniter 

initiator; and combustion products of this 

propellant ignite the solid rocket motor igniter, 

which fires down the length of the solid rocket 

motor igniting the solid rocket motor 

propellant. 

The general purpose computer, or GPC, launch 

sequence also controls certain critical main 

propulsion system valves and monitors the 

engine-ready indications from the SSMEs. The 

main propulsion system, or MPS, start 

commands are issued by the on-board 

computers at T minus 6.6 seconds. There is a 

staggered start — engine three, engine two, 

engine one — within 0.25 of a second, and the 

sequence monitors the thrust buildup of 

each engine. All three SSMEs must reach the 

required 90 percent thrust within three seconds; 

otherwise, an orderly shutdown is commanded 

and safing functions are initiated. 
100 SHUTTLE REFERENCE DATA JUNE 2009

Normal thrust buildup to the required 

90 percent thrust level will result in the SSMEs 

being commanded to the liftoff position at 

T minus 3 seconds as well as the fire 1 

command being issued to arm the SRBs. At 

T minus three seconds, the vehicle base 

bending load modes are allowed to initialize. 

At T minus 0, the two SRBs are ignited by the 

four orbiter on-board computers; commands 

are sent to release the SRBs; the two T-0 

umbilicals, one on each side of the spacecraft, 

are retracted; the on-board master timing unit, 

event timer and mission event timers are 

started; the three SSMEs are at 100 percent; and 

the ground launch sequence is terminated. 

SRB Separation 

The SRB/ET separation subsystem provides for 

separation of the SRBs from the orbiter/ET 

without damage to or recontact of the elements 

– SRBs, orbiter/ET – during or after separation 

for nominal modes. SRB separation is initiated 

when the three solid rocket motor chamber 

pressure transducers are processed in the 

redundancy management middle value select 

and the head end chamber pressure of both 

SRBs is less than or equal to 50 psi. A backup 

cue is the time elapsed from booster ignition. 

The separation sequence is initiated, 

commanding the thrust vector control actuators 

to the null position and putting the main 

propulsion system into a second-stage 

configuration 0.8 second from sequence 

initialization, which ensures the thrust of each 

SRB is less than 100,000 pounds. Orbiter yaw 

attitude is held for four seconds and SRB thrust 

drops to less than 60,000 pounds. The SRBs 

separate from the ET within 30 milliseconds of 

the ordnance firing command. 

The forward attachment point consists of a ball 

on the SRB and socket on the ET, held together 

by one bolt. The bolt contains one NSD 

pressure cartridge at each end. The forward 

attachment point also carries the range safety 

system cross-strap wiring connecting each SRB 

range safety system, or RSS, and the ET RSS 

with each other. 

The aft attachment points consist of three 

separate struts: upper, diagonal, and lower. 

Each strut contains one bolt with an NSD 

pressure cartridge at each end. The upper strut 

also carries the umbilical interface between its 

SRB and the external tank and on to the orbiter. 

Redesigned Booster Separation Motors (RBSM) 

Eight Booster Separation Motors, or BSMs, are 

located on each booster – four on the forward 

section and four on the aft skirt. BSMs provide 

the force required to push the SRBs away from 

the orbiter/ET at separation. Each BSM weighs 

approximately 165 pounds and is 31.1 inches 

long and 12.8 inches in diameter. Once the 

SRBs have completed their flight, the BSMs are 

fired to jettison the SRBs away from the orbiter 

and external tank, allowing the boosters to 

parachute to Earth and be reused. The BSMs in 

each cluster of four are ignited by firing 

redundant NSD pressure cartridges into 

redundant confined detonating fuse manifolds. 

The separation commands issued from the 

orbiter by the SRB separation sequence initiate 

the redundant NSD pressure cartridge in each 

bolt and ignite the BSMs to effect a clean 

separation. 

Redesigned BSMs flew for the first time in both 

forward and aft locations on STS-125. As a 

result of vendor viability and manifest support 

issues, space shuttle BSMs are now being 

manufactured by ATK. The igniter has been 
JUNE 2009 SHUTTLE REFERENCE DATA 101

redesigned and other changes include material 

upgrades driven by obsolescence issues and 

improvements to process and inspection 

techniques. 

SRB Cameras 

Each SRB flies with a complement of four 

cameras, three mounted for exterior views 

during launch, separation and descent; and one 

mounted internal to the forward dome for main 

parachute performance assessment during 

descent. 

The ET observation camera is mounted on the 

SRB forward skirt and provides a wide-angle 

view of the ET intertank area. The camera is 

activated at lift off by a G-switch and records 

for 350 seconds, after which the recorder is 

switched to a similar camera in the forward 

skirt dome to view the deployment and 

performance of the main parachutes to splash 

down. These cameras share a digital tape 

recorder located within the data acquisition 

system. 

The ET ring camera is mounted on the ET 

attach ring and provides a view up the stacked 

vehicle on the orbiter underside and the bipod 

strut attach point. 

The forward skirt camera is mounted on the 

external surface of the SRB forward skirt and 

provides a view aft down the stacked vehicle of 

the orbiter underside and the wing leading 

edge reinforced carbon-carbon, or RCC, panels. 

The ET attach ring camera and forward skirt 

camera are activated by a global positioning 

system command at approximately T minus 

1 minute 56 seconds to begin recording at 

approximately T minus 50 seconds. The camera 

images are recorded through splash down. 

These cameras each have a dedicated recorder 

and are recorded in a digital format. The 

cameras were designed, qualified, and 

implemented by USA after Columbia to 

provide enhanced imagery capabilities to 

capture potential debris liberation beginning 

with main engine start and continuing through 

SRB separation. 

The camera videos are available for engineering 

review approximately 24 hours following the 

arrival of the boosters at KSC. 

Range Safety Systems (RSS) 

The RSS consists of two antenna couplers; 

command receivers/decoders; a dual 

distributor; a safe and arm device with two 

NSDs; two confined detonating fuse manifolds; 

seven confined detonator fuse, or CDF 

assemblies; and one linear-shaped charge. 

The RSS provides for destruction of a rocket or 

part of it with on-board explosives by remote 

command if the rocket is out of control, to 

limit danger to people on the ground from 

crashing pieces, explosions, fire, and poisonous 

substances. 

The space shuttle has two RSSs, one in each 

SRB. Both are capable of receiving two 

command messages – arm and fire – which are 

transmitted from the ground station. The RSS 

is only used when the space shuttle violates a 

launch trajectory red line. 

The antenna couplers provide the proper 

impedance for radio frequency and ground 

support equipment commands. The command 

receivers are tuned to RSS command 

frequencies and provide the input signal to the 

distributors when an RSS command is sent. 

The command decoders use a code plug to 
102 SHUTTLE REFERENCE DATA JUNE 2009

prevent any command signal other than the 

proper command signal from getting into the 

distributors. The distributors contain the logic 

to supply valid destruct commands to the RSS 

pyrotechnics. 

The NSDs provide the spark to ignite the CDF 

that in turn ignites the linear shaped charge for 

space shuttle destruction. The safe and arm 

device provides mechanical isolation between 

the NSDs and the CDF before launch and 

during the SRB separation sequence. 

The first message, called arm, allows the 

onboard logic to enable a destruct and 

illuminates a light on the flight deck display 

and control panel at the commander and pilot 

station. The second message transmitted is the 

fire command. The SRB distributors in the 

SRBs are cross-strapped together. Thus, if one 

SRB received an arm or destruct signal, the 

signal would also be sent to the other SRB. 

Electrical power from the RSS battery in each 

SRB is routed to RSS system A. The recovery 

battery in each SRB is used to power RSS 

system B as well as the recovery system in the 

SRB. The SRB RSS is powered down during the 

separation sequence, and the SRB recovery 

system is powered up. 

Descent and Recovery 

After separation and at specified altitudes, the 

SRB forward avionics system initiates the 

release of the nose cap, which houses a pilot 

parachute and drogue parachute; and the 

frustum, which houses the three main 

parachutes. Jettison of the nose cap at 

15,700 feet deploys a small pilot parachute and 

begins to slow the SRB decent. At an altitude 

of 15,200 feet the pilot parachute pulls the 

drogue parachute from the frustum. The 

drogue parachute fully inflates in stages, and at 

5,500 feet pulls the frustum away from the SRB, 

which initiates the deployment of the three 

main parachutes. The parachutes also inflate in 

stages and further slow the decent of the SRBs 

to their final velocity at splashdown. The 

parachutes slow each SRB from 368 mph at first 

deployment to 52 mph at splashdown, allowing 

for the recovery and reuse of the boosters. 

Two 176-foot recovery ships, Freedom Star and 

Liberty Star, are on station at the splashdown 

zone to retrieve the frustums with drogue 

parachutes attached, the main parachutes and 

the SRBs. The SRB nose caps and solid rocket 

motor nozzle extensions are not recovered. The 

SRBs are dewatered using an enhanced diver 

operating plug to facilitate tow back. These 

plugs are inserted into the motor nozzle and 

air is pumped into the booster, causing it to 

lay flat in the water to allow it to be easily 

towed. The boosters are then towed back to 

the refurbishment facilities. Each booster is 

removed from the water and components are 

disassembled and washed with fresh and 

deionized water to limit saltwater corrosion. 

The motor segments, igniter and nozzle are 

shipped back to ATK in Utah for 

refurbishment. The nonmotor components and 

structures are disassembled by USA and are 

refurbished to like-new condition at both KSC 

and equipment manufacturers across the 

country. 

SPACE SHUTTLE SUPER LIGHT WEIGHT 

TANK (SLWT) 

The super lightweight external tank (SLWT) 

made its first shuttle flight June 2, 1998, on 

mission STS-91. The SLWT is 7,500 pounds 

lighter than the standard external tank. The 

lighter weight tank allows the shuttle to deliver 
JUNE 2009 SHUTTLE REFERENCE DATA 103

International Space Station elements (such as 

the service module) into the proper orbit. 

The SLWT is the same size as the previous 

design. But the liquid hydrogen tank and the 

liquid oxygen tank are made of aluminum 

lithium, a lighter, stronger material than the 

metal alloy used for the shuttle’s current tank. 

The tank’s structural design has also been 

improved, making it 30 percent stronger and 

5 percent less dense. 

The SLWT, like the standard tank, is 

manufactured at Michoud Assembly, near 

New Orleans, by Lockheed Martin. 

The 154-foot-long external tank is the largest 

single component of the space shuttle. It stands 

taller than a 15-story building and has a 

diameter of about 27 feet. The external tank 

holds over 530,000 gallons of liquid hydrogen 

and liquid oxygen in two separate tanks. The 

hydrogen (fuel) and liquid oxygen (oxidizer) 

are used as propellants for the shuttle’s three 

main engines. 

EXTERNAL TANK 

The 154-foot-long external tank is the largest 

single component of the space shuttle. It stands 

taller than a 15-story building and has a 

diameter of about 27 feet. The external tank 

holds more than 530,000 gallons of liquid 

hydrogen and liquid oxygen in two separate 

tanks, the forward liquid oxygen tank and the 

aft liquid hydrogen tank. An unpressurized 

intertank unites the two propellant tanks. 

Liquid hydrogen (fuel) and liquid oxygen 

(oxidizer) are used as propellants for the 

shuttle’s three main engines. The external tank 

weighs 58,500 pounds empty and 

1,668,500 pounds when filled with propellants. 

The external tank is the “backbone” of the 

shuttle during launch, providing structural 

support for attachment with the solid rocket 

boosters and orbiter. It is the only component 

of the shuttle that is not reused. Approximately 

8.5 minutes after reaching orbit, with its 

propellant used, the tank is jettisoned and falls 

in a preplanned trajectory. Most of the tank 

disintegrates in the atmosphere, and the 

remainder falls into the ocean. 

The external tank is manufactured at NASA’s 

Michoud Assembly Facility in New Orleans by 

Lockheed Martin Space Systems. 

Foam Facts 

The external tank is covered with spray-on 

foam insulation that insulates the tank before 

and during launch. More than 90 percent of the 

tank’s foam is applied using an automated 

system, leaving less than 10 percent to be 

applied manually. 

There are two types of foam on the external 

tank, known as the Thermal Protection System, 

or TPS. One is low-density, closed-cell foam on 

the tank acreage and is known as Spray-OnFoam-Insulation, often referred to by its 

acronym, SOFI. Most of the tank is covered by 

either an automated or manually applied SOFI. 

Most areas around protuberances, such as 

brackets and structural elements, are applied by 

pouring foam ingredients into part-specific 

molds. The other is a denser composite 

material made of silicone resins and cork and 

called ablator. An ablator is a material that 

dissipates heat by eroding. It is used on areas 

of the external tank subjected to extreme heat, 

such as the aft dome near the engine exhaust, 

and remaining protuberances, such as the cable 

trays. These areas are exposed to extreme 

aerodynamic heating. 
104 SHUTTLE REFERENCE DATA JUNE 2009

Closed-cell foam used on the tank was 

developed to keep the propellants that fuel the 

shuttle’s three main engines at optimum 

temperature. It keeps the shuttle’s liquid 

hydrogen fuel at -423 degrees Fahrenheit 

and the liquid oxygen tank at near 

-297 degrees Fahrenheit, even as the tank sits 

under the hot Florida sun. At the same time, 

the foam prevents a buildup of ice on the 

outside of the tank. 

The foam insulation must be durable enough to 

endure a 180-day stay at the launch pad, 

withstand temperatures up to 115 degrees 

Fahrenheit, humidity as high as 100 percent, 

and resist sand, salt, fog, rain, solar radiation 

and even fungus. Then, during launch, the 

foam must tolerate temperatures as high as 

2,200 degrees Fahrenheit generated by 

aerodynamic friction and radiant heating from 

the 3,000 degrees Fahrenheit main engine 

plumes. Finally, when the external tank begins 

reentry into the Earth’s atmosphere about 

30 minutes after launch, the foam maintains the 

tank’s structural temperatures and allows it to 

safely disintegrate over a remote ocean location. 

Though the foam insulation on the majority of 

the tank is only 1-inch thick, it adds 

4,823 pounds to the tank’s weight. In the areas 

of the tank subjected to the highest heating, 

insulation is somewhat thicker, between 1.5 to 

3 inches thick. Though the foam’s density 

varies with the type, an average density is 

about 2.4 pounds per cubic foot. 

Application of the foam, whether automated by 

computer or hand-sprayed, is designed to meet 

NASA’s requirements for finish, thickness, 

roughness, density, strength and adhesion. As 

in most assembly production situations, the 

foam is applied in specially designed, 

environmentally controlled spray cells and 

applied in several phases, often over a period of 

several weeks. Before spraying, the foam’s raw 

material and mechanical properties are tested 

to ensure they meet NASA specifications. 

Multiple visual inspections of all foam surfaces 

are performed after the spraying is complete. 

Most of the foam is applied at NASA’s 

Michoud Assembly Facility in New Orleans 

when the tank is manufactured, including most 

of the “closeout” areas, or final areas applied. 

These closeouts are done either by hand 

pouring or manual spraying. Additional 

closeouts are completed once the tank reaches 

Kennedy Space Center, Fla. 

The super lightweight external tank, or SLWT, 

made its first shuttle flight in June 1998 on 

mission STS-91. The SLWT is 7,500 pounds 

lighter than previously flown tanks. The SLWT 

is the same size as the previous design, but the 

liquid hydrogen tank and the liquid oxygen 

tank are made of aluminum lithium, a lighter, 

stronger material than the metal alloy used 

previously. 

Beginning with the first Return to Flight 

mission, STS-114 in June 2005, several 

improvements were made to improve safety 

and flight reliability. 

Forward Bipod 

The external tank’s forward shuttle attach 

fitting, called the bipod, was redesigned to 

eliminate the large insulating foam ramps as a 

source of debris. Each external tank has two 

bipod fittings that connect the tank to the 

orbiter through the shuttle’s two forward 

attachment struts. Four rod heaters were 

placed below each forward bipod, replacing the 
JUNE 2009 SHUTTLE REFERENCE DATA 105

large insulated foam Protuberance Airload, or 

PAL, ramps. 

Liquid Hydrogen Tank & Liquid Oxygen 

Intertank Flange Closeouts 

The liquid hydrogen tank flange located at the 

bottom of the intertank and the liquid oxygen 

tank flange located at the top of the intertank 

provide joining mechanisms with the intertank. 

After each of these three component tanks, 

liquid oxygen, intertank and liquid hydrogen, 

are joined mechanically, the flanges at both 

ends are insulated with foam. An enhanced 

closeout, or finishing, procedure was added to 

improve foam application to the stringer, or 

intertank ribbing, and to the upper and lower 

area of both the liquid hydrogen and liquid 

oxygen intertank flanges. 

Liquid Oxygen Feedline Bellows 

The liquid oxygen feedline bellows were 

reshaped to include a “drip lip” that allows 

condensate moisture to run off and prevent 

freezing. A strip heater was added to the 

forward bellow to further reduce the potential 

of high density ice or frost formation. Joints on 

the liquid oxygen feedline assembly allow the 

feedline to move during installation and during 

liquid hydrogen tank fill. Because it must flex, 

it cannot be insulated with foam like the 

remainder of the tank. 

Other tank improvements include: 

Liquid Oxygen & Liquid Hydrogen 

Protuberance Airload (PAL) Ramps 

External tank ET-119, which flew on the second 

Return to Flight mission, STS-121, in July 2006, 

was the first tank to fly without PAL ramps 

along portions of the liquid oxygen and 

liquid hydrogen tanks. These PAL ramps were 

extensively studied and determined to not be 

necessary for their original purpose, which was 

to protect cable trays from aeroelastic instability 

during ascent. Extensive tests were conducted 

to verify the shuttle could fly safely without 

these particular PAL ramps. Extensions were 

added to the ice frost ramps for the pressline 

and cable tray brackets, where these PAL ramps 

were removed to make the geometry of the 

ramps consistent with other locations on 

the tank and thereby provide consistent 

aerodynamic flow. Nine extensions were 

added, six on the liquid hydrogen tank and 

three on the liquid oxygen tank. 

Engine Cutoff (ECO) Sensor Modification 

Beginning with STS-122, ET-125, which 

launched on Feb. 7, 2008, the ECO sensor 

system feed through connector on the liquid 

hydrogen tank was modified by soldering the 

connector’s pins and sockets to address false 

readings in the system. All subsequent tanks 

after ET-125 have the same modification. 

Liquid Hydrogen Tank Ice Frost Ramps 

ET-128, which flew on the STS-124 shuttle 

mission, May 31, 2008, was the first tank to fly 

with redesigned liquid hydrogen tank ice frost 

ramps. Design changes were incorporated at 

all 17 ice frost ramp locations on the liquid 

hydrogen tank, stations 1151 through 2057, to 

reduce foam loss. Although the redesigned 

ramps appear identical to the previous design, 

several changes were made. PDL* and NCFI 

foam have been replaced with BX* manual 

spray foam in the ramp’s base cutout to reduce 

debonding and cracking; Pressline and cable 

tray bracket feet corners have been rounded to 

reduce stresses; shear pin holes have been 

sealed to reduce leak paths; isolators were 

primed to promote adhesion; isolator corners 
106 SHUTTLE REFERENCE DATA JUNE 2009

were rounded to help reduce thermal 

protection system foam stresses; BX manual 

spray was applied in bracket pockets to reduce 

geometric voids. 

*BX is a type of foam used on the tank’s 

“loseout,” or final finished areas; it is applied 

manually or hand-sprayed. PDL is an acronym 

for Product Development Laboratory, the first 

supplier of the foam during the early days of 

the external tank’s development. PDL is 

applied by pouring foam ingredients into a 

mold. NCFI foam is used on the aft dome, or 

bottom, of the liquid hydrogen tank. 

Liquid Oxygen Feedline Brackets 

ET-128 also was the first tank to fly with 

redesigned liquid oxygen feedline brackets. 

Titanium brackets, much less thermally 

conductive than aluminum, replaced aluminum 

brackets at four locations, XT 1129, XT 1377, 

Xt 1624 and Xt 1871. This change minimizes ice 

formation in under-insulated areas, and 

reduces the amount of foam required to cover 

the brackets and the propensity for ice 

development. Zero-gap/slip plane Teflon 

material was added to the upper outboard 

monoball attachment to eliminate ice adhesion. 

Additional foam has been added to the liquid 

oxygen feedline to further minimize ice 

formation along the length of the feedline. 
JUNE 2009 LAUNCH & LANDING 107

LAUNCH AND LANDING 

LAUNCH 

As with all previous space shuttle launches, 

Endeavour has several options to abort its 

ascent if needed after engine failures or other 

systems problems. Shuttle launch abort 

philosophy is intended to facilitate safe 

recovery of the flight crew and intact recovery 

of the shuttle and its payload. 

Abort modes include: 

ABORT-TO-ORBIT (ATO) 

This mode is used if there is a partial loss of 

main engine thrust late enough to permit 

reaching a minimal 105 by 85 nautical mile orbit 

with the orbital maneuvering system engines. 

The engines boost the shuttle to a safe orbital 

altitude when it is impossible to reach the 

planned orbital altitude. 

TRANSATLANTIC ABORT LANDING 

(TAL) 

The loss of one or more main engines midway 

through powered flight would force a landing 

at either Zaragoza, Spain; Moron, Spain; or 

Istres, France. For launch to proceed, weather 

conditions must be acceptable at one of these 

TAL sites. 

RETURN-TO-LAUNCH-SITE (RTLS) 

If one or more engines shut down early and 

there is not enough energy to reach the TAL 

sites, the shuttle would pitch around toward 

Kennedy until within gliding distance of the 

Shuttle Landing Facility. For launch to 

proceed, weather conditions must be forecast as 

acceptable for a possible RTLS landing at KSC 

about 20 minutes after liftoff. 

ABORT ONCE AROUND (AOA) 

An AOA is selected if the vehicle cannot 

achieve a viable orbit or will not have enough 

propellant to perform a deorbit burn, but has 

enough energy to circle the Earth once and land 

about 90 minutes after liftoff. 

LANDING 

The primary landing site for Endeavour on 

STS‐127 is the Kennedy Space Center’s Shuttle 

Landing Facility. Alternate landing sites that 

could be used if needed because of weather 

conditions or systems failures are at Edwards 

Air Force Base, Calif., and White Sands Space 

Harbor, N.M. 
108 LAUNCH & LANDING JUNE 2009

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JUNE 2009 ACRONYMS/ABBREVIATIONS 109

ACRONYMS AND ABBREVIATIONS 

A/G Alignment Guides 

A/L Airlock 

AAA Avionics Air Assembly 

ABC Audio Bus Controller 

ACBM Active Common Berthing Mechanism 

ACDU Airlock Control and Display Unit 

ACO Assembly Checkout Officer 

ACS Atmosphere Control and Supply 

ACU Arm Control Unit 

ADS Audio Distribution System 

AE Approach Ellipsoid 

AEP Airlock Electronics Package 

AI Approach Initiation 

AJIS Alpha Joint Interface Structure 

AM Atmosphere Monitoring 

AMOS Air Force Maui Optical and Supercomputing Site 

ANDE Atmosphere Neutral Density Experiment 

AOA Abort Once Around 

AOH Assembly Operations Handbook 

AOM Atomic Oxygen Monitor 

APAS Androgynous Peripheral Attachment 

APCU Assembly Power Converter Unit 

APE Antenna Pointing Electronics 

Audio Pointing Equipment 

APFR Articulating Portable Foot Restraint 

APM Antenna Pointing Mechanism 

APS Automated Payload Switch 

APV Automated Procedure Viewer 

AR Atmosphere Revitalization 

ARCU American-to-Russian Converter Unit 

ARD Autonomous Rendezvous and Docking 

ARIES Astronaut-Related IVA and Equipment Support 

ARS Atmosphere Revitalization System 

ASC Advanced Scientific Concepts 

ASW Application Software 

ATA Ammonia Tank Assembly 

ATCS Active Thermal Control System 
110 ACRONYMS/ABBREVIATIONS JUNE 2009

ATF Astronaut Training Facility 

ATU Audio Terminal Unit 

BAD Broadcast Ancillary Data 

BC Bus Controller 

BCDU Battery Charge/Discharge Unit 

Berthing Mechanism Control and Display Unit 

BEP Berthing Mechanism Electronics Package 

BGA Beta Gimbal Assembly 

BIC Bus Interface Controller 

BIO Biology Ops Lead team 

BIT Built-In Test 

BM Berthing Mechanism 

BOS BIC Operations Software 

BSS Basic Software 

BSTS Basic Standard Support Software 

C3PO Commercial Crew and Cargo Program Office 

C&C Command and Control 

C&DH Command and Data Handling 

C&T Communication and Tracking 

C&W Caution and Warning 

C/L Crew Lock 

C/O Checkout 

CAM Collision Avoidance Maneuver 

CANSEI Control and Network Systems, Electrical Power, and ICS Communication Office 

CAPE Canister for All Payload Ejections 

CAS Common Attach System 

CB Clean Bench 

Control Bus 

CBCS Centerline Berthing Camera System 

CBEF Cell Biology Experiment Facility 

CBM Common Berthing Mechanism 

CCA Circuit Card Assembly 

CCAA Common Cabin Air Assembly 

CCHA Crew Communication Headset Assembly 

CCD 

CCP Camera Control Panel 

CCT Communication Configuration Table 

CCTV Closed-Circuit Television 

CDR Space Shuttle Commander 

CDRA Carbon Dioxide Removal Assembly 
JUNE 2009 ACRONYMS/ABBREVIATIONS 111

CETA Crew Equipment Translation Aid 

CHeCS Crew Health Care System 

CHX Cabin Heat Exchanger 

CISC Complicated Instruction Set Computer 

CLA Camera Light Assembly 

CLPA Camera Light Pan Tilt Assembly 

CMG Control Moment Gyro 

COTS Commercial Off the Shelf 

CPA Control Panel Assembly 

CPB Camera Power Box 

CR Change Request 

CRT Cathode-Ray Tube 

CSA Canadian Space Agency 

CSA-CP Compound Specific Analyzer 

CVIU Common Video Interface Unit 

CVT Current Value Table 

CZ Communication Zone 

DB Data Book 

DC Docking Compartment 

DCSU Direct Current Switching Unit 

DDCU DC-to-DC Converter Unit 

DEM Demodulator 

DFL Decommutation Format Load 

DIU Data Interface Unit 

DMS Data Management System 

DMS-R Data Management System-Russian 

DOSIS-DOBIES Dose Distribution Inside ISS – Dosimetry for Biological Experiments in Space 

DPG Differential Pressure Gauge 

DPU Baseband Data Processing Unit 

DRAGONSat Dual RF Astrodynamic GPS Orbital Navigator Satellite 

DRTS Data Relay Test Satellite 

Japanese Data Relay Satellite 

DTO Detailed Test Objective 

DYF Display Frame 

E/L Equipment Lock 

EATCS External Active Thermal Control System 

EBCS External Berthing Camera System 

ECC Error Correction Code 

ECLSS Environmental Control and Life Support System 

ECS Environmental Control System 
112 ACRONYMS/ABBREVIATIONS JUNE 2009

ECU Electronic Control Unit 

EDAS Enhanced Data Acquisition System 

EDEE Electronic Device Evaluation Equipment 

EDR European Drawer Rack 

EDSU External Data Storage Unit 

EDU EEU Driver Unit 

EE End Effector 

EETCS Early External Thermal Control System 

EEU Experiment Exchange Unit 

EF Exposed Facility 

EFBM Exposed Facility Berthing Mechanism 

EFHX Exposed Facility Heat Exchanger 

EFU Exposed Facility Unit 

EGIL Electrical, General Instrumentation, and Lighting 

EIU Ethernet Interface Unit 

ELM-ES Japanese Experiment Logistics Module – Exposed Section 

ELM-PS Japanese Experiment Logistics Module – Pressurized Section 

ELPS Emergency Lighting Power Supply 

EMGF Electric Mechanical Grapple Fixture 

EMI Electro-Magnetic Imaging 

EMU Extravehicular Mobility Unit 

E-ORU EVA Essential ORU 

EP Exposed Pallet 

EPO Educational Payload Observation 

EPS Electrical Power System 

ES Exposed Section 

ESA European Space Agency 

ESC JEF System Controller 

ESP-3 External Stowage Platform 3 

ESW Extended Support Software 

ET External Tank 

ETCS External Thermal Control System 

ETI Elapsed Time Indicator 

ETRS EVA Temporary Rail Stop 

ETVCG External Television Camera Group 

EV Extravehicular 

EVA Extravehicular Activity 

EXP-D Experiment-D 

EXT External 

FA Fluid Accumulator 

FAS Flight Application Software 
JUNE 2009 ACRONYMS/ABBREVIATIONS 113

FCT Flight Control Team 

FD Flight Day 

FDDI Fiber Distributed Data Interface 

FDIR Fault Detection, Isolation, and Recovery 

FDS Fire Detection System 

FE Flight Engineer 

FET-SW Field Effect Transistor Switch 

FGB Functional Cargo Block 

FISICS Fluid Science and Crystallization Science Ops Lead team 

FLAT Fluid and Thermal Officer 

FOR Frame of Reference 

FOV Field of View 

FPEF Fluid Physics Experiment Facility 

FPP Fluid Pump Package 

FR Flight Rule 

FRAM Flight Releasable Attachment Mechanism 

FRD Flight Requirements Document 

FRGF Flight Releasable Grapple Fixture 

FRM Functional Redundancy Mode 

FSE Flight Support Equipment 

FSEGF Flight Support Equipment Grapple Fixture 

FSW Flight Software 

GAS Get-Away Special 

GCA Ground Control Assist 

GLA General Lighting Assemblies 

General Luminaire Assembly 

GLONASS Global Navigational Satellite System 

GNC Guidance, Navigation, and Control 

GPC General Purpose Computer 

GPS Global Positioning System 

GPSR Global Positioning System Receiver 

GSC Gas Slit Camera 

GUI Graphical User Interface 

H&S Health and Status 

HCE Heater Control Equipment 

HCTL Heater Controller 

HEPA High Efficiency Particulate Acquisition 

HIT Heavy Ion Telescope 

HPA High Power Amplifier 

HPP Hard Point Plates 
114 ACRONYMS/ABBREVIATIONS JUNE 2009

HRDR High Rate Data Recorder 

HREL Hold/Release Electronics 

HRFM High Rate Frame Multiplexer 

HRM Hold Release Mechanism 

HRMS High Rate Multiplexer and Switcher 

HTV H-II Transfer Vehicle 

HTVCC HTV Control Center 

HTV Prox HTV Proximity 

HX Heat Exchanger 

I/F Interface 

IAA Intravehicular Antenna Assembly 

IAC Internal Audio Controller 

IBM International Business Machines 

ICB Inner Capture Box 

ICC Integrated Cargo Carrier 

ICC-PM ICC Pressurized Module 

ICC-VLD Integrated Cargo Carrier – Vertical Light Deploy 

ICS Interorbit Communication System 

ICS-EF Interorbit Communication System - Exposed Facility 

IDRD Increment Definition and Requirements Document 

IEA Integrated Equipment Assembly 

IELK Individual Equipment Liner Kit 

IFHX Interface Heat Exchanger 

IMCS Integrated Mission Control System 

IMCU Image Compressor Unit 

IMV Intermodule Ventilation 

INCO Instrumentation and Communication Officer 

IP International Partner 

IP-PCDU ICS-PM Power Control and Distribution Unit 

IP-PDB Payload Power Distribution Box 

IPT Intelligent Pressure Transducer 

IPU Image Processing Unit 

ISP International Standard Payload 

ISPR International Standard Payload Rack 

ISS International Space Station 

ISSSH International Space Station Systems Handbook 

ITCS Internal Thermal Control System 

ITS Integrated Truss Segment 

IVA Intravehicular Activity 

IVSU Internal Video Switch Unit 
JUNE 2009 ACRONYMS/ABBREVIATIONS 115

J–COM JEM Communicator 

J–FLIGHT JAXA Flight Director 

J–PLAN Operations Planner 

JAXA Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency 

JAXA EVA JAXA Extravehicular Activity 

JCP JEM Control Processor 

JEF JEM Exposed Facility 

JEM Japanese Experiment Module 

JEMAL JEM Airlock 

JEM-EF Japanese Experiment Module Exposed Facility 

JEM-PM Japanese Experiment Module – Pressurized Module 

JEM PAYLOADS JEM Payload Officer 

JEMAL JEM Airlock 

JEMRMS Japanese Experiment Module Remote Manipulator System 

JET JEM Engineering Team 

JEUS Joint Expedited Undocking and Separation 

JFCT Japanese Flight Control Team 

JLE Japanese Experiment Logistics Module – Exposed Section 

JLP Japanese Experiment Logistics Module – Pressurized Section 

JLP-EDU JLP-EFU Driver Unit 

JLP-EFU JLP Exposed Facility Unit 

JPM Japanese Pressurized Module 

JPM WS JEM Pressurized Module Workstation 

JPOC JAXA Payload Operations Conductor 

JSC Johnson Space Center 

JTVE JEM Television Equipment 

Kbps Kilobit per second 

KIBOTT Kibo Robotics Officer 

KOS Keep Out Sphere 

Ku-Band 15.250 to 17.250 Gigahertz 

LB Local Bus 

LCA LAB Cradle Assembly 

LCD Liquid Crystal Display 

LDU Linear Drive Unit 

LED Light Emitting Diode 

LEE Latching End Effector 

LEO Low-Earth Orbit 

LIDAR Light Intensification Detection and Ranging (Range?) 

LMC Lightweight MPESS Carrier 

LSW Light Switch 
116 ACRONYMS/ABBREVIATIONS JUNE 2009

LTA Launch-to-Activation 

LTAB Launch-to-Activation Box 

LTL Low Temperature Loop 

MA Main Arm 

MAUI Main Analysis of Upper-Atmospheric Injections 

MAXI Monitor of All-sky X-ray Image 

Mb Megabit 

Mbps Megabit per second 

MBS Mobile Base System 

MBSU Main Bus Switching Unit 

MCA Major Constituent Analyzer 

MCC Mission Control Center 

MCC-H Mission Control Center – Houston 

MCC-M Mission Control Center – Moscow 

MCDS Multifunction Cathode-Ray Tube Display System 

MCR Mission Control Room 

MCS Mission Control System 

MDA MacDonald, Dettwiler and Associates Ltd. 

MDM Multiplexer/Demultiplexer 

MDP Management Data Processor 

MELFI Minus Eighty-Degree Laboratory Freezer for ISS 

MGB Middle Grapple Box 

MIP Mission Integration Plan 

MISSE Materials International Space Station Experiment 

MKAM Minimum Keep Alive Monitor 

MLE Middeck Locker Equivalent 

MLI Multi-layer Insulation 

MLM Multipurpose Laboratory Module 

MMOD Micrometeoroid/Orbital Debris 

MOD Modulator 

MON Television Monitor 

MPAC Micro Particles Capture 

MPC Main Processing Controller 

MPESS Multipurpose Experiment Support Structure 

MPEV Manual Pressure Equalization Valve 

MPL Manipulator Retention Latch 

MPLM Multipurpose Logistics Module 

MPM Manipulator Positioning Mechanism 

MPV Manual Procedure Viewer 

MSD Mass Storage Device 

MSFC Marshall Space Flight Center 
JUNE 2009 ACRONYMS/ABBREVIATIONS 117

MSP Maintenance Switch Panel 

MSS 

MT 

Mobile Servicing System 

Mobile Tracker 

MTL 

MUX 

Moderate Temperature Loop 

Data Multiplexer 

n.mi. nautical mile 

NASA 

NCS 

National Aeronautics and Space Administration 

Node Control Software 

NEM Neutron Monitor 

NET No Earlier Than 

NiH2 

NLT 

Nickel Hydrogen 

No Less Than 

NPRV 

NSV 

Negative Pressure Relief Valve 

Network Service 

NTA 

NTSC 

Nitrogen Tank Assembly 

National Television Standard Committee 

OBSS 

OCA 

OCAD 

OCAS 

ODF 

ODS 

OI 

Orbiter Boom Sensor System 

Orbital Communications Adapter 

Operational Control Agreement Document 

Operator Commanded Automatic Sequence 

Operations Data File 

Orbiter Docking System 

Orbiter Interface 

OIU Orbiter Interface Unit 

OMS 

OODT 

OPT 

ORCA 

ORU 

OS 

OSA 

Orbital Maneuvering System 

Onboard Operation Data Table 

Operational Pressure Transducer 

Oxygen Recharge Compressor Assembly 

Orbital Replacement Unit 

Operating System 

Orbiter-based Station Avionics 

OSE 

OTCM 

OTP 

Orbital Support Equipment 

ORU and Tool Changeout Mechanism 

ORU and Tool Platform 

P/L 

PAL 

PAM 

PAO 

Payload 

Planning and Authorization Letter 

Payload Attach Mechanism 

Public Affairs Office 
118 ACRONYMS/ABBREVIATIONS JUNE 2009

PAS Payload Attachment System 

PBA Portable Breathing Apparatus 

PCA Pressure Control Assembly 

PCBM Passive Common Berthing Mechanism 

PCDF Protein Crystallization Diagnostics Facility 

PCN Page Change Notice 

PCRF Protein Crystallization Research Facility 

PCS Portable Computer System 

PCU Power Control Unit 

PDA Payload Disconnect Assembly 

PDB Power Distribution Box 

PDGF Power and Data Grapple Fixture 

PDH Payload Data Handling unit 

PDRS Payload Deployment Retrieval System 

PDU Power Distribution Unit 

PEC Passive Experiment Container 

PEHG Payload Ethernet Hub Gateway 

PFE Portable Fire Extinguisher 

PGSC Payload General Support Computer 

PI Principal Investigator 

PIB Power Interface Box 

PIU Payload Interface Unit 

PL FCT Payload Flight Control Team 

PLAM Plasma Monitor 

PLB Payload Bay 

PLBD Payload Bay Door 

PLC Pressurized Logistics Carrier 

PLT Payload Laptop Terminal 

Space Shuttle Pilot 

PM Pressurized Module 

PMA Pressurized Mating Adapter 

Pump Module Assembly 

PMCU Power Management Control Unit 

POA Payload ORU Accommodation 

POIC Payload Operation Integration Center 

POR Point of Resolution 

PPRV Positive Pressure Relief Valve 

PRCS Primary Reaction Control System 

PREX Procedure Executor 

PRLA Payload Retention Latch Assembly 

PROX Proximity Communications Center 
JUNE 2009 ACRONYMS/ABBREVIATIONS 119

psia 

PSP 

PSRR 

PTCS 

PTR 

Pounds per Square Inch Absolute 

Payload Signal Processor 

Pressurized Section Resupply Rack 

Passive Thermal Control System 

Port Thermal Radiator 

PTU 

PVCU 

Pan/Tilt Unit 

Photovoltaic Controller Unit 

PVGF 

PVM 

Power and Video Grapple Fixture 

Photovoltaic Module 

PVR Photovoltaic Radiator 

PVTCS Photovoltaic Thermal Control System 

QD Quick Disconnect 

R&MA 

RACU 

Restraint and Mobility Aid 

Russian-to-American Converter Unit 

RAM 

RBVM 

Read Access Memory 

Radiator Beam Valve Module 

RCC 

RCT 

RF 

RGA 

RHC 

Range Control Center 

Rack Configuration Table 

Radio Frequency 

Rate Gyro Assemblies 

Rotational Hand Controller 

RIGEX 

RIP 

Rigidizable Inflatable Get-Away Special Experiment 

Remote Interface Panel 

RLF 

RLT 

RMS 

ROEU 

ROM 

R-ORU 

ROS 

RPC 

Robotic Language File 

Robotic Laptop Terminal 

Remote Manipulator System 

Remotely Operated Electrical Umbilical 

Read Only Memory 

Robotics Compatible Orbital Replacement Unit 

Russian Orbital Segment 

Remote Power Controller 

RPCM Remote Power Controller Module 

RPDA 

RPM 

Remote Power Distribution Assembly 

Roll Pitch Maneuver 

RS 

RSP 

RSR 

RT 

Russian Segment 

Return Stowage Platform 

Resupply Stowage Rack 

Remote Terminal 

RTAS Rocketdyne Truss Attachment System 
120 ACRONYMS/ABBREVIATIONS JUNE 2009

RVFS Rendezvous Flight Software 

RWS Robotics Workstation 

S3 Starboard 3 

SAFER Simplified Aid for EVA Rescue 

SAM SFA Airlock Attachment Mechanism 

SARJ Solar Alpha Rotary Joint 

SCOF Solution Crystallization Observation Facility 

SCU Sync and Control Unit 

SD Smoke Detector 

SDOM Standard Dose Monitor 

SDS Sample Distribution System 

SEDA Space Environment Data Acquisition equipment 

SEDA-AP Space Environment Data Acquisition equipment - Attached Payload 

SEED Space Environment Exposure Device 

SEITE Shuttle Exhaust Ion Turbulence Experiments 

SEL Space Experiment Laboratory 

SELS SpaceOps Electronic Library System 

SENIN System Investigation and Integration Officer 

SEU Single Event Upset 

SFA Small Fine Arm 

SFAE SFA Electronics 

SGANT Space-to-Ground Antenna 

SI Smoke Indicator 

SIMPLEX Shuttle Ionispheric Modification with Pulsed Localized Exhaust Experiments 

SIS Superconductor Insulator Superconductor 

SLM Structural Latch Mechanism 

SLP-D Spacelab Pallet – D 

SLP-D1 Spacelab Pallet – Deployable 

SLP-D2 Spacelab Pallet - D2 

SLT Station Laptop Terminal 

System Laptop Terminal 

SM Service Module 

SMDP Service Module Debris Panel 

SMILES Superconducting Submillimeter Wave Limb – Emission Sounder 

SOC System Operation Control 

SODF Space Operations Data File 

SOLO SOdium Loading in Microgravity 

SPA Small Payload Attachment 

SPB Survival Power Distribution Box 

SPDA Secondary Power Distribution Assembly 

SPDM Special Purpose Dexterous Manipulator 
JUNE 2009 ACRONYMS/ABBREVIATIONS 121

SPEC Specialist 

SRAM Static RAM 

SRB Solid Rocket Booster 

SRMS Shuttle Remote Manipulator System 

SSAS Segment-to-Segment Attach System 

SSC Solid-state Slit Camera 

Station Support Computer 

SSCB Space Station Control Board 

SSCC Space Station Control Center 

SSE Small Fine Arm Storage Equipment 

SSIPC Space Station Integration and Promotion Center 

SSME Space Shuttle Main Engine 

SSOF Space Station Operations Facility 

SSOR Space-to-Space Orbiter Radio 

SSP Standard Switch Panel 

SSPL Space Shuttle Payload Launcher 

SSPTS Station-to-Shuttle Power Transfer System 

SSRMS Space Station Remote Manipulator System 

STC Small Fire Arm Transportation Container 

STR Starboard Thermal Radiator 

STS Space Transfer System 

STVC SFA Television Camera 

SVS Space Vision System 

TA Thruster Assist 

TAC TCS Assembly Controller 

TAC-M TCS Assembly Controller - M 

TCA Thermal Control System Assembly 

TCB Total Capture Box 

TCCS Trace Contaminant Control System 

TCCV Temperature Control and Check Valve 

TCS Thermal Control System 

Trajectory Control Center 

TCV Temperature Control Valve 

TDK Transportation Device Kit 

TDRS Tracking and Data Relay Satellite 

THA Tool Holder Assembly 

THC Temperature and Humidity Control 

Translational Hand Controller 

THCU Temperature and Humidity Control Unit 

TIU Thermal Interface Unit 

TKSC Tsukuba Space Center (Japan) 
122 ACRONYMS/ABBREVIATIONS JUNE 2009

TLM Telemetry 

TMA Russian vehicle designation 

TMR Triple Modular Redundancy 

TPL Transfer Priority List 

TRRJ Thermal Radiator Rotary Joint 

TUS Trailing Umbilical System 

TVC Television Camera 

UCCAS Unpressurized Cargo Carrier Attach System 

UCM Umbilical Connect Mechanism 

UCM-E UCM – Exposed Section Half 

UCM-P UCM – Payload Half 

UHF Ultrahigh Frequency 

UI User Investigator 

UIL User Interface Language 

ULC Unpressurized Logistics Carrier 

UMA Umbilical Mating Adapter 

UOA User Operations 

UOP Utility Outlet Panel 

UPC Up Converter 

USA United Space Alliance 

US LAB United States Laboratory 

USOS United States On-Orbit Segment 

VAJ Vacuum Access Jumper 

VBSP Video Baseband Signal Processor 

VCU Video Control Unit 

VDS Video Distribution System 

VE Visual Equipment 

VLD Vertical Light Display 

VLU Video Light Unit 

VRA Vent Relief Assembly 

VRCS Vernier Reaction Control System 

VRCV Vent Relief Control Valve 

VRIV Vent Relief Isolation Valve 

VSU Video Switcher Unit 

VSW Video Switcher 

WAICO Waiving and Coiling 

WCL Water Cooling Loop 

WET Weightless Environment Test Building 

WETA Wireless Video System External Transceiver Assembly 
JUNE 2009 ACRONYMS/ABBREVIATIONS 123

WIF Work Interface 

WRM Water Recovery and Management 

WRS Water Recovery System 

WS Water Separator 

Work Site 

Work Station 

WVA Water Vent Assembly 

Z1 Zenith 1 

ZSR Zero-g Stowage Rack 
124 ACRONYMS/ABBREVIATIONS JUNE 2009

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JUNE 2009 MEDIA ASSISTANCE 125

MEDIA ASSISTANCE 

NASA TELEVISION TRANSMISSION 

NASA Television is carried on an MPEG‐2 

digital signal accessed via satellite AMC‐6, at 

72 degrees west longitude, transponder 17C, 

4040 MHz, vertical polarization. For those in 

Alaska or Hawaii, NASA Television will be 

seen on AMC‐7, at 137 degrees west longitude, 

transponder 18C, at 4060 MHz, horizontal 

polarization. In both instances, a Digital Video 

Broadcast, or DVB‐compliant Integrated 

Receiver Decoder, or IRD, with modulation of 

QPSK/DBV, data rate of 36.86 and FEC 3/4 will 

be needed for reception. The NASA Television 

schedule and links to streaming video are 

available at: 

http://www.nasa.gov/ntv

NASA TV’s digital conversion will require 

members of the broadcast media to upgrade 

with an “addressable” Integrated Receiver 

De‐coder, or IRD, to participate in live news 

events and interviews, media briefings and 

receive NASA’s Video File news feeds on a 

dedicated Media Services channel. NASA 

mission coverage will air on a digital NASA 

Public Services “Free to Air” channel, for which 

only a basic IRD will be needed. 

Television Schedule 

A schedule of key in‐orbit events and media 

briefings during the mission will be detailed in 

a NASA TV schedule posted at the link above. 

The schedule will be updated as necessary and 

will also be available at: 

http://www.nasa.gov/multimedia/nasatv/

mission_schedule.html

Status Reports 

Status reports on launch countdown and 

mission progress, in‐orbit activities and landing 

operations will be posted at: 

http://www.nasa.gov/shuttle

This site also contains information on the crew 

and will be updated regularly with photos and 

video clips throughout the flight. 

More Internet Information 

Information on the ISS is available at: 

http://www.nasa.gov/station

Information on safety enhancements made 

since the Columbia accident is available at: 

http://www.nasa.gov/returntoflight/

system/index.html

Information on other current NASA activities is 

available at: 

http://www.nasa.gov

Resources for educators can be found at the 

following address: 

http://education.nasa.gov
126 MEDIA ASSISTANCE JUNE 2009

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JUNE 2009 PUBLIC AFFAIRS CONTACTS 127

PUBLIC AFFAIRS CONTACTS 

NASA HEADQUARTERS 

WASHINGTON, DC 

Space Operations Mission Directorate 

Michael Braukus 

International Partners 

202-358-1979 

michael.j.braukus@nasa.gov

Katherine Trinidad 

Shuttle, Space Station Policy 

202-358-1100 

katherine.trinidad@nasa.gov

John Yembrick 

Shuttle, Space Station Policy 

202-358-1100 

john.yembrick-1@nasa.gov

Mike Curie 

Shuttle, Space Station Policy 

202-358-1100 

michael.curie@nasa.gov

Grey Hautaluoma 

Research in Space 

202-358-0668 

gray.hautaluoma@nasa.gov

Ashley Edwards 

Research in Space 

202-358-1756 

ashley.edwards-1@nasa.gov

JOHNSON SPACE CENTER 

HOUSTON, TEXAS 

James Hartsfield 

News Chief 

281-483-5111 

james.a.hartsfield@nasa.gov

Kyle Herring 

Public Affairs Specialist 

Space Shuttle Program Office 

281-483-5111 

kyle.j.herring@nasa.gov

Rob Navias 

Program and Mission Operations Lead 

281-483-5111 

rob.navias-1@nasa.gov

Kelly Humphries 

Public Affairs Specialist 

International Space Station and Mission 

Operations Directorate 

281-483-5111 

kelly.o.humphries@nasa.gov

Nicole Cloutier-Lemasters 

Public Affairs Specialist 

Astronauts 

281-483-5111 

nicole.cloutier-1@nasa.gov
128 PUBLIC AFFAIRS CONTACTS JUNE 2009

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER 

CAPE CANAVERAL, FLORIDA 

Allard Beutel 

News Chief 

321-867-2468 

allard.beutel@nasa.gov

Candrea Thomas 

Public Affairs Specialist 

Space Shuttle 

321-867-2468 

candrea.k.thomas@nasa.gov

Tracy Young 

Public Affairs Specialist 

International Space Station 

321-867-2468 

tracy.g.young@nasa.gov

MARSHALL SPACE FLIGHT CENTER 

HUNTSVILLE, ALABAMA 

Dom Amatore 

Public Affairs Manager 

256-544-0034 

dominic.a.amatore@nasa.gov

June Malone 

Public Affairs Specialist 

News Chief/Media Manager 

256-544-0034 

june.e.malone@nasa.gov

Steve Roy 

Public Affairs Specialist 

Space Shuttle Propulsion 

256-544-0034 

steven.e.roy@nasa.gov

STENNIS SPACE CENTER 

BAY ST. LOUIS, MISSISSIPPI 

Chris McGee 

News Chief 

228-688-3249 

christopher.mcgee@nasa.gov

Paul Foerman 

Public Affairs Officer 

228-688-1880 

paul.foerman-1@nasa.gov

AMES RESEARCH CENTER 

MOFFETT FIELD, CALIFORNIA 

Mike Mewhinney 

News Chief 

650-604-3937 

michael.mewhinney@nasa.gov

Jonas Dino 

Public Affairs Specialist 

650-604-5612 

jonas.dino@nasa.gov

Rachel Prucey 

Public Affairs Specialist 

650-604-0643 

Rachel.L.Purcey@nasa.gov
JUNE 2009 PUBLIC AFFAIRS CONTACTS 129

DRYDEN FLIGHT RESEARCH CENTER 

EDWARDS, CALIFORNIA 

Kevin Rohrer 

Director, Public Affairs 

661-276-3595 

kevin.j.rohrer@nasa.gov

Alan Brown 

News Chief 

661-276-2665 

alan.brown@nasa.gov

Leslie Williams 

Public Affairs Specialist 

661-276-3893 

leslie.a.williams@nasa.gov

GLENN RESEARCH CENTER 

CLEVELAND, OHIO 

Lori Rachul 

News Chief 

216-433-8806 

lori.j.rachul@nasa.gov

Jeannette P. Owens 

Public Affairs Specialist 

216-433-2990 

jeannette.p.owens@nasa.gov

Katherine Martin 

Public Affairs Specialist 

216-433-2406 

katherine.martin@nasa.gov

LANGLEY RESEARCH CENTER 

HAMPTON, VIRGINIA 

Marny Skora 

Head, News Media Office 

757-864-3315 

marny.skora@nasa.gov

Keith Henry 

Public Affairs Officer 

757-864-6120 

h.k.henry@nasa.gov

Chris Rink 

Public Affairs Officer 

757-864-6786 

christopher.p.rink@nasa.gov

Kathy Barnstorff 

Public Affairs Officer 

757-864-9886 

katherine.a.barnstorff@nasa.gov

UNITED SPACE ALLIANCE 

Jessica Pieczonka 

Houston Operations 

281-212-6252 

832-205-0480 

jessica.b.pieczonka@usa-spaceops.com

Tracy Yates 

Florida Operations 

321-861-3956 

(c) 321-750-1739 

tracy.e.yates@usa-spaceops.com
130 PUBLIC AFFAIRS CONTACTS JUNE 2009

BOEING 

Ed Memi 

Media Relations 

Boeing Space Exploration 

281-226-4029 

edmund.g.memi@boeing.com

JAPAN AEROSPACE EXPLORATION 

AGENCY (JAXA) 

Naoko Matsuo 

JAXA Public Affairs Representative 

Houston 

281-483-2251 

matsuo.naoko@jaxa.jp

JAXA Public Affairs Office 

Tokyo, Japan 

011-81-3-6266-6414, 6415, 6416, 6417 

proffice@jaxa.jp

CANADIAN SPACE AGENCY (CSA) 

Jean-Pierre Arseneault 

Manager, Media Relations & Information 

Services 

514-824-0560 (cell) 

jean-pierre.arseneault@space.gc.ca

Media Relations Office 

Canadian Space Agency 

450-926-4370 

EUROPEAN SPACE AGENCY (ESA) 

Clare Mattok 

Communication Manager 

Paris, France 

011-33-1-5369-7412 

clare.mattok@esa.intjessica.rye@atk.com