SPACE SHUTTLE MISSION

STS-132

Finishing Touches

PRESS KIT/May 2010

www.nasa.gov

National Aeronautics and Space Administration

MAY 2010 CONTENTS i

CONTENTS 

Section Page 

STS-132/ULF4 MISSION OVERVIEW ...................................................................................... 1

STS-132 TIMELINE OVERVIEW ............................................................................................... 13

MISSION PROFILE ................................................................................................................... 17

MISSION OBJECTIVES ............................................................................................................ 19

MISSION PERSONNEL ............................................................................................................. 23

STS-132 CREW ....................................................................................................................... 25

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

INTEGRATED CARGO CARRIER VERTICAL LIGHT DEPLOY (IC C - V L D ) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 3

MINI-RESEARCH MODULE-1................................................................................................................. 36

RENDEZVOUS & DOCKING ....................................................................................................... 39

UNDOCKING, SEPARATION AND DEPARTURE ....................................................................................... 40

SPACEWALKS ......................................................................................................................... 43

EXPERIMENTS ......................................................................................................................... 51

SHORT-DURATION EXPERIMENTS TO BE PERFORMED ON STS-132/ULF4 ............................................ 51

SAMPLES/EXPERIMENTS TO BE RETURNED ON STS-132/ULF4 ............................................................ 55

DETAILED SUPPLEMENTARY OBJECTIVES AND DETAILED TEST OBJECTIVES ....................................... 57

HISTORY OF SPACE SHUTTLE ATLANTIS ................................................................................ 59

SHUTTLE REFERENCE DATA .................................................................................................... 63

LAUNCH AND LANDING ...........................................................................................................81

LAUNCH ............................................................................................................................................... 81

ABORT-TO-ORBI T ( A T O ) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ............. 81

TRANSATLANTIC ABORT LANDING (TAL) ............................................................................................. 81

RETURN-TO-LAUNCH-SI T E ( R T L S ) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ...... 81

ABORT ONCE ARO U N D ( A O A ) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ......... 81

LANDING ............................................................................................................................................. 81
ii CONTENTS MAY 2010

Section Page 

ACRONYMS AND ABBREVIATIONS ......................................................................................... 83

MEDIA ASSISTANCE ............................................................................................................... 99

PUBLIC AFFAIRS CONTACTS .................................................................................................. 101

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
MAY 2010 MISSION OVERVIEW 1

STS-132/ULF4 MISSION OVERVIEW 

The space shuttle Atlantis’ crew cabin and forward cargo bay are featured in this image 

photographed by an STS-129 crew member during the mission’s first session of 

extravehicular activity. 

The final planned mission of space shuttle 

Atlantis is scheduled for 12 days and begins 

at 2:20 p.m. EDT on Friday, May 14, with 

launch from the Kennedy Space Center. Its 

prime payloads destined for the International 

Space Station are the second of two Russian 

Mini-Research Modules and additional spare 

parts, including a set of batteries for the 

station’s truss and a high-powered dish 

antenna assembly. 

After launch on its 32nd mission, Atlantis will 

follow the standard two-day rendezvous profile 

leading to docking Sunday morning, May 16. 

On the way, the six-member crew will power 

up the Russian module and devote time 

inspecting the shuttle’s Thermal Protection 

System for any damage that may have occurred 

during launch; check out spacesuits that will be 

used during three spacewalks; and test 

hardware used to assist with the rendezvous 

and docking. 
2 MISSION OVERVIEW MAY 2010

International Space Station Mass Numbers: 

Before STS-132 docking, the International Space 

Station weighs 795,370 lbm (360,774 kg) 

Integrated Cargo Carrier-Vertical Lightweight 

Deployable (ICC-VLD) launch mass is 

7,532 lbm (3,417 kg) 

ICC-VLD return mass is 6,466 lbm (2,933 kg) 

Space-to-Ground Antenna (SGAnt) and boom 

will be added to station; mass is 645 lbm 

(293 kg) 

Enhanced Orbital Replacement Unit (ORU) 

Temporary Platform (EOTP) is added to Special 

Purpose Dexterous Manipulator; mass is 

421 lbm (191 kg) 

Mini-Research Module-1 (MRM-1) launch mass 

is 17,670 lbm (8,015 kg) 

Miscellaneous changes accounts for cargo 

transfer and water added to station: 1,413 lbm 

(641 kg) 

After STS-132 undocks, the station will weigh 

815,519 lbm (369,914 kg) 

Mission “Quick Look” 

• Launch: 2:20 p.m. EDT Friday, May 14 

• OV-104 Atlantis (final flight of vehicle) 

• Mission Duration: 12+0+2 

• 7 full docked days 

• Crew sleep shifts 4 hours earlier to support 

end of mission landing 

• 3 spacewalks based out of the Quest Airlock 

• 30 hours budgeted for shuttle middeck 

transfer 
MAY 2010 MISSION OVERVIEW 3

Leading the crew for STS-132 is Commander 

Ken Ham (Captain, U.S. Navy) flying for the 

second time following his first mission in 

May/June 2008 as pilot on the STS-124 flight of 

Discovery. He is joined by an all-veteran crew 

that includes Pilot Dominic “Tony” Antonelli 

(Captain, USN), Flight Engineer Michael Good 

(Colonel, USAF, Retired), Garrett Reisman, 

Steve Bowen (Captain, USN), and Piers Sellers. 

Antonelli flew as pilot of Discovery’s STS-119 

mission in March 2009, which delivered the 

S6 Truss and solar array pair to the space 

station. Good flew last a year ago (May 2009) 

on the STS-125 flight of Atlantis to service the 

Hubble Space Telescope one final time. He 

conducted two spacewalks. Reisman spent 

95 days in space – 90 aboard the space station as 

an Expedition 16/17 flight engineer. During his 

tour on the station, Reisman conducted one 

spacewalk. He launched with Endeavour’s 

STS-123 crew in March 2008 and returned 

aboard Discovery in June 2008 at the conclusion 

of the STS-124 mission. Bowen flew aboard 

Endeavour on the STS-126 mission in 

November 2008 during which he conducted 

three spacewalks. Sellers flew previously on 

STS-112 aboard Atlantis in October 2002 and 

STS-121 on Discovery in July 2006. He, too, has 

performed three spacewalks. 

While seated at the commander’s station, astronaut Ken Ham, STS-132 commander, participates 

in a post insertion/de-orbit training session in the Crew Compartment Trainer (CCT-2) in the 

Space Vehicle Mock-up Facility at NASA’s Johnson Space Center. Ham is wearing a training 

version of his shuttle launch and entry suit. 
4 MISSION OVERVIEW MAY 2010

Aboard Atlantis in the payload bay is the 

Russian-built Mini-Research Module-1 

(MRM-1) named “Rassvet,” the Russian word 

for dawn or sunrise (pronounced Ross-vyet), 

along with a cargo carrier holding a spare set of 

batteries, a spare Ku Band antenna and 

components that will complement the 

Canadian-built Special Purpose Dextrous 

Manipulator – “Dextre.” 

While docked to the station, three crew 

members will share the spacewalking duties on 

the fourth, sixth and eighth mission days. 

The day after launch, Antonelli and Sellers will 

share the duty of gathering sensor data and 

imagery using the shuttle’s robotic arm and the 

Orbiter Boom Sensor System to transmit data to 

the ground for review to ensure the sensitive 

Thermal Protection System – particularly the 

wing leading edge panels and nose cap – was 

not damaged during launch. The same type of 

inspection will occur late in the mission after 

Atlantis departs the station to ensure no critical 

damage was incurred from micrometeoroid 

debris while in space. 

NASA astronaut Tony Antonelli, STS-132 pilot, attired in a training version of his shuttle 

launch and entry suit, discusses training activities with United Space Alliance suit technician 

Andre Denard in the Space Vehicle Mock-up Facility at NASA’s Johnson Space Center. 
MAY 2010 MISSION OVERVIEW 5

While the inspection takes place, Reisman, 

Bowen and Good will prepare the spacesuits, or 

Extravehicular Mobility Units, they will wear 

for their spacewalks to be conducted out of the 

station’s Quest airlock. 

Day three marks the arrival at the space station 

with rendezvous and docking. With Ham and 

Antonelli at the controls of Atlantis, the orbiter 

will close in for the final approach and docking 

to the station’s forward docking port on the 

Tranquility module. After a series of jet firings 

to fine tune Atlantis’ path to the station, the 

shuttle will arrive at a point about 600 feet 

directly below the station about an hour before 

docking. At that time, Ham will execute the 

R-Bar Pitch Maneuver (or RPM), a one-degreeper-second rotational “backflip” to enable 

station crew members to snap hundreds of 

detailed photos of the shuttle’s heat shield and 

other areas of potential interest – another data 

point for imagery analysts to pore over in 

determining the health of the shuttle’s Thermal 

Protection System. 

Once the rotation is completed, Ham will 

maneuver Atlantis to a point 310 feet in front of 

the station before slowly closing in for docking. 

Less than two hours later, hatches will be 

opened between the two spacecraft and a 

combined crew of 12 will begin six days of 

work. Atlantis’ crew will be working with 

Expedition 23 commander, Russian cosmonaut 

Oleg Kotov, and flight engineers T.J. Creamer, 

and Tracy Caldwell Dyson, both of NASA; 

Soichi Noguchi, a Japan Aerospace Exploration 

Agency astronaut; and cosmonauts Alexander 

Skvortsov and Mikhail Kornienko. 

After docking, hatch opening and a safety 

briefing by the station crew for its newly 

arriving shuttle astronauts, robotics takes center 

stage as Sellers and Dyson operate the station’s 

robotic arm (Canadarm2) to relocate the 

Integrated Cargo Carrier from Atlantis’ payload 

bay to the station’s Mobile Base System ahead 

of the next day’s first spacewalk of the mission. 

This will preposition the components in close 

proximity to the worksite. 

Flight day three ends with Reisman and Bowen 

sleeping in the Quest airlock as part of 

the overnight “campout” protocol that helps 

purge nitrogen from their bloodstreams, 

preventing decompression sickness that could 

occur otherwise. The campout is a standard 

procedure that will be repeated the night before 

each spacewalk. 

Early on day four spacewalk preparations 

resume as Reisman (EV1) and Bowen (EV2) 

conduct the first of three outside excursions. 

EVA-1 tasks include installation of the spare 

Space-to-Ground Antenna and the Enhanced 

Orbital Replacement Unit Temporary Platform 

(EOTP) designed for stowage of spare parts. 

The two also will prepare new batteries for the 

other two planned spacewalks to shift brand 

new batteries from Atlantis to an outermost 

worksite on the P6 Truss. Reisman will wear an 

all-white spacesuit and Bowen will wear a suit 

with red stripes on the pant leg and upper 

backpack. Each spacewalk is budgeted to last 

approximately 6.5 hours. 

extravehicular activity 

• EVA 1 on Flight Day 4 (6.5 hrs) – 

Garrett Reisman (EV1) and Steve Bowen 

(EV2) 

• EVA 2 on Flight Day 6 (6.5 hrs) – 

Steve Bowen (EV1) and Michael Good (EV2) 

• EVA 3 on Flight Day 8 (6.5 hrs) – 

Michael Good (EV1) and Garrett Reisman 

(EV2) 
6 MISSION OVERVIEW MAY 2010

The Russian Mini-Research Module-1 (MRM-1) 

installation on the station’s Zarya module 

earth-facing docking port dominates day five of 

Atlantis’ mission as robotics work takes center 

stage. The mission’s primary objective involves 

using the station’s robotic arm under control of 

Reisman and Sellers to remove the module 

from Atlantis and carefully install it on the 

Russian segment. Once capture is confirmed, 

an automatic docking sequence is initiated 

by the crew via a Russian segment laptop 

computer. Power from the station robotic arm 

to the module would then be terminated. 

The 11,000-pound module is approximately 

19 feet long and 8 feet in diameter and will 

increase the capabilities of the Russian segment 

of the space station by providing workstations 

for payloads and the conduct of experiments. 

MRM-1 will increase the technical and 

operational capabilities as well by providing 

accommodation for arriving and departing 

transport vehicles like the Soyuz and Progress 

spacecraft. 

NASA astronaut Steve Bowen, STS-132 mission specialist, participates in an Extravehicular 

Mobility Unit spacesuit fit check in the Space Station Airlock Test Article in the 

Crew Systems Laboratory at NASA’s Johnson Space Center. 

Astronaut Garrett Reisman, mission specialist, assists Bowen. 
MAY 2010 MISSION OVERVIEW 7

Stored inside the module for delivery to 

the station is one and a half tons of food, 

clothing and supplies. On its exterior are 

temporarily stowed items that will be relocated 

during future station spacewalks. An airlock 

on Rassvet will be attached to the Russian 

Multi-purpose Laboratory Module (MLM) after 

its launch atop a Russian Proton rocket in 2012. 

A European robot arm elbow joint also is 

attached to the outside and a Portable Work 

Post (PWP) to assist with the arm’s activation, 

checkout and operation. 

After the MRM-1 is installed, time is budgeted 

for focused inspection of Atlantis’ heat shield if 

mission managers determine it is necessary. 

Reisman and Sellers would conduct the survey. 

If not required, the time allotted for focused 

inspection would free Ham, Antonelli and 

Good to help with middeck transfer activities. 

The final robotic task for flight day five is using 

the station’s robot arm Canadarm2 to grapple 

and hand off the shuttle’s Orbiter Boom Sensor 

System to the shuttle arm. Canadarm2 will be 

prepositioned to assist with viewing for the 

next day’s spacewalk. 

Day six will see the second of the three planned 

spacewalks conducted by Bowen (EV1) and 

Good (EV2). Bowen again will be wearing the 

suit with red stripes and Good will wear a suit 

with broken barber pole stripes. 

The focus of EVA-2 will be the removal and 

replacement of three of six batteries on the 

outermost truss segment on the port side of the 

station. These P6 truss batteries are the oldest 

of the station’s exterior battery complement 

designed to store solar energy for use by station 

systems. The worksite will be prepared first – a 

task deferred from the previous mission of 

Discovery in April. 

Russian Mini-Research Module-1 (MRM-1) 

• Mini-Research Module-1 (Rassvet) 

• Length 19.7 feet (6.0 meters) 

• Diameter 7.7 ft (2.35 m) 

• Mass (empty) 11,188 pounds 

(5,075 kilograms) 

• Mass (loaded) 17,760 lbs (8,015 kg) 

• ISS supplies 3,069 lbs (1,392 kg) 

1. Crew provisioning and support items 

2. Office supplies 

3. Food 

4. Crew Health Care System (CheCS) 

equipment 

5. Computers and accessories 

6. Equipment for cold storage and National 

Lab Pathfinder (NLP) experiment 

• External items 2,889 lbs (1,310 kg) 

1. Spare elbow joint for ESA robot arm 

(ERA) 

2. Portable Work Post (PWP) for ERA 

activation, checkout and ops 

3. Radiator and airlock for future Russian 

Multi-purpose Lab Module (MLM) 

• Pressurized volume 614 cubic feet 

(17.4 cubic meters) 

• Habitable volume 207 cubic feet 

(5.8 cubic meters) 
8 MISSION OVERVIEW MAY 2010

NASA astronaut Michael Good, STS-132 

mission specialist, uses virtual reality 

hardware in the Space Vehicle Mock-up 

Facility at NASA’s Johnson Space Center to 

rehearse some of his duties on the upcoming 

mission to the International Space Station. 

This type of virtual reality training allows the 

astronauts to wear a helmet and special gloves 

while looking at computer displays 

simulating actual movements around the 

various locations on the station hardware 

with which they will be working. 

David Homan assists Good. 

The station robotic arm, under shared control of 

Reisman and Sellers, will maneuver the 

Integrated Cargo Carrier to the worksite for the 

spacewalkers to use as a platform and 

repository. Once the spacewalk is completed, 

the robotic arm will be maneuvered clear of the 

Solar Alpha Rotary Joint so that it can be 

commanded to rotate again. 

Each battery measures 40 x 36 x 18 inches and 

weighs 375 pounds. The battery set to be 

replaced was launched as part of the P6 Truss 

segment delivered to the space station in 

November/December 2000. 

P6 Battery 

• 40" x 36" x 18" 

• 375 pounds (170 kilograms) 

• 38 lightweight Nickel Hydrogen cells 

• Provides 8 kilowatts of electrical power 

(two batteries connected in series) 

• 6.5 year average design life 

• Can exceed 38,000 charge/discharge cycles at 

35 percent depth of discharge 

Flight day seven focuses on hatch opening and 

entry into the MRM-1 following leak checks. 

After the atmosphere is scrubbed, the docking 

mechanism will be removed and hatch left 

slightly ajar. Actual ingress into the module 

will wait until after Atlantis departs and the 

station crew is back on its own. This day also 

includes some crew off duty time ahead of day 

eight’s third spacewalk. 

The third and final planned spacewalk of the 

mission will be conducted on flight day eight 

by Good (EV1) and Reisman (EV2). Good will 

wear a suit with the barber pole red stripes and 

Reisman once again will be wearing a suit with 

no markings. 
MAY 2010 MISSION OVERVIEW 9

Their focus will be on removal and replacement 

of the final three batteries on the P6 truss and 

returning the full set of old batteries to the 

Integrated Cargo Carrier for eventual return to 

Atlantis’ payload bay and return home. 

Time permitting, the spacewalkers will retrieve 

a new grapple fixture for the station’s robot arm 

from the sidewall of Atlantis and install it on 

the station. The Power Data Grapple Fixture 

(PDGF) will provide an additional active 

location from which the robot arm can operate. 

With the outside work complete, day nine 

focuses on cleanup by relocating the Integrated 

Cargo Carrier from its temporary location on 

the station’s Mobile Base System to the shuttle’s 

payload bay for return home. 

If required, the station’s orbit will be raised 

slightly using subtle thruster firings on Atlantis 

followed by some off duty time for the crews. 

A placeholder in the timeline is budgeted for 

Ham and Antonelli should the station program 

elect to exercise the reboost option. 

Attired in a training version of his shuttle launch and entry suit, astronaut Piers Sellers, STS-132 

mission specialist, participates in a training session on the middeck of the crew compartment trainer 

(CCT-2) in the Space Vehicle Mockup Facility at NASA’s Johnson Space Center. 
10 MISSION OVERVIEW MAY 2010

The crews of Atlantis and the station will bid 

farewell to one another early on flight day 10 

after six full days of joint operations (not 

including docking and undocking days). 

Shortly after undocking Antonelli will be at the 

controls of the shuttle for the traditional one lap 

fly around to document the new configuration 

of the station before departing the area. 

Left behind will be the International Space 

Station with its newest module and a mass 

in space of more than 815,000 pounds 

(370,000 kilograms). 

After Atlantis departs, the station crew will 

turn its attention to preparations for the next 

crew arrival on a Russian Soyuz spacecraft 

and spacewalks to outfit the MRM-1 and 

installation of a PDGF on the Zarya module. 

On flight day 11 Ham, Antonelli, Reisman and 

Sellers will again use the OBSS to inspect the 

wing leading edges and nose cap for any 

evidence of damage due to micrometeoroid 

debris before return home. The data gathered 

will be shipped to the ground for review by 

imagery experts in Mission Control – the same 

group that pores over imagery after launch. 

The day before landing is set aside for the 

traditional tests of hydraulics, flight control 

systems and thruster jets ahead of landing. 

With cabin stowage activities ongoing in 

parallel, Ham, Antonelli and Good will 

pressurize the hydraulic system to test the 

movable surfaces on the wings and tail and fire 

steering jets setting the stage for Atlantis’ 

return home. 

After Atlantis Departs 

• 21 Soyuz undocks and lands June 2 ending 

Expedition 23 

• Oleg Kotov, Soichi Noguchi and 

T.J. Creamer return after 163 days in 

space leaving Alexander Skvortsov, 

Tracy Caldwell Dyson and Mikhail 

Kornienko behind to begin Expedition 24 

• 23 Soyuz launches June 16 and docks 18 

• Fyodor Yurchikhin, Doug Wheelock and 

Shannon Walker join Expedition 24 

• 23 Soyuz Relocate June 22 

• The moves Soyuz from SM Aft to MRM-1 in 

preparation for 38P docking. 

• Russian Progress 38 Supply Craft launches 

June 30 and docks July 2 

• STS-134/ISS ULF6 Preparations 

• U.S. Spacewalk July 8 

• The primary task is to install a Power and 

Data Grapple Fixture (brought inside during 

STS-132 for outfitting) on the Zarya module 

(Dyson and Wheelock) 

• Russian Spacewalk July 23 

• The primary tasks will focus on MRM-1 

activation. (Kornienko and Yurchikhin) 
MAY 2010 MISSION OVERVIEW 11

Attired in training versions of their shuttle launch and entry suits, the STS-132 crew members take a 

brief break for a portrait in the Space Vehicle Mock-up Facility at NASA’s Johnson Space Center. 

NASA astronaut Ken Ham, commander, holds the STS-132 mission logo. Also pictured (from the 

left) are NASA astronauts Piers Sellers, Garrett Reisman, both mission specialists; Tony Antonelli, 

pilot; Michael Good and Steve Bowen, both mission specialists. 

The STS-132 mission ends with landing on 

flight day 12 back at the Kennedy Space 

Center’s Shuttle Landing Facility. Landing 

currently is planned for the early morning of 

May 26 after 12 days in space. STS-132 is the 

132nd space shuttle mission; the 34th shuttle 

flight devoted to space station assembly and 

operation and the 32nd and final planned flight 

of Atlantis. 
12 MISSION OVERVIEW MAY 2010

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MAY 2010 TIMELINE OVERVIEW 13

STS-132 TIMELINE OVERVIEW 

Flight Day 1 

• Launch 

• Payload Bay Door Opening 

• Ku-band Antenna Deployment 

• Shuttle Robotic Arm Activation and payload 

bay survey 

• Umbilical Well and Handheld External Tank 

Photo and TV Downlink 

Flight Day 2 

• Atlantis’ 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 Atlantis’ Thermal Protection System by 

Expedition 23 crew members Creamer and 

Kotov 

• Docking to Harmony/Pressurized Mating 

Adapter-2 

• Hatch Opening and Welcoming 

• Canadarm2 grapple of Integrated Cargo 

Carrier, unberthing from Atlantis’ payload 

bay and temporary park on the Mobile Base 

System’s payload attachment device 

• Spacewalk 1 preparations by Reisman 

and Bowen 

• Spacewalk 1 procedure review 

• Spacewalk 1 campout by Reisman and 

Bowen in the Quest airlock 

Flight Day 4 

• Spacewalk 1 by Reisman and Bowen 

(Installation of the backup Space-to-Ground 

Antenna on the Z1 truss and installation of a 

new tool platform on the Dextre robot) 

Flight Day 5 

• Unberth of the Russian Rassvet module from 

Atlantis’ payload bay and installation on the 

Earth-facing port of the Zarya module 

• Canadarm unberth of the Orbiter Boom 

Sensor System and handoff to the shuttle’s 

robotic arm 

• Focused inspection of Atlantis’ thermal 

protection heat shield, if required 

• Spacewalk 2 preparations by Bowen and 

Good 

• Spacewalk 2 procedure review 

• Spacewalk 2 campout by Bowen and Good 

in the Quest airlock 
14 TIMELINE OVERVIEW MAY 2010

Flight Day 6 

• Canadarm 2 removal of the Integrated Cargo 

Carrier from the Mobile Base System 

attachment device and relocation at the 

Spacewalk 2 worksite 

• Spacewalk 2 by Bowen and Good (remove 

and replace three of the six batteries in the 

P6 truss) 

Flight Day 7 

• Middeck cargo transfer from Atlantis to 

the space station 

• Rassvet/Zarya leak checks and Rassvet hatch 

opening for air duct installation (complete 

outfitting of Rassvet will be delayed until 

after Atlantis departs) 

• Crew off duty period 

• Spacewalk 3 preparations by Reisman 

and Good 

• Spacewalk 3 procedure review 

• Spacewalk 3 campout by Reisman and 

Good in the Quest airlock 

Flight Day 8 

• Spacewalk 3 by Reisman and Good (remove 

and replace the last three batteries on the P6 

truss and, if time permits, retrieve a spare 

Power and Data Grapple Fixture from the 

sidewall of Atlantis’ payload bay to be 

brought inside the station) 

• Canadarm 2 returns the Integrated Cargo 

Carrier to the Mobile Base System 

attachment device 

Flight Day 9 

• Canadarm 2 berths the Integrated Cargo 

Carrier in Atlantis’ cargo bay 

• Middeck cargo transfer from Atlantis to 

the station 

• Crew off duty time 

Flight Day 10 

• Final middeck cargo transfer from Atlantis 

to the station 

• Rendezvous Tool Checkout 

• Joint Crew News Conference 

• Farewells and Hatch Closure 

• Centerline Camera installation 

• Atlantis undocking from station and 

flyaround 

• Final separation from the station 

Flight Day 11 

• OBSS late inspection of Atlantis’ thermal 

heat shield 

• OBSS berth 

Flight Day 12 

• Cabin stowage 

• Flight Control System checkout 

• Reaction Control System hot-fire test 

• Deorbit Preparation Briefing 

• Ku-band antenna stowage 
MAY 2010 TIMELINE OVERVIEW 15

Flight Day 13 

• Deorbit preparations 

• Payload Bay Door closing 

• Deorbit burn 

• KSC Landing 
16 TIMELINE OVERVIEW MAY 2010

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MAY 2010 MISSION PROFILE 17

MISSION PROFILE 

CREW 

Commander: Ken Ham

Pilot: Tony Antonelli

Mission Specialist 1: Garrett Reisman 

Mission Specialist 2: Michael Good

Mission Specialist 3: Steve Bowen

Mission Specialist 4: Piers Sellers 

LAUNCH 

Orbiter: Atlantis (OV-104) 

Launch Site: Kennedy Space Center 

Launch Pad 39A 

Launch Date: May 14, 2010 

Launch Time: 2:20 p.m. EDT (Preferred 

In-Plane launch time for 

5/14) 

Launch Window: 10 Minutes 

Altitude: 122 Nautical Miles 

(140 Miles) Orbital Insertion; 

190 NM (218 Miles) 

Rendezvous 

Inclination: 51.6 Degrees 

Duration: 11 Days 18 Hours 23 Minutes 

VEHICLE DATA 

Shuttle Liftoff Weight: 4,519,769 

pounds 

Orbiter/Payload Liftoff Weight: 263,100 

pounds 

Orbiter/Payload Landing Weight: 209,491 

pounds 

Software Version: OI-34 

Space Shuttle Main Engines: 

SSME 1: 2052 

SSME 2: 2051 

SSME 3: 2047 

External Tank: ET-136 

SRB Set: BI-143 

RSRM Set: 111 

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: May 26, 2010 

Landing Time: 08:44 a.m. EDT 

Primary landing Site: Kennedy Space Center 

Shuttle Landing Facility 

PAYLOADS 

Mini-Research Module-1 

Integrated Cargo Carrier 
18 MISSION PROFILE MAY 2010

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MAY 2010 MISSION OBJECTIVES 19

MISSION OBJECTIVES 

MAJOR OBJECTIVES 

1. Rendezvous and dock space shuttle Atlantis 

to the station’s Pressurized Mating Adapter 

(PMA)-2 and perform mandatory safety 

briefing for all crew members 

2. Activate and check out Mini-Research 

Module-1 (MRM-1) in the shuttle payload 

bay 

3. Support dual docked operations for 

23S docking (if required) 

4. Perform robotic installation of the MRM-1 

to the Zarya nadir port 

− Closure of a minimum of one set of 

hooks in the MRM-1/Zarya nadir 

interface 

− Confirmation of electrical connectivity 

through the MRM-1/Zarya Interface 

5. Transfer mandatory quantities of water 

from the shuttle to the space station per 

Flight Utilization Logistics Flight (ULF) 4 

Transfer Priority List (TPL) 

6. Transfer critical items per Flight ULF4 TPL 

7. Deploy Integrated Cargo Carrier – Vertical 

Lightweight Deployable-2 (ICC-VLD-2) 

with Orbital Replacement Units (ORUs) 

from the payload bay and stow on Mobile 

Transporter (MT) Payload ORU 

Accommodation (POA) 

8. Install the Space-to-Ground Antenna 

(SGAnt) and SGAnt boom on Z1 truss 

9. Install the Enhanced ORU Temporary 

Platform (EOTP) on the Special Purpose 

Dexterous Manipulator (SPDM) 

10. Replace the six P6 channel 4B batteries 

currently in orbit with new batteries from 

the ICC-VLD-2 and return the old batteries 

on ICC-VLD-2 

11. Return the ICC-VLD2 with old batteries to 

the shuttle payload bay 

12. Transfer mission success items per the 

Flight ULF4 TPL 

13. Remove the Payload Data Grapple 

Fixture (PDGF) from the shuttle sidewall 

carrier and transfer to the space station 

14. Perform Intravehicular Activity (IVA) tasks 

to allow for return of in-orbit hardware 

15. Perform daily station payload status checks, 

as required 

16. Perform nonrecoverable station 

utilization/science activities (not listed in 

priority order): 

− Bisphosphonates 

− Double Coldbag (DCB) packing 

− Waving and Coiling of Arabidopsis 

Roots at Different g-levels (WAICO) bag 

packing 

− General Laboratory Active Cryogenic 

ISS Experiment Refrigerator (GLACIER) 

− Microbiology-2 (Micro-2) 
20 MISSION OBJECTIVES MAY 2010

− Mycological Evaluation of Crew 

Exposure to ISS Ambient Air (Myco) 

− National Lab Pathfinder (NLP) 

vaccine-9 

− SPINAL long (station U.S. Operating 

Segment (USOS) crew) and SPINAL 

short (shuttle crew) 

− Fish Scales 

17. Transfer additional quantities of water from 

the shuttle to station per ULF4 TPL 

18. Transfer remaining cargo items per Flight 

ULF4 TPL 

19. The following spacewalk tasks are deemed 

to fit within the existing extravehicular 

activity (EVA) timelines; however, they may 

be deferred if the EVA is behind schedule. 

The EVA will not be extended to complete 

these tasks: 

− Install EOTP input drive mechanism 

and two fuse ORUs 

20. Perform daily middeck status checks to 

support payloads 

21. Perform remaining station payload research 

operations tasks 

− SDBI 1634 SLEEP/WAKE actigraphy 

and light exposure during spaceflight 

(“Sleep-Short”) 

22. Perform Russian resupply 

23. Transfer nitrogen from the shuttle to the 

station’s airlock High Pressure Gas Tanks 

(HGPTs) 

24. Transfer oxygen from the shuttle to the 

station’s airlock HGPTs as consumables 

allow 

25. Perform imagery survey of the station’s 

exterior during fly-around after undock 

26. Perform reboost of the station with the 

shuttle if mission resources allow and are 

consistent with station trajectory analysis 

and planning 

27. Perform program-approved EVA get-ahead 

tasks. The following EVA get-ahead tasks 

do not fit in the existing EVA timelines; 

however, the EVA team will be trained and 

ready to perform them, should the 

opportunity arise: 

− Port 3 Crew and Equipment 

Transfer/Translation Aid (CETA) light 

− Port 4/Port 5 NH3 jumper 

28. Perform program-approved IVA get-ahead 

tasks. The following IVA get-ahead tasks 

do not fit in the existing IVA timelines; 

however, the IVA team will be trained and 

ready to perform should the opportunity 

arise: 

− Ingress MRM-1 

29. Perform Station Development Test 

Objective (SDTO) 13005-U, ISS Structural 

Life Validation and Extension, during 

MRM-1 installation 

30. Perform SDTO 13005-U, ISS Structural Life 

Validation and Extension, during shuttlemated reboost 
MAY 2009 MISSION OBJECTIVES 21

31. Perform SDTO 13005-U, ISS Structural Life 

Validation and Extension, during ULF4 

docking 

32. Perform SDTO 13005-U, ISS Structural Life 

Validation and Extension, during ULF4 

undocking, if crew time available 

33. Perform payload of opportunity operations 

to support Maui Analysis of Upper 

Atmospheric Injections (MAUI), Shuttle 

Exhaust Ion Turbulence Experiment 

(SEITE), Shuttle Ionospheric Modification 

with Pulsed Local Exhaust (SIMPLEX) and 

Ram Burn Observations (RAMBO-2) 
22 MISSION PRIORITIES NOVEMBER 2009

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MAY 2010 MISSION PERSONNEL 23

MISSION PERSONNEL 

KEY CONSOLE POSITIONS FOR STS-132 

 Flt. Director CAPCOM PAO

Ascent Richard Jones Charlie Hobaugh 

TBD (Wx) 

Kyle Herring 

Orbit 1 (Lead) Mike Sarafin Chris Cassidy Kyle Herring 

Orbit 2 Chris Edelen Stan Love Josh Byerly 

Planning Ginger Kerrick Shannon Lucid Nicole CloutierLemasters 

Entry Tony Ceccacci Charlie Hobaugh 

TBD (Wx) 

Josh Byerly 

Shuttle Team 4 TBD N/A N/A 

ISS Orbit 1 Holly Ridings Zach Jones N/A 

ISS Orbit 2 (Lead) Emily Nelson Steve Swanson N/A 

ISS Orbit 3 Dina Contella Rob Hayhurst N/A 

Station Team 4 Royce Renfrew 

JSC PAO Representative at KSC for Launch – Kelly Humphries

KSC Launch Commentator – George Diller

KSC Launch Director – Mike Leinbach

NASA Launch Test Director – Jeremy Graeber 
24 MISSION PERSONNEL MAY 2010

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MAY 2010 CREW 25

STS-132 CREW 

The STS-132 mission will be the 32nd flight of 

the space shuttle Atlantis. The primary STS-132 

mission objective is to deliver the Russian-made 

MRM-1 (Mini-Research Module) to the 

International Space Station. Atlantis also will 

deliver a new communications antenna and a 

new set of batteries for one of the station’s solar 

arrays. The STS-132 mission patch features 

Atlantis flying off into the sunset as the end of 

the Space Shuttle Program approaches. 

However, the sun is also heralding the promise 

of a new day as it rises for the first time on a 

new station module, the MRM-1, named 

“Rassvet,” the Russian word for dawn. 

Short biographical sketches of the crew appear 

in this package. 

More detailed biographies are available at: 

http://www.jsc.nasa.gov/bios/
26 CREW APRIL 2010

The STS-132 crew members, shown clockwise, are NASA astronauts Ken Ham (bottom), 

commander; Garrett Reisman and Michael Good, mission specialists; Tony Antonelli, pilot; 

and Piers Sellers and Steve Bowen, mission specialists. 
MAY 2010 CREW 27

STS-132 CREW BIOGRAPHIES 

Ken Ham 

Ken Ham, a captain in the U.S. Navy, 

will command STS-132 and its crew. As 

commander, he will have overall responsibility 

for the safety and execution of the mission and 

will oversee the crew and ensure mission 

objectives are met. He will fly Atlantis during 

its rendezvous and docking to the space station 

and landing back on Earth. 

Before being selected by NASA in 1998, Ham 

was temporarily assigned to the NASA-JSC 

zero-g office at Ellington Field in Houston 

where he flew as a crew member on the NASA 

zero-g research aircraft. 

In 2008, Ham served as pilot of STS-124, which 

delivered the Kibo pressurized science 

laboratory to the space station. He has spent 

more than 13 days in space and has logged 

more than 5,000 flight hours in more than 

40 different types of aircraft. 
28 CREW MAY 2010

Tony Antonelli 

A commander in the U.S. Navy, Tony Antonelli 

will pilot STS-132. He will assist Ham with 

rendezvous and landing, and will fly the orbiter 

during undocking and the flyaround. 

This will be Antonelli’s second trip to space. 

Selected as a pilot by NASA in 2000, Antonelli 

has accumulated more than 3,600 hours of 

flight time in more than 41 different kinds of 

aircraft. 

He served as pilot of STS-119 in 2009, which 

delivered the S6 Integrated Truss Segment and 

the final pair of power-generating solar array 

wings to the space station. 
MAY 2010 CREW 29

Garrett Reisman 

Garrett Reisman, who holds a Ph.D. in 

mechanical engineering, will serve as mission 

specialist 1 on STS-132. Following Astronaut 

Candidate Training in 1998, he completed work 

in the Astronaut Office Robotics Branch, 

primarily working on the space station robotic 

arm, and then later served in the Astronaut 

Office Advanced Vehicles Branch, working on 

the displays and checklists to be used in the 

next-generation space shuttle cockpit. In 2003, 

he was a crew member on NEEMO V, living on 

the bottom of the sea in the Aquarius habitat for 

two weeks. 

In 2008, Reisman completed his first 

spaceflight, spending more than three months 

in space and accruing more than seven hours of 

extravehicular activity, or EVA, time. He 

launched to space with the STS-123 crew and 

returned home on STS-124. He served with the 

Expedition 16 and Expedition 17 crews as a 

flight engineer. 
30 CREW MAY 2010

Michael Good 

A retired colonel in the U.S. Air Force, 

Michael Good will be making his second trip to 

space on STS-132, serving as mission 

specialist 2. 

After being selected by NASA as a mission 

specialist in 2000, Good was assigned technical 

duties in the Astronaut Office Advanced 

Vehicles Branch and the Space Shuttle Branch. 

In 2009, he served on the crew of STS-125, the 

final space shuttle mission to the Hubble Space 

Telescope, spending nearly 13 days in space 

and logging almost 16 hours of EVA time 

during two spacewalks. 
MAY 2010 CREW 31

Steve Bowen 

The first-ever submarine officer selected by 

NASA, Steve Bowen, a captain in the U.S. 

Navy, is assigned to serve as mission 

specialist 3 on STS-132. 

Upon completion of Astronaut Candidate 

Training, Bowen was initially assigned 

technical duties in the Astronaut Office Station 

Operations Branch. He completed his first 

spaceflight aboard STS-126 in 2008 where he 

spent more than 15 days in space and logged 

more than 19 hours of EVA time in three 

spacewalks. 
32 CREW MAY 2010

Piers Sellers 

Veteran astronaut Piers Sellers will serve as 

mission specialist 4 on STS-132. His two 

previous spaceflights include STS-112 in 2002 

and STS-121 in 2006. 

Selected as an astronaut candidate by NASA in 

1996, Sellers was initially assigned technical 

duties in the Astronaut Office Computer 

Support Branch, then moved to the Astronaut 

Office Space Station Branch during which he 

worked part time in Moscow as a technical 

liaison on station computer software. 

He has logged more than 559 hours in space, 

including nearly 41 EVA hours in six 

spacewalks. 
MAY 2010 PAYLOAD OVERVIEW 33

PAYLOAD OVERVIEW 

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-132 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-132 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. 

The ICC – VLD will carry six battery ORUs 

for the Port 6 (P6) Integrated Equipment 

Assembly (IEA). The P6 containing the initial 

station high-power components was launched 

on Nov. 30, 2000. The IEA contains 12 Battery 

Subassembly ORUs (six batteries) that are 

charged from the solar arrays during sunlit 
34 PAYLOAD OVERVIEW MAY 2010

periods and provide station power during 

eclipse and maintenance periods. Previously, 

six of the original P6 battery ORUs were 

changed out during the STS-127 (2J/A) mission. 

Thirty-eight Individual Pressure Vessel (IPV) 

Nickel Hydrogen (Ni-H2) 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. 

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 one Space-to-Ground Antenna (SGANT), 

one SGANT boom, and one Enhanced Orbital 

Replacement Unit Temporary Platform (EOTP). 

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 

SGANT currently is mounted on top of the 

Zenith one (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 dish measures 6 feet (72 inches) in 

diameter, and 6 feet (72 inches) high, including 

gimbals, and weighs 194 pounds. 

The SGANT Orbital Replacement Unit (ORU), 

the SGANT Flight Support Equipment (FSE) 

Installation Kit, and the Small Adapter Plate 

Assembly (SAPA) comprise the Integrated 

Assembly, SGANT FSE Installation Kit 

(hereafter referred to as the Integrated 

Assembly). The installation kit is composed 

of hardware that provides a mechanical, 

structural and electrical bonding interface 

between the SGANT ORU and the SAPA. The 

SGANT FSE Installation Kit provides 

thermal conditioning of the SGANT ORU. The 

hardware is extravehicular activity (EVA) 

compatible. The FSE Installation Kit is used 

to support transportation of SGANT ORUs 

from Earth to orbit, cargo transfer to the 

in-orbit position on the International Space 

Station, and return from orbit to Earth. When 

used with the proper carrier or storage 

platform, the SGANT FSE Installation Kit can 

be used to support storage of the SGANT ORU 

at in-orbit station external payload sites. It can 

be separated from the Passive Flight Releasable 

Attachment Mechanism (PFRAM) Interface 

Plate (IP) Assembly mounted to the launch 

carrier, or the station stowage platform. 

The SGANT Boom Assembly provides power, 

data, and structural support to the redundant 

SGANT and the Space-to-Ground Transmit 

Receive Controller (SGTRC) units. The 

SGANT Boom Assembly will attach to the 

Integrated Truss Structure (ITS) Z1 berthing 

face at the original SGANT launch location for 

transmission of mechanical loads and 

vibrations. It will position and align the 

redundant SGANT to be ready for use should 

the primary SGANT fail in orbit. The Boom 

Attached Cables (BAC) provide an electrical 
MAY 2010 PAYLOAD OVERVIEW 35

interface to the SGANT and SGTRC units for 

power, 1553 command and control data, 

and Radio Frequency (RF) signals and 

Intermediate Frequency (IF) signals carrying 

International Space Station space-to-ground 

communications. The waveguide is also 

attached to the Boom Assembly and provides a 

conduit for Radio Frequency (RF) signals 

between the SGTRC and SGANT. 

The Enhanced ORU Temporary Platform 

(EOTP) is hardware supporting the operation of 

the Special Purpose Dexterous Manipulator 

(SPDM). It is built by MDA and provided as 

NASA Government Furnished Equipment. 

Return of the EOTP is not planned for this 

mission. The EOTP has a Passive FRAM 

interface, which is used to transfer launch 

loads. The interface structure between EOTP 

and the ICC-VLD is Flight Support Equipment 

(FSE) developed and owned by Astrium-ST. 

It interfaces with the PFRAM of the EOTP. The 

EOTP does not require power or data interfaces 

while on the ICC. 

ICC-VLD Launch Configuration 

ICC-VLD Return Configuration 
36 PAYLOAD OVERVIEW MAY 2010

MINI-RESEARCH MODULE-1 

The Mini-Research Module-1 (MRM-1) is a new 

Russian module that will be delivered to the 

International Space Station by space shuttle 

Atlantis on the STS-132 mission. 

MRM-1, which has been named Rassvet, a 

Russian word meaning dawn, will be used 

primarily for cargo storage and some payload 

operations. The module will be berthed to the 

Earth-facing port of the Zarya module using the 

station robotic arm on Flight Day 5. 

Developed at Korolev Rocket and Space Corp. 

Energia (RSC Energia), MRM-1 also will 

provide a fourth docking port on the Russian 

operation segment of the station for the docking 

of Soyuz and Progress vehicles. 

MRM-1 is 19.7 feet long (6 meters), has 

a maximum exterior diameter of 7.7 feet 

(2.35 meters) and weighs 11,188 pounds 

(5,075 kilograms). For its flight to the station, 

the MRM-1 will carry a total of 6,482 pounds 

(2,940 kilograms) of cargo on its internal and 

exterior stowage locations while in Atlantis’ 

payload bay. 

On its shell, Rassvet will carry a spare elbow 

joint for the European Robotic Arm (ERA) 

and outfitting equipment for the Russian 

Multi-Purpose Laboratory Module (MLM), 

which is scheduled to launch on a Russian 

rocket in 2012. The outfitting equipment will 

include a radiator, an airlock for payloads, 

and a Portable Work Post (PWP) that will 

provide a spacewalk worksite for ERA 

activation, checkout, and operations. 

Once MRM-1 is installed on its Zarya port, its 

614 cubic feet (17 cubic meters) of pressurized 

volume, will increase the space station’s total 

pressurized volume to 29,561 cubic feet 

(837 cubic meters), and its 207 cubic feet 

(5.8 cubic meters) will increase the total 

habitable volume to 12,705 cubic feet 

(360 cubic meters). After installation and 

Atlantis’ departure, the station’s total mass will 

be 815,519 pounds (369,914 kilograms). 

MRM-1 (Rassvet) Basic Specifications: 

Module launch 

mass: 

11,188 pounds 

(5,075 kilograms) 

Total launch 

mass: 

17,760 pounds 

(8,015 kilograms), including 

cargo (European Robotic 

Arm for Columbus, airlock 

for Multipurpose 

Laboratory Module and a 

portable workplace) 

Maximum hull 

diameter: 

7.7 feet (2.35 meters) 

Hull length 

between 

docking 

assembly 

planes: 

19.7 feet (6.0 meters) 

Pressurized 

volume: 

614 cubic feet 

(17.4 cubic meters) 

Habitable 

volume: 

207 cubic feet 

(5.85 cubic meters) 
MAY 2010 PAYLOAD OVERVIEW 37
38 PAYLOAD OVERVIEW MAY 2010

•MLM Radiator

•PDA

•Portable 

Work Platform

•MLM Airlock

•PVGF

•ERA Elbow Spare

MRM-1 Overview 

• Mini-Research Module-1 (MRM-1) was 

manufactured from the residual Dynamic 

Test Article of the Science Power 

Platform (SPP) 

• MLM outfitting hardware is mounted 

externally on MRM-1 

• 3,086 pounds of NASA cargo launches 

inside (211 cubic feet of usable on-orbit 

stowage volume) 
MAY 2010 RENDEZVOUS & DOCKING 39

RENDEZVOUS & DOCKING 

This is a high-angle view of the crew cabin of the space shuttle Atlantis during the second 

spacewalk of Atlantis’ visit to the International Space Station. 

Atlantis’ launch for the STS-132 mission is 

precisely timed to lead to a linkup with the 

International Space Station about 220 miles 

above Earth. A series of engine firings during 

the first two days of the mission will bring the 

shuttle to a point about 50,000 feet behind the 

station. Once there, Atlantis 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 Atlantis 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 the shuttle about 1,000 feet 

below the station. 

Commander Ken Ham, with help from Pilot 

Tony Antonelli and other crew members, will 

manually fly the shuttle for the remainder of 

the approach and docking. 
40 RENDEZVOUS & DOCKING MAY 2010

Ham will stop Atlantis about 600 feet below the 

station. Timing the next steps to occur with 

proper lighting, he will maneuver the shuttle 

through an approximate eight-minute back flip 

called the Rendezvous Pitch Maneuver, also 

known as the R-bar Pitch Maneuver since 

Atlantis is in line with an imaginary vertical 

R-bar directly below the station. During this 

maneuver, station crew members Oleg Kotov 

and Timothy (T.J.) Creamer will photograph 

Atlantis’ upper and lower surfaces through 

windows of the Zvezda Service Module. They 

will use digital cameras equipped with an 

800mm lens to provide up to one-inch 

resolution and a 400mm lens providing 

three-inch resolution. 

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 panels along the wing 

leading edges and the nose cap, landing gear 

doors and the elevon cove. The photos will be 

downlinked through the station’s Ku-band 

communications system for analysis by 

imagery experts in Mission Control. 

When Atlantis completes its back flip, it will be 

back where it started with its payload bay 

facing the station. Ham then will fly the shuttle 

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 Atlantis’ docking 

mechanism. 

Using a video camera mounted in the center of 

the Orbiter Docking System, Ham will line up 

the docking ports of the two spacecraft. If 

necessary, he will pause the shuttle 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 

Atlantis and the station are moving at about 

17,500 mph. Ham will keep the docking 

mechanisms aligned to a tolerance of three 

inches. 

When Atlantis makes contact with the station, 

preliminary latches will automatically link 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. Atlantis’ steering jets 

will be shut off to avoid any inadvertent firings 

during the initial separation. 

Once the shuttle is about two feet from the 

station and the docking devices are clear of one 

another, Antonelli will turn the steering jets 

back on and will manually control Atlantis 

within a tight corridor as the shuttle separates 

from the station. 
7 

MAY 2010 RENDEZVOUS & DOCKING 41

Atlantis will move to a distance of about 

450 feet, where Antonelli will begin to fly 

around the station. Atlantis will circle the 

shuttle around the station at a distance of 

600-700 feet. 

Once the shuttle completes 1.5 revolutions of 

the complex, Antonelli will fire Atlantis’ jets to 

leave the area. The shuttle will begin to 

increase its distance behind the station with 

each trip around Earth while ground teams 

analyze data from the late inspection of the 

shuttle’s heat shield. However, the distance 

will be 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. 
42 RENDEZVOUS & DOCKING MAY 2010

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MAY 2010 SPACEWALKS 43

SPACEWALKS 

Astronaut Garrett Reisman, Expedition 16 flight engineer, participates in the STS-123 mission’s 

first scheduled session of extravehicular activity as construction and maintenance 

continue on the International Space Station. 

Over the course of the three spacewalks of the 

STS-132 mission, the International Space Station 

will gain spare and replacement parts that will 

help it continue functioning well into the 

future. 

Mission Specialists Garrett Reisman, 

Michael Good and Steve Bowen will spend a 

total of 19.5 hours outside the station on flight 

days 4, 6 and 8. As all three crew members are 

experienced spacewalkers, they have elected 

not to designate one person as lead spacewalker 

for the mission; instead they’ll each take a turn 

in that role on a different spacewalk. Bowen, 

who performed three spacewalks totaling 

19 hours and 56 minutes during the STS-126 

mission in 2008, will wear a spacesuit marked 

with a red stripe. He’ll act as lead on the 

second spacewalk. Good, who spent 15 hours 

and 58 minutes working on the Hubble Space 

Telescope during STS-125 in 2009, will wear a 

suit with a band of red and white barber pole 

stripes and take the lead position on the third 

spacewalk. And Reisman, who took part in one 

spacewalk during the STS-123 mission in 2008, 
44 SPACEWALKS MAY 2010

will sport an all-white spacesuit. He’ll lead the 

first spacewalk. 

When a spacewalk – also called extravehicular 

activity, or EVA for short – is going on 

outside, one crew member inside the 

International Space Station is assigned the job 

of intravehicular officer, or spacewalk 

choreographer. In this case, that crew member 

will be Pilot Tony Antonelli. The spacewalks 

will also require astronauts inside the station to 

be at the controls of the station’s 58-foot-long 

robotic arm to maneuver ammonia tank 

assembly and other pieces of hardware. 

Mission Specialist Piers Sellers will be at 

the arm’s controls for those operations, along 

with whichever spacewalker isn’t outside the 

station on a given day and, in the case of the 

first and third spacewalks, station Flight 

Engineer Tracy Caldwell Dyson. 

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 pre-breathe 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 

pre-breathe protocol will be complete. 

The procedure enables spacewalks to begin 

earlier in the crew’s day than was possible 

before the protocol was adopted. 
MAY 2010 SPACEWALKS 45

EVA-1 

Duration: 6 hours, 30 minutes 

EVA Crew: Reisman (lead) and Bowen 

IV CREW: Antonelli 

Robotic Arm Operators: Sellers, Good and 

Dyson 

EVA Operations: 

• Install spare space-to-ground antenna 

• Install spare parts platform on the Special 

Purpose Dexterous Manipulator (Dextre) 

• Loosen P6 battery bolts 

The first spacewalk of the mission will be the 

only spacewalk not devoted to battery 

replacement – though there will be some prep 

work for that task before the spacewalkers 

finish for the day. 

Once they’ve made their way out of the Quest 

airlock, Reisman and Bowen will move to a 

pallet of equipment brought up inside the 

shuttle’s cargo bay and moved to the robotic 

arm’s mobile base during flight day 3. On it 

are six new batteries for the P6 solar array, a 

spare space-to-ground antenna and a new piece 

of equipment for the Special Purpose Dexterous 

Manipulator, or Dextre. 
46 SPACEWALKS MAY 2010

At the pallet, Bowen will prepare the space-toground antenna dish for removal, then he and 

Reisman will each release four of the eight bolts 

holding the boom of the antenna onto the 

pallet. Reisman will then climb onto the end of 

the space station’s robotic arm, so that he can 

carry the boom via the robotic arm to the 

Z1 segment of the station’s truss system. And 

once Reisman is on his way, Bowen will 

prepare for removal a new storage platform 

brought up for Dextre. 

When the spacewalkers meet back up at the 

Z1 segment of the truss, Bowen will install the 

antenna boom by driving two mounting bolts, 

and then begin connecting six power and data 

cables to the antenna while Reisman rides the 

robotic arm back to the pallet to retrieve the 

antenna dish, a task that will require removing 

two more bolts. Bowen should also have time 

to remove some insulation from the boom 

before Reisman returns. 

Installing the antenna dish will require the 

spacewalkers to secure four bolts, then Reisman 

will connect two final cables, and, if time 

permits, Bowen will install a heat shield on the 

antenna’s group interface tube and remove 

locks that prevent the antenna dish from 

rotating. 

Reisman will then travel back to the spare parts 

pallet to pick up Dextre’s new storage platform, 

after removing the four bolts holding it in place. 

He’ll meet Bowen back at Dextre on top of the 

Destiny laboratory, where they’ll install four 

bolts to secure the platform to the robot and, if 

time permits, connect two electrical fuses and 

install a maintenance tether. 

While Reisman is getting off the robotic arm, 

Bowen will wrap up the planned work for the 

spacewalk by moving out to the end of the port 

side of the station’s truss to the batteries of the 

P6 solar arrays, which will be swapped out over 

the course of the following two spacewalks. 

He’ll get the six batteries ready for removal by 

loosening the two bolts holding each one in 

place, and then make his way back to the 

airlock. 
MAY 2010 SPACEWALKS 47

EVA-2 

Duration: 6 hours, 30 minutes 

EVA Crew: Bowen (lead) and Good 

IV CREW: Antonelli 

Robotic Arm Operators: Sellers and Reisman 

EVA Operations: 

• P6 battery swap, part 1 

Bowen and Good will replace three of the six 

batteries on the B side of the P6 solar array 

during this spacewalk – each of the two wings 

of the four solar arrays at the space station are 

designated either A or B. The six batteries on 

the A side of the P6 were replaced on STS-127. 

The new batteries will be designated by letters 

A through F, and the old batteries numbered 

one through six. Good will remove an old 

battery from the solar array’s integrated 

electrical assembly using two “scoops” that will 

been installed by Bowen to make it possible to 

maneuver the batteries. After removing two 

bolts, Good will hand battery 1 off, get out of 

the foot restraint he was working in, move 

closer to Bowen and take hold of the battery 

again. Bowen will then release the battery, 

move slightly further down the truss and 

position himself to take hold of the battery. 

Good will hand the battery to Bowen and then 

move himself closer to once again take hold and 

control the battery. The process is called 
48 SPACEWALKS MAY 2010

“shepherding,” and might appear as though the 

spacewalkers are “inch-worming” along the 

truss, 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, 

Good will use one of the scoops to attach it 

to a multi-use tether , or ball-stack. The 

spacewalkers will then remove battery A from 

the pallet it launched to the station on (the 

space station robotic arm will be holding the 

pallet nearby for the spacewalkers’ access) and 

shepherd it back to the integrated electrical 

assembly for installation in slot 1. The next step 

will be to remove battery 2, shepherd it to the 

pallet to be installed in slot A, and remove 

battery B to be installed in slot 2. 

The process will continue until three batteries 

have been installed, then the first battery will be 

removed from its temporary storage location 

and installed in the vacant spot on the pallet. 

The order will be: 

Battery 1 to temporary storage 

Battery A to Slot 1 

Battery 2 to Slot A 

Battery B to Slot 2 

Battery 3 to Slot B 

Battery C to Slot 3 

Battery 1 to Slot C 
MAY 2010 SPACEWALKS 49

EVA-3 

Duration: 6 hours, 30 minutes 

EVA Crew: Good (lead) and Reisman 

IV CREW: Antonelli 

Robotic Arm Operators: Sellers, Bowen and 

Dyson 

EVA Operations: 

• P6 battery swap, part 2 

Good and Reisman will spend the third and 

final spacewalk finishing up the battery swap 

work that Good and Bowen started. They’ll use 

the same procedure and perform the work in 

the following order: 

Battery 4 to temporary storage 

Battery D to Slot 4 

Battery 5 to Slot D 

Battery E to Slot 5 

Battery 6 to Slot E 

Battery F to Slot 6 

Battery 1 to Slow F 
50 SPACEWALKS MAY 2010

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MAY 2010 EXPERIMENTS 51

EXPERIMENTS 

The STS-132/ULF-4 mission will deliver 

Mini-Research Module-1, a Russian storage 

module that also will include a Russian 

payloads airlock destined for use on the 

Russian Multi-Purpose Laboratory Module 

(MLM) once it is launched, and continues the 

transition from International Space Station 

assembly to continuous scientific research 

though the end of the decade. 

In addition to the module, Atlantis will deliver 

inside MRM, also known as Rassvet, Crew 

Health Care System medical support 

equipment, and equipment for cold storage and 

National Laboratory Pathfinder equipments. 

Nearly 150 operating experiments in biological 

and biotechnology; human research; physical 

and materials sciences; technology 

development; Earth and space science, and 

educational activities will be conducted aboard 

the station, including several pathfinder 

investigations under the auspices of the 

station’s new role as a U.S. National 

Laboratory. 

In the past, assembly and maintenance 

activities have dominated the available time for 

crew work. But as completion of the orbiting 

laboratory nears, additional facilities and the 

crew members to operate them is expanding 

the time devoted to research as a national and 

multinational laboratory. 

On STS-132, research continues into how the 

human body is affected by long-duration stays 

in microgravity. Among the experiments being 

delivered to the space station, of note, is the 

Nutritional Status Assessment, the most 

comprehensive in-flight study done by NASA 

to date of human physiologic changes during 

long-duration spaceflight. 

Included in multiple experiments returning on 

STS-132 will be NASA’s Integrated Immune 

study samples, which will allow researchers to 

assess and address the adverse effects of 

spaceflight on the human immune system. 

JAXA’s NeuroRad, which has studied the 

effects of space radiation on nerve cell tumors, 

and ESA’s DOSIS-DOBIES, addressing the 

distribution and measurement of radiation 

inside the space station and crew, are returning 

as well. 

Also, three major additions to the research 

facilities aboard the station – the Minus EightyDegree Laboratory Freezer for ISS (MELFI), a 

multi-purpose freezer for storing samples, the 

Window Observational Research Facility 

(WORF), a facility for Earth science remote 

sensing instruments, and Express Rack 7, a 

multi-purpose payload rack for experiments – 

were delivered by Discovery’s crew on the 

recent STS-131 shuttle mission. Those facilities 

have been installed and checked out inside the 

station and will be used by the Expedition 23 

and Expedition 24 crews to expand the station’s 

research potential. 

SHORT-DURATION EXPERIMENTS TO 

BE PERFORMED ON STS-132/ULF4 

Research activities on the shuttle and station are 

integrated to maximize return during station 

assembly. The shuttle serves as a platform for 

completing short-duration research, while 

providing supplies and sample return for 

ongoing research on station. 
52 EXPERIMENTS MAY 2010

Biology and Biotechnology 

Microbiology – 2 (Micro-2) is a fundamental 

biology experiment that expands our 

understanding of the fundamental basis of how 

spaceflight affects the biological and molecular 

functions of the cell and the molecular 

mechanisms, by which cells and tissues 

respond to spaceflight conditions. (NASA) 

National Lab Pathfinder – Cells – 4 

(NLP-Cells-4) is a commercial payload serving 

as a pathfinder for the use of the space station 

as a National Laboratory after station assembly 

is complete. It contains several different 

experiments that examine cellular replication 

and differentiation of cells. This research is 

investigating the use of spaceflight to enhance 

or improve cellular growth processes utilized in 

ground-based research. Principal investigator: 

Timothy Hammond, Durham Veterans Affairs 

Medical Center, Durham, N.C. (NASA) 

National Lab Pathfinder – Vaccine – 9 

(NLP-Vaccine-9) is a commercial payload 

serving as a pathfinder for the use of the space 

station as a National Laboratory. It contains 

several different pathogenic (disease causing) 

organisms. This research is investigating the 

use of spaceflight to develop potential vaccines 

for the prevention of different infections caused 

by these pathogens on Earth and in 

microgravity. Principal investigator: Timothy 

Hammond, Durham Veterans Affairs Medical 

Center, Durham, N.C. (NASA) 

Human Research 

Hypersole will determine how balance control 

is affected by changes in skin sensitivity 

pre- and post-spaceflight, specifically changes 

in skin sensitivity of the sole of the foot where 

receptors related to balance and maintaining 

balance while moving are located. Principal 

investigator for Hypersole: Dr. Leah R. Bent of 

the University of Guelph in Guelph, Ontario, 

Canada. (CSA) 

Sleep-Wake Actigraphy and Light Exposure 

During Spaceflight – Short (Sleep-Short) will 

examine the effects of spaceflight on the sleep 

of the astronauts during space shuttle missions. 

Advancing state-of-the-art technology for 

monitoring, diagnosing and assessing 

treatment of sleep patterns is vital to treating 

insomnia on Earth and in space. Principal 

investigator: Charles A. Czeisler, Brigham and 

Women’s Hospital, Harvard Medical School, 

Boston, Mass. (NASA) 

Technology 

Maui Analysis of Upper Atmospheric 

Injections (MAUI), a Department of Defense 

experiment, observes the space shuttle engine 

exhaust plumes from the Maui Space 

Surveillance Site in Hawaii 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 are analyzed to 

better understand the interaction between 

the spacecraft plume and the upper atmosphere 

of Earth. Principal investigator: Rainer A. 

Dressler, Hanscom Air Force Base, Lexington, 

Mass. (NASA) 

Ram Burn Observations (RAMBO) an 

experiment uses a satellite to observe space 

shuttle orbital maneuvering system engine 

burns. Its purpose is to improve plume models, 

which predict the direction the plume, or 

rising column of exhaust, will move as the 

shuttle maneuvers in orbit. Understanding the 

direction in which the spacecraft engine plume 

or exhaust flows could be significant to the safe 
MAY 2010 EXPERIMENTS 53

arrival and departure of spacecraft on current 

and future exploration missions. Principal 

investigator: William L. Dimpfl, Aerospace 

Corporation, Los Angeles. (NASA) 

Shuttle Exhaust Ion Turbulence Experiments 

(SEITE), a Department of Defense experiment, 

uses space-based sensors to detect the 

ionospheric turbulence inferred from the radar 

observations from previous Space Shuttle 

Orbital Maneuvering System (OMS) burn 

experiments using ground-based radar. 

Principal investigator: Paul A. Bernhardt, 

Naval Research Laboratory, Washington D.C. 

(NASA) 

Shuttle Ionospheric Modification with Pulsed 

Localized Exhaust Experiments (SIMPLEX), 

a Department of Defense experiment, 

investigates plasma turbulence driven by 

rocket exhaust in the ionosphere using 

ground-based radars. Principal investigator: 

Paul A. Bernhardt, Naval Research Lab, 

Washington D.C. (NASA) 

EXPERIMENTS TO BE DELIVERED TO THE 

STATION ON STS-132/ULF4 

Biology and Biotechnology 

Gravity Related Genes in Arabidopsis – A 

(Genara-A) seeks to provide an understanding 

of microgravity-induced, altered-molecular 

activities that will help to find plant systems 

that compensate the negative impact on plant 

growth in space. Principal investigator: 

Eugenie Carnero-Diaz, Ph.D., Universite Pierre 

et Marie Curie, Paris, France. (ESA). 

Regulation by Gravity of Ferulate Formation 

in Cell Walls of Rice Seedlings (Ferulate) tests 

the hypothesis that microgravity modifies 

ferulic acid, thereby decreasing the mechanical 

strength of cell walls. Principal investigator: 

Kazuyuki Wakabayashi, Osaka City University, 

Osaka, Japan. (JAXA) 

Investigation of the Osteoclastic and 

Osteoblastic Responses to Microgravity Using 

Goldfish Scales (Fish Scales) will examine 

regenerating scales collected from anesthetized 

goldfish in microgravity using the Cell 

Biology Experiment Facility (CBEF); the results 

will be compared with ground controls. 

Principal investigator: Nobuo Suzuki, 

Kanazawa University, Kanazawa, Ishikawa, 

Japan. (JAXA) 

Hydrotropism and Auxin-Inducible Gene 

Expression in Roots Grown Under 

Microgravity Conditions (HydroTropi)

determines whether hydrotropic response can 

be used for the control of cucumber (Cucumis 

sativus) root growth orientation in microgravity. 

Principal investigator: Hideyuki Takahashi, 

Ph.D., Tohoku University, Sendai, Japan. 

(JAXA) 

Microbial Dynamics in International Space 

Station (Microbe-I) experiment monitors 

microbes on board the space station that may 

affect the health of crew members. Principal 

investigator: Koichi Makimura, Teikyo 

University, Otsuka, Hachioji, Japan. (JAXA) 

Educational Activities 

Cube Lab is a low-cost 1 kilogram platform for 

educational projects on the space station. 

(NASA) 

Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency – 

Education Payload Observation (JAXA-EPO)

activities demonstrate educational events and 

artistic activities on board the space station to 

enlighten the general public about microgravity 

research and human spaceflight. Principal 
54 EXPERIMENTS MAY 2010

investigator: Naoko Matsuo, Japan Aerospace 

Exploration Agency, Tsukuba, Japan. (JAXA) 

Human Research 

Bisphosphonates as a Countermeasure to 

Spaceflight Induced Bone Loss 

(Bisphosphonates) examines whether 

antiresorptive agents, which help reduce bone 

loss, in conjunction with the routine in-flight 

exercise program, will protect station crew 

members from the regional decreases in bone 

mineral density documented on previous space 

station missions. Principal investigators: 

Adrian LeBlanc, Division of Space Life Sciences, 

Universities Space Research Association, 

Houston; Toshio Matsumoto, University of 

Tokushima, Kuramoto, Japan. (NASA) 

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 study 

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. This 

experiment will also help to understand the 

impact of countermeasures (exercise and 

pharmaceuticals) on nutritional status and 

nutrient requirements for astronauts. Principal 

investigator: Scott M. Smith, Johnson Space 

Center, Houston. (NASA) 

Dietary Intake Can Predict and Protect 

Against Changes in Bone Metabolism During 

Spaceflight and Recovery (Pro K) investigation 

is NASA’s first evaluation of a dietary 

countermeasure to lessen bone loss of 

astronauts. Pro K proposes that a flight diet 

with a decreased ratio of animal protein to 

potassium will lead to decreased loss of bone 

mineral. Pro K will have an impact on the 

definition of nutritional requirements and 

development of food systems for future 

exploration missions, and could yield a method 

of counteracting bone loss that would have 

virtually no risk of side effects. Principal 

investigator: Scott M. Smith, Johnson Space 

Center, Houston. (NASA) 

National Aeronautics and Space 

Administration Biological Specimen 

Repository (Repository) is a storage bank that 

is used to maintain biological specimens over 

extended periods of time and under wellcontrolled conditions. Biological samples from 

the space station, including blood and urine, 

are collected, processed and archived during 

the preflight, in-flight and post-flight phases of 

space station missions. This investigation has 

been developed to archive biosamples for 

use as a resource for future spaceflight-related 

research. Principal investigator: Kathleen A. 

McMonigal, Johnson Space Center, Houston. 

(NASA) 

Physical and Materials Science 

Selectable Optical Diagnostics Instrument – 

Aggregation of Colloidal Suspensions 

(SODI-Colloid) studies the aggregation (mass) 

phenomena of colloids (tiny solid particles 

suspended in a liquid) in the microgravity 

environment on board the space station. 

Principal investigator: Gerard Wegdam, Van 

der Waals-Zeeman Institute, University of 

Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands. 

(ESA) 
MAY 2010 EXPERIMENTS 55

Technology 

Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency – 

Commercial Payload Program 

(JAXA-Commercial Payload Program) consists 

of commercial items sponsored by JAXA sent to 

the space station to experience the microgravity 

environment. (JAXA) 

SAMPLES/EXPERIMENTS TO BE 

RETURNED ON STS-132/ULF4 

Biology and Biotechnology 

APEX-CSA2 is one of a pair of investigations 

that use the Advanced Biological Research 

System (ABRS). APEX-CSA2 will compare the 

genes and tissue of the white spruce (Picea 

glauca) grown in space with those grown on 

Earth to help researchers understand the 

influence of gravity on plant physiology, 

growth and wood formation. APEX-CSA2 is 

led by Dr. Jean Beaulieu of Natural Resources 

Canada’s Canadian Wood Fibre Centre in 

Quebec City, Quebec, Canada with the close 

collaboration of the Canadian Space Agency 

(CSA) and NASA. 

Mycological Evaluation of Crew Exposure to 

Space Station Ambient Air (Myco) evaluates 

the risk of microorganisms via inhalation and 

adhesion to the skin to determine which fungi 

act as allergens on the space station. Principal 

investigator: Chiaki Mukai, Japan Aerospace 

Exploration Agency, Tsukuba, Japan. (JAXA) 

Biomedical Analyses of Human Hair Exposed 

to a Long-term Spaceflight (Hair) examines 

the effect of long-duration spaceflight on 

gene expression and trace element metabolism 

in the human body. Principal investigator: 

Chiaki Mukai, Japan Aerospace Exploration 

Agency, Tsukuba, Japan. (JAXA) 

Molecular Mechanism of MicrogravityInduced Skeletal Muscle Atrophy – 

Physiological Relevance of Cbl-b Ubiquitin 

Ligase (MyoLab) studies a rat muscle gene 

modified cell line to determine the effects of 

microgravity. Principal investigator: Takeshi 

Nikawa, The University of Tokushima, 

Tokoshima, Japan. (JAXA) 

Biological Effects of Space Radiation and 

Microgravity on Mammalian Cells 

(NeuroRad) studies the effects of space 

radiation on the human neuroblastoma (nerve 

cell containing a tumor) cell line in 

microgravity. Principal investigator: 

Hideyuki Majima, Kagoshima University, 

Kagoshima, Japan. (JAXA) 

Comprehensive Characterization of Microorganisms and Allergens in Spacecraft 

(SWAB) uses advanced molecular techniques to 

comprehensively evaluate microbes on board 

the space station, including pathogens 

(organisms that may cause disease). It also 

will track changes in the microbial community 

as spacecraft visit the station and new station 

modules are added. This study allows an 

assessment of the risk of microbes to the crew 

and the spacecraft. Principal investigator: 

Duane L. Pierson, Johnson Space Center, 

Houston. (NASA) 

Waving and Coiling of Arabidopsis Roots at 

Different g-levels (WAICO) studies the 

interaction of circumnutation (the successive 

bowing or bending in different directions of 

the growing tip of the stems and roots) and 

gravitropism (a tendency to grow toward or 

away from gravity) in microgravity and 1-g 

of Arabidopsis thaliana. Principal investigator: 

Guenther Scherer, Leibniz Universitat 

Hannover, Hannover, Germany. (ESA) 
56 EXPERIMENTS MAY 2010

Human Research 

Mental Representation of Spatial Cues 

During Spaceflight (3D-Space) experiment 

investigates 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 spatial cues, such as the 

perception of horizontal and vertical lines, the 

perception of an object’s depth, and the 

perception of a target’s distance. Principal 

investigator: Gilles Clement, Centre National 

de la Recherche Scientifique, Toulouse, France. 

(ESA) 

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. 

Principal investigator: Clarence Sams, Johnson 

Space Center, Houston. (NASA) 

IntraVenous Fluid GENeration for 

Exploration Missions (IVGEN) demonstrates 

the capability to purify water to the standards 

required for intravenous administration, then 

mix the water with salt crystals to produce 

normal saline. This hardware is a prototype 

that will allow flight surgeons more options to 

treat ill or injured crew members during future 

long-duration exploration missions. Hardware 

project scientist: John McQuillen, Glenn 

Research Center, Cleveland. (NASA) 

Changes in Nutrient Contents in Space Food 

After Long-term Spaceflight (Space Food 

Nutrient) assesses the changes in nutrient 

contents in Japanese space foods after exposure 

to the space station environment for longduration spaceflight. Principal investigator: 

Akiko Matsumoto, Japan Aerospace 

Exploration Agency, Tsukuba, Japan. (JAXA) 

Physical and Materials Science 

Materials Science Laboratory – Columnar-toEquiaxed Transition in Solidification 

Processing and Microstructure Formation in 

Casting of Technical Alloys Under Diffusive 

and Magnetically Controlled Convective 

Conditions (MSL-CETSOL and MICAST) are 

two investigations that support research into 

metallurgical solidification, semiconductor 

crystal growth (Bridgman and zone melting), 

and measurement of thermophysical properties 

of materials. This is a cooperative investigation 

with the European Space Agency (ESA) 

and National Aeronautics and Space 

Administration (NASA) for accommodation 

and operation aboard the space station. 

Principal investigators: Charles-Andre Gandin, 

Ecole de Mines de Paris, ARMINES-CEMEF; 

Sophia Antipolis, France (CETSOL); Lorenz 

Ratke, German Aerospace Center, Cologne, 

Germany (MICAST). (NASA) 

Space Dynamically Responding Ultrasonic 

Matrix System (SpaceDRUMS) comprises 

a suite of hardware that enables containerless 

processing (samples of experimental materials 

can be processed without ever touching a 

container wall). Using a collection of 

20 acoustic beam emitters, SpaceDRUMS can 
MAY 2010 EXPERIMENTS 57

completely suspend a baseball-sized solid or 

liquid sample during combustion or heat-based 

synthesis. Because the samples never contact 

the container walls, materials can be produced 

in microgravity with an unparalleled quality of 

shape and composition. The ultimate goal of 

the SpaceDRUMS hardware is to assist with the 

development of advanced materials of a 

commercial quantity and quality, using the 

space-based experiments to guide development 

of manufacturing processes on Earth. Principal 

investigator: Jacques Guigne, Guigne Space 

Systems Inc., Paradise, Newfoundland, Canada. 

(NASA) 

Selectable Optical Diagnostics Instrument – 

Diffusion and Soret Coefficient (SODI-DSC)

studies the diffusion in six different liquids 

over time in the absence of convection induced 

by the gravity field. (ESA) 

Earth and Space Sciences 

Dose Distribution Inside ISS – Dosimetry 

for Biological Experiments in Space 

(DOSIS-DOBIES) provides documentation of 

the actual nature and distribution of the 

radiation field inside the space station and 

develops a standard method to measure the 

absorbed doses in biological samples on board 

the station. Principal investigator: Guenther 

Reitz, German Aerospace Center, Cologne, 

Germany. (ESA) 

For more information on the science performed 

on the International Space Station, visit: 

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

science/

DETAILED SUPPLEMENTARY 

OBJECTIVES AND DETAILED TEST 

OBJECTIVES 

DSO-641 

Risk of Orthostatic Intolerance During 

Re-exposure to Gravity. One of the most 

important physiological changes that may 

negatively impact crew safety is post-flight 

orthostatic intolerance. Astronauts who have 

orthostatic intolerance are unable to maintain a 

normal systolic blood pressure during head-up 

tilt have elevated heart rates and may 

experience presyncope or syncope with upright 

posture. This problem affects about 30 percent 

of astronauts who fly short-duration missions 

(4–18 days) and 83 percent of astronauts who 

fly long-duration missions. This condition 

creates a potential hazard for crew members 

during re-entry and after landing, especially for 

emergency egress contingencies. 

Two countermeasures are currently employed 

to ameliorate post-flight orthostatic intolerance: 

fluid loading and an antigravity suit. 

Unfortunately, neither of these are completely 

effective for all phases of landing and egress; 

thus, continued countermeasure development 

is important. Preliminary evidence has shown 

that commercial compression hose that include 

abdominal compression can significantly 

improve orthostatic tolerance. These data are 

similar to clinical studies using inflatable 

compression garments. 

Custom-fitted, commercial compression 

garments will be evaluated as countermeasures 

to immediate and longer-term post-flight 

orthostatic intolerance. These garments will 

provide a continuous, graded compression 

from the foot to the hip, and a static 
58 EXPERIMENTS MAY 2010

compression over the lower abdomen. These 

garments should provide superior fit and 

comfort as well as being easier to don. Tilt 

testing will be used as an orthostatic challenge 

before and after spaceflight. 

DTO 805 Crosswind Landing Performance (If opportunity) 

The purpose of this DTO is to demonstrate the 

capability to perform a manually controlled 

landing in the presence of a crosswind. The 

testing is done in two steps. 

1. Pre-launch: Ensure planning will allow 

selection of a runway with Microwave 

Scanning Beam Landing System support, 

which is a set of dual transmitters located 

beside the runway providing precision 

navigation vertically, horizontally and 

longitudinally with respect to the runway. 

This precision navigation subsystem helps 

provide a higher probability of a more 

precise landing with a crosswind of 10 to 

15 knots as late in the flight as possible. 

2. Entry: This test requires that the crew 

perform a manually controlled landing in 

the presence of a 90-degree crosswind 

component of 10 to 15 knots steady state. 

During a crosswind landing, the drag chute will 

be deployed after nose gear touchdown when 

the vehicle is stable and tracking the runway 

centerline. 

DTO 900 Solid Rocket Booster Thrust 

Oscillation 

The Space Shuttle Program is continuing to 

gather data on pressure oscillation, or periodic 

variation, a phenomenon that regularly occurs 

within solid rocket motors through the 

remaining shuttle flights. The data obtained 

from five flights designated to acquire pressure 

oscillation data have provided a better 

understanding of solid rocket motor dynamics. 

The collection of these additional data points 

will provide greater statistical significance of 

the data for use in dynamic analyses of the four 

segment motors. These analyses and computer 

models will be used for future propulsion 

system designs. 

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 

Space Shuttle Program is continuing to use the 

Enhanced Data Acquisition System to gather 

detailed information. 

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 gages 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. 
MAY 2010 HISTORY OF SPACE SHUTTLE ATLANTIS 59

HISTORY OF SPACE SHUTTLE ATLANTIS 

Space shuttle Atlantis’ spaceflight career began 

on Oct. 3, 1985, with launch on its maiden 

voyage to begin STS-51J – a dedicated 

Department of Defense mission. It was the 

fourth orbital vehicle manufactured following 

Columbia, Challenger and Discovery. 

Construction of Atlantis, referenced internally 

by its airframe number OV-104, began in March 

1980 at the Palmdale, Calif., manufacturing 

plant. It was transported to Kennedy Space 

Center in April 1985 ahead of its maiden 

voyage. 

BACKGROUND 

Atlantis was named after the primary research 

vessel for the Woods Hole Oceanographic 

Institute in Massachusetts from 1930 to 1966. 

The two-masted, 460-ton ketch was the first 

U.S. vessel to be used for oceanographic 

research. Such research was considered to be 

one of the last bastions of the sailing vessel as 

steam-and-diesel-powered vessels dominated 

the waterways. 

The steel-hulled ocean research ship was 

approximately 140 feet long and 29 feet wide to 

add to her stability. She featured a crew of 17 

and room for five scientists. The research 

personnel worked in two onboard laboratories, 

examining water samples and marine life 

brought to the surface by two large winches 

from thousands of feet below the surface. The 

water samples taken at different depths varied 

in temperature, providing clues to the flow of 

ocean currents. The crew also used the first 

electronic sounding devices to map the ocean 

floor. 

Space shuttle Atlantis has carried on the spirit 

of the sailing vessel with voyages of its own, 

including missions to the Russian Space Station 

Mir, deployment of the Galileo planetary 

spacecraft in 1989 and the deployment of 

the Arthur Holley Compton Gamma Ray 

Observatory in 1991. 

UPGRADES AND FEATURES 

Atlantis benefited from lessons learned in 

the construction and testing of Enterprise, 

Columbia, Challenger and Discovery. At 

rollout, its weight was 6,974 pounds less than 

Columbia. 

The experience gained during its assembly also 

enabled Atlantis to be completed with a 

49 percent reduction in man hours (compared 

to Columbia). Much of this time savings was 

attributed to the greater use of thermal 

protection blankets on the upper orbiter body 

instead of tiles. 

During the construction of Discovery and 

Atlantis, NASA opted to have the various 

contractors manufacture a set of “structural 

spares” to facilitate the repair of an orbiter 

should one be damaged. This contract was 

valued at $389 million and consisted of a spare 

aft-fuselage, mid-fuselage, forward fuselage 

halves, vertical tail and rudder, wings, elevons 

and a body flap. 

These spares were used later in the assembly of 

Endeavour. 
60 HISTORY OF SPACE SHUTTLE ATLANTIS MAY 2010

After the loss of Challenger, Atlantis was 

shipped to California for upgrades and 

modifications, including 

• A drag chute 

• New plumbing to allow for extended 

duration missions 

• More than 800 new heat protection tiles and 

blankets 

• New insulation for the main landing gear 

doors 

• Structural modifications to its airframe 

Altogether, 165 modifications were made to 

Atlantis over the 20 months it spent in the 

Palmdale, Calif., manufacturing facility. 

CONSTRUCTION MILESTONES 

Jan. 29, 1979 

Contract Award 

March 3, 1980 

Start structural assembly of Crew Module 

Nov. 23, 1981 

Start structural assembly of aft-fuselage 

June 13, 1983 

Wings arrive at Palmdale from Grumman 

Dec. 2, 1983 

Start of Final Assembly 

April 10, 1984 

Complete final assembly 

March 6, 1985 

Rollout from Palmdale 

April 3, 1985 

Overland transport from Palmdale to Edwards 

Air Force Base, Calif. 

April 12-13, 1985 

Ferry Flight from Edwards to Kennedy Space 

Center (overnight 4/12 at Ellington) 

Sept. 5, 1985 

Flight Readiness Firing 

Oct. 3, 1985 

First Flight (STS-51J) 

May 14, 2010 

Final Scheduled Flight (STS-132) 
7 

MAY 2010 HISTORY OF SPACE SHUTTLE ATLANTIS 61

FLIGHT MILESTONES 

1. STS-51J (Oct. 3-7, 1985) 1,682,641 miles 

2. STS-61B (Nov. 26-Dec. 3, 1985) 2,466,956 miles 

 

3. STS-27 (Dec. 2-6, 1988) 1,812,075 miles 

 

4. STS-30 (May 4-8, 1989) 1,477,500 miles 

5. STS-34 (Oct. 18-23, 1989) 1,800,000 miles 

 

6. STS-36 (Feb. 28-March 4, 1990) 1,837,962 miles 

7. STS-38 (Nov. 15-20, 1990) 2,045,056 miles 

 

8. STS-37 (April 5-11, 1991) 2,487,075 miles 

9. STS-43 (Aug. 2-11, 1991) 3,700,400 miles 

10. STS-44 (Nov. 24-Dec. 1, 1991) 2,890,067 miles 

 

11. STS-45 (March, 24-April 2, 1992) 3,274,946 miles 

12. STS-46 (July 31-Aug. 8, 1992) 3,321,007 miles 

 

13. STS-66 (Nov. 3-14, 1994) 4,554,791 miles 

 

14. STS-71 (June 27-July 7, 1995) 4,100,000 miles 

15. STS-74 (Nov. 12-20, 1995) 3,400,000 miles 

 

16. STS-76 (March 22-31, 1996) 3,800,000 miles 

17. STS-79 (Sept. 16-26, 1996) 3,900,000 miles 

 

18. STS-81 (Jan. 12-22, 1997) 3,900,000 miles 

19. STS-84 (May 15-24, 1997) 3,600,000 miles 

20. STS-86 (Sept. 25-Oct. 6, 1997) 4,225,000 miles 

 

21. STS-101 (May 19-29, 2000) 5,076,281 miles 

22. STS-106 (Sept. 8-20, 2000) 4,919,243 miles 

 

23. STS-98 (Feb. 7-20, 2001) 5,369,576 miles 

24. STS-104 (July 12-24, 2001) 5,309,429 miles 

 

25. STS-110 (April 8-19, 2002) 4,525,299 miles 

26. STS-112 (Oct. 7-18, 2002) 4,513,015 miles 

 

27. STS-115 (Sept. 9-21, 2006) 4,910,288 miles 

 

28. STS-117 (June 8-22, 2007) 5,809,363 miles 

 

29. STS-122 (Feb. 7-20,2008) 5,296,842 miles 

 

30. STS-125 (May 11-24, 2009) 5,276,000 miles 

31. STS-129 (Nov. 16-27, 2009) 4,490,138 miles 

 

32. STS-132 (May 14-26, 2010) Approx. 4.4 million 

 

 Total Atlantis Miles 115,770,929 (through STS-129) 
62 EDUCATION ACTIVITIES MAY 2010

ATLANTIS BY THE NUMBERS 

Total Atlantis miles traveled 115,770,929 (through STS-129) 

Total number of days in orbit 282 

Total number of orbits 4,462 

Total number of flights 31 

Total number of crew members 185 

Mir dockings 7 

International Space Station dockings 10 
MAY 2010 SHUTTLE REFERENCE DATA 63

SHUTTLE REFERENCE DATA 

SHUTTLE ABORT MODES 

Redundant Set 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 
64 SHUTTLE REFERENCE DATA MAY 2010

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 
MAY 2010 SHUTTLE REFERENCE DATA 65

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 
66 SHUTTLE REFERENCE DATA MAY 2010

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, 
MAY 2010 SHUTTLE REFERENCE DATA 67

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, 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 
68 SHUTTLE REFERENCE DATA MAY 2010

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 NASA’s 

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 fuel tank, 

or ET, and orbiter, and to transmit the weight 

load through their structure to the mobile 

launcher platform, or MLP.
MAY 2010 SHUTTLE REFERENCE DATA 69

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 NASA’s 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 Kennedy 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 

Kennedy, 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 

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. 
70 SHUTTLE REFERENCE DATA MAY 2010

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 

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. 
MAY 2010 SHUTTLE REFERENCE DATA 71

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 

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 
72 SHUTTLE REFERENCE DATA MAY 2010

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 

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. 
MAY 2010 SHUTTLE REFERENCE DATA 73

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. 

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 3 seconds, the vehicle base bending 

load modes are allowed to initialize. 
74 SHUTTLE REFERENCE DATA MAY 2010

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 

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 
MAY 2010 SHUTTLE REFERENCE DATA 75

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 

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 
76 SHUTTLE REFERENCE DATA MAY 2010

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 

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 
MAY 2010 SHUTTLE REFERENCE DATA 77

improved, making it 30 percent stronger and 

5 percent less dense. 

The SLWT, like the standard tank, is 

manufactured at NASA’s Michoud Assembly 

Facility, 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. 

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 
78 SHUTTLE REFERENCE DATA MAY 2010

-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 

NASA’s 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 

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. 
MAY 2010 SHUTTLE REFERENCE DATA 79

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 

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 
80 SHUTTLE REFERENCE DATA MAY 2010

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. 
MAY 2010 LAUNCH & LANDING 81

LAUNCH AND LANDING 

LAUNCH 

As with all previous space shuttle launches, 

Atlantis 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 orbiter 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 Zaragoza, 

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 to 

be 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 Atlantis on 

STS‐132 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. 
82 LAUNCH & LANDING MAY 2010

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MAY 2010 ACRONYMS/ABBREVIATIONS 83

ACRONYMS AND ABBREVIATIONS 

2D-Nano Template Two Dimensional Nano Template 

3D-Space Mental Representation of Spatial Cues during Spaceflight 

A/G Alignment Guides 

A/L Airlock 

AAA Avionics Air Assembly 

ABC Audio Bus Controller 

ABRS Advanced Biological Research System 

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 

AIS Automatic Identification System 

AJIS Alpha Joint Interface Structure 

ALI Alice-Like Insert 

ALTEA-Shield Anomalous Long Term Effects on Astronauts Central Nervous System-Shield 

AM Atmosphere Monitoring 

AMOS Air Force Maui Optical and Supercomputing Site 

AOH Assembly Operations Handbook 

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 

ARS Atmosphere Revitalization System 

ASW Application Software 

ATA Ammonia Tank Assembly 

ATCS Active Thermal Control System 

ATU Audio Terminal Unit 
84 ACRONYMS/ABBREVIATIONS MAY 2010

BAC Boom Attached Cables 

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 

BIT Built-In Test 

BLT Boundary Layer Transition 

BM Berthing Mechanism 

BOS BIC Operations Software 

BRIC Biological Research in Canisters 

BSS Basic Software 

BSTS Basic Standard Support Software 

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 

CAPE Canister for All Payload Ejections 

CAPPS Checkout, Assembly and Payload Process Services 

CAS Common Attach System 

CB Control Bus 

CBCS Centerline Berthing Camera System 

CBM Common Berthing Mechanism 

CCA Circuit Card Assembly 

CCAA Common Cabin Air Assembly 

CCF Capillary Chanel Flow 

CCIS Cardiovascular and Cerebrovacular on Return from Space Station 

CCM Cell Culture Module 

CCP Camera Control Panel 

CCT Communication Configuration Table 

CCTV Closed-Circuit Television 

CDR Space Shuttle Commander 

CDRA Carbon Dioxide Removal Assembly 

CETA Crew Equipment Transfer Aid 

Crew Equipment Translation Aid 

CFE-2 Capillary Flow Experiment-2 
MAY 2010 ACRONYMS/ABBREVIATIONS 85

CHeCS Crew Health Care System 

CHX Cabin Heat Exchanger 

CISC Complicated Instruction Set Computer 

CLA Camera Light Assembly 

CLPA Camera Light Pan Tilt Assembly 

CLSM-2 Coarsening in Solid Liquid Mixtures 

CMG Control Moment Gyro 

COTS Commercial Off the Shelf 

CPA Control Panel Assembly 

CPB Camera Power Box 

CQ Crew Quarters 

CR Change Request 

CRT Cathode-Ray Tube 

CSA Canadian Space Agency 

CSA-CP Compound Specific Analyzer 

CTC Cargo Transport Container 

CVB Constrained Vapor Bubble 

CVIU Common Video Interface Unit 

CVT Current Value Table 

CZ Communication Zone 

DB Data Book 

DC Docking Compartment 

DCB Double Coldbag 

DCSU Direct Current Switching Unit 

DDCU DC-to-DC Converter Unit 

DECLIC-HTI DEvice for the Study of Critical Liquids and Crystalization-High 

 Temperature Insert 

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 

DRTS Japanese Data Relay Satellite 

DSO Detailed Supplementary Objective 

DTO Detailed Test Objective 

DYF Display Frame 
86 ACRONYMS/ABBREVIATIONS MAY 2010

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 

ECU Electronic Control Unit 

EDAS Enhanced Data Acquisition System 

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 

ELC ExPRESS Logistics Carrier 

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 

EOTP Enhanced Orbital Replaceable Unit (ORU) Temporary Platform 

EP Exposed Pallet 

EPO Education Payload Operations 

EPO-Robo Education Payload Operations – Robotics 

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 
MAY 2010 ACRONYMS/ABBREVIATIONS 87

EVA Extravehicular Activity 

EXP-D Experiment-D 

EXPRESS EXpedite the PRocessing of Experiments to Space Station 

EXT External 

FA Fluid Accumulator 

FAS Flight Application Software 

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 

FOR Frame of Reference 

FPMU Floating Potential Measurement Unit 

FPP Fluid Pump Package 

FR Flight Rule 

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 

GATOR Grappling Adaptor to On-orbit Railing 

GCA Ground Control Assist 

GLA General Lighting Assemblies 

 General Luminaire Assembly 

GLACIER General Laboratory Active Cryogenic ISS Experiment Refrigerator 

GLONASS Global Navigational Satellite System 

GNC Guidance, Navigation, and Control 

GPC General Purpose Computer 

GPS Global Positioning System 

GPSR Global Positioning System Receiver 

GUI Graphical User Interface 

H&S Health and Status 

HCE Heater Control Equipment 

HCTL Heater Controller 

HEPA High Efficiency Particulate Acquisition 
88 ACRONYMS/ABBREVIATIONS MAY 2010

HPA High Power Amplifier 

HPGT High Pressure Gas Tank 

HPP Hard Point Plates 

HRDR High Rate Data Recorder 

HREL Hold/Release Electronics 

HRF Human Research Facility 

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-VLD Integrated Cargo Carrier – Vertical Lightweight Deployable 

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 

IF Intermediate Frequency 

IFHX Interface Heat Exchanger 

IMCS Integrated Mission Control System 

IMCU Image Compressor Unit 

IMV Intermodule Ventilation 

INCO Instrumentation and Communication Officer 

IP Interface Plate 

 International Partner 

IP-PCDU ICS-PM Power Control and Distribution Unit 

IP-PDB Payload Power Distribution Box 

IPV Individual Pressure Vessel 

ISP International Standard Payload 

ISPR International Standard Payload Rack 

ISS International Space Station 

ISSSH International Space Station Systems Handbook 

ITCS Internal Thermal Control System 
MAY 2010 ACRONYMS/ABBREVIATIONS 89

ITS Integrated Truss Segment 

IVA Intravehicular Activity 

IVGEN IntraVenous Fluid GENeration for Exploration Missions 

IVSU Internal Video Switch Unit 

JAXA Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency 

JCP JEM Control Processor 

JEF JEM Exposed Facility 

JEM Japanese Experiment Module 

JEM-EF Japanese Experiment Module Exposed Facility 

JEM-PM Japanese Experiment Module – Pressurized Module 

JEMAL JEM Airlock 

JEMRMS Japanese Experiment Module Remote Manipulator System 

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 

JSC Johnson Space Center 

JTVE JEM Television Equipment 

Kbps Kilobit per second 

KOS Keep Out Sphere 

LB Local Bus 

LCA LAB Cradle Assembly 

LCD Liquid Crystal Display 

LCS Laser Camera System 

LED Light Emitting Diode 

LEE Latching End Effector 

LEO Low Earth Orbit 

LIDAR Light Detection and Ranging 

LMC Lightweight Multipurpose Experiment Support Structure Carrier 

LMM Light Microscopy Module 

LSW Light Switch 

LTA Launch-to-Activation 

LTAB Launch-to-Activation Box 

LTL Low Temperature Loop 
90 ACRONYMS/ABBREVIATIONS MAY 2010

MA Main Arm 

MARES Muscle Atrophy Research and Exercise System 

MAUI Main Analysis of Upper-Atmospheric Injections 

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 

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 

MERLIN Microgravity Experiment Research Locker Incubator II 

MGB Middle Grapple Box 

Micro-2 Microbiology-2 

Microbe-1 Microbial Dynamics in International Space Station 

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 

MPC Main Processing Controller 

MPESS Multi-Purpose Experiment Support Structure 

MPEV Manual Pressure Equalization Valve 

MPL Manipulator Retention Latch 

MPLM Multi-Purpose Logistics Module 

MPM Manipulator Positioning Mechanism 

MPV Manual Procedure Viewer 

MRM-1 Mini-Research Module-1 

MSD Mass Storage Device 

MSFC Marshall Space Flight Center 

MSL-CETSOL Material Science Laboratory – Columnar-to-Equiaxcol Transition in Solidification 

MSP Maintenance Switch Panel 
MAY 2010 ACRONYMS/ABBREVIATIONS 91

MSS Mobile Servicing System 

MT Mobile Tracker 

 Mobile Transporter 

MTL Moderate Temperature Loop 

MUX Data Multiplexer 

Myco-2 Mycological Evaluation of Crew Exposure to Space Station Ambient Air-2 

MyoLab Molecular Mechanism of Micrograivty-Induced Skeletal Muscle Atrophy 

n.mi. nautical mile 

NASA National Aeronautics and Space Administration 

NCS Node Control Software 

NET No Earlier Than 

NeuroRad Biological Effects of Space Radiation and Microgravity on Mammalian Cells 

Ni-H2 Nickel Hydrogen 

NLP National Lab Pathfinder 

NLP-Cells-4 National Lab Pathfinder-Cells-4 

NLP-Vaccine-9 National Lab Pathfinder-Vaccine-9 

NLT No Less Than 

NPGS Naval post Graduate School 

NPRV Negative Pressure Relief Valve 

NSV Network Service 

NTA Nitrogen Tank Assembly 

NTSC National Television Standard Committee 

NUTRITION Nutritional Status Assessment 

OBSS Orbiter Boom Sensor System 

OCA Orbital Communications Adapter 

OCAD Operational Control Agreement Document 

OCAS Operator Commanded Automatic Sequence 

ODF Operations Data File 

ODS Orbiter Docking System 

OI Orbiter Interface 

OIU Orbiter Interface Unit 

OMS Orbital Maneuvering System 

OODT Onboard Operation Data Table 

OPT Operational Pressure Tranducers 

ORCA Oxygen Recharge Compressor Assembly 

ORU Orbital Replacement Unit 

OS Operating System 

OSA Orbiter-based Station Avionics 

OSE Orbital Support Equipment 
92 ACRONYMS/ABBREVIATIONS MAY 2010

OTCM ORU and Tool Changeout Mechanism 

OTP ORU and Tool Platform 

P3R Plants, Protocals, Procedures and Requirements 

P/L Payload 

PACE Preliminary Advanced Colloids Experiment 

PADLES Passive Dosimeter for Lifescience Experiment in Space 

PAL Planning and Authorization Letter 

PAM Payload Attach Mechanism 

PAO Public Affairs Office 

PAS Payload Adapter System 

PBA Portable Breathing Apparatus 

PCA Pressure Control Assembly 

PCBM Passive Common Berthing Mechanism 

PCN Page Change Notice 

PCS Portable Computer System 

PCU Plasma Contactor Unit 

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 

PEMS II Percutaneous Electrical Muscle Stimulator 

PFE Portable Fire Extinguisher 

PFRAM Passive Flight Releasable Attachment Mechanism 

PGSC Payload General Support Computer 

PIB Power Interface Box 

PIU Payload Interface Unit 

PLB Payload Bay 

PLBD Payload Bay Door 

PLC Pressurized Logistics Carrier 

PLT Payload Laptop Terminal 

 Space Shuttle Pilot 

PM Pressurized Module 

 Pump Module 

PMA Pressurized Mating Adapter 

PMCU Power Management Control Unit 

PMU Pressurized Mating Adapter 
MAY 2010 ACRONYMS/ABBREVIATIONS 93

POA Payload ORU Accommodation 

POR Point of Resolution 

PPRV Positive Pressure Relief Valve 

PRCS Primary Reaction Control System 

PREX Procedure Executor 

PRLA Payload Retention Latch Assembly 

PRO Payload Rack Officer 

PROX Proximity Communications Center 

psia Pounds per Square Inch Absolute 

PSP Payload Signal Processor 

PSRR Pressurized Section Resupply Rack 

PTCS Passive Thermal Control System 

PTR Port Thermal Radiator 

PTU Pan/Tilt Unit 

PVCU Photovoltaic Controller Unit 

PVM Photovoltaic Module 

PVR Photovoltaic Radiator 

PVTCS Photovoltaic Thermal Control System 

PWP Power Work Post 

QD Quick Disconnect 

R&MA Restraint and Mobility Aid 

RACU Russian-to-American Converter Unit 

RAM Read Access Memory 

RAMBO Ram Burn Observations 

RBVM Radiator Beam Valve Module 

RCC Range Control Center 

RCT Rack Configuration Table 

Repository National Aeronautics and Space Administration Biological Specimen Repository 

RF Radio Frequency 

RGA Rate Gyro Assemblies 

RHC Rotational Hand Controller 

RIC Rack Interface Controller 

RIGEX Rigidizable Inflatable Get-Away Special Experiment 

RIP Remote Interface Panel 

RLF Robotic Language File 

RLT Robotic Laptop Terminal 

RMS Remote Manipulator System 

ROEU Remotely Operated Electrical Umbilical 

ROM Read Only Memory 

R-ORU Robotics Compatible Orbital Replacement Unit 
94 ACRONYMS/ABBREVIATIONS MAY 2010

ROS Russian Orbital Segment 

RPC Remote Power Controller 

RPCM Remote Power Controller Module 

RPDA Remote Power Distribution Assembly 

RPM Roll Pitch Maneuver 

RS Russian Segment 

RSP Resupply Stowage Platform 

Return Stowage Platform 

RSR Resupply Stowage Rack 

RT Remote Terminal 

RTAS Rocketdyne Truss Attachment System 

RVFS Rendezvous Flight Software 

RWS Robotics Workstation 

SAFER Simplified Aid for EVA Rescue 

SAM SFA Airlock Attachment Mechanism 

SAPA Small Adapter Plate Assembly 

SARJ Solar Alpha Rotary Joint 

SASA S-Band Antenna Sub-Assembly 

SCU Sync and Control Unit 

SD Smoke Detector 

SDS Sample Distribution System 

SDTO Station Development Test Objective 

SEDA Space Environment Data Acquisition equipment 

SEDA-AP Space Environment Data Acquisition equipment – Attached Payload 

SEITE Shuttle Exhaust Ion Turbulence Experiments 

SELS SpaceOps Electronic Library System 

SEU Single Event Upset 

SFA Small Fine Arm 

SFAE SFA Electronics 

SGANT Space to Ground Antenna 

SGAnt Space to Ground Antenna 

SGTRC Space-to-Ground Transmit Receive Control 

SI Smoke Indicator 

SIMPLEX Shuttle Ionospheric Modification with Pulsed Localized Exhaust Experiments 

Sleep-Short Sleep-Wake Actigraphy and Light Exposure During Spaceflight-Short 

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 
MAY 2010 ACRONYMS/ABBREVIATIONS 95

SM Service Module 

SMDP Service Module Debris Panel 

SOC System Operation Control 

SODF Space Operations Data File 

SODI-Colloid Selectable Optical Diagnostics Instrument – Aggregation of Colloidal 

Suspensions 

SODI-DSC Selectable Optical Diagnostics Instrument – Diffusion and Soret Coefficient 

SPA Small Payload Attachment 

SpaceDRUMS Space Dynamically Responding Ultrasonic Matrix System 

SPB Survival Power Distribution Box 

SPDA Secondary Power Distribution Assembly 

SPDM Special Purpose Dexterous Manipulator 

SPEC Specialist 

SRAM Static RAM 

SRB Solid Rocket Booster 

SRMS Shuttle Remote Manipulator System 

SSAS Segment-to-Segment Attach System 

SSC Station Support Computer 

SSCB Space Station Control Board 

SSE Small Fine Arm Storage Equipment 

SSIPC Space Station Integration and Promotion Center 

SSME Space Shuttle Main Engine 

SSOR Space-to-Space Orbiter Radio 

SSP Standard Switch Panel 

SSPTS Station-to-Shuttle Power Transfer System 

SSRMS Space Station Remote Manipulator System 

STC Small Fire Arm Transportation Container 

STEM Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics 

STL Space Tissue Lost 

STORRM Sensor Test for Orion Relative Navigation Risk Mitigation 

STR Starboard Thermal Radiator 

STS Space Transfer System 

STVC SFA Television Camera 

SVS Space Vision System 

SWAB Surface, Water, and Air Biocharacterization 

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 
96 ACRONYMS/ABBREVIATIONS MAY 2010

TCCV Temperature Control and Check Valve 

TCS Trajectory Control Sensor 

Thermal Control System 

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) 

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 

UIL User Interface Language 

ULC Unpressurized Logistics Carrier 

ULF Utilization Logistics Flight 

UMA Umbilical Mating Adapter 

UOP Utility Outlet Panel 

UPC Up Converter 

USA United Space Alliance 

US LAB United States Laboratory 

USOS United States On-Orbit Segment 

UTA Utility Transfer Assembly 

VAJ Vacuum Access Jumper 

VBSP Video Baseband Signal Processor 

VCAM Vehicle Cabin Atmosphere Monitor 

VCU Video Control Unit 

VDS Video Distribution System 

VLU Video Light Unit 
MAY 2010 ACRONYMS/ABBREVIATIONS 97

V02maX Evaluation of Maximal Oxygen Uptake and Submaximal Estimates of V02max 

Before, During, and After Long Duration International Space Station Missions 

VNS Vision Navigation Sensor 

VPU Vegetable Production 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 

WETA Wireless Video System External Transceiver Assembly 

WIF Work Interface 

WORF Window Observational Research Facility 

WRM Water Recovery and Management 

WRS Water Recovery System 

WS Water Separator 

 Work Site 

 Work Station 

WVA Water Vent Assembly 

Z1 Zenith One 

ZSR Zero-g Stowage Rack 
98 ACRONYMS/ABBREVIATIONS MAY 2010

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MAY 2010 MEDIA ASSISTANCE 99

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
100 MEDIA ASSISTANCE MAY 2010

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MAY 2010 PUBLIC AFFAIRS CONTACTS 101

PUBLIC AFFAIRS CONTACTS 

NASA HEADQUARTERS 

WASHINGTON, DC 

John Yembrick 

International Partners & Shuttle, 

Space Station Policy 

202-358-1100 

john.yembrick-1@nasa.gov

Michael Curie 

Shuttle, Space Station Policy 

202-358-1100 

michael.curie@nasa.gov

Stephanie Schierholz 

Shuttle, Space Station Policy 

202-358-1100 

stephanie.schierholz@nasa.gov

Joshua Buck 

Shuttle, Space Station Policy 

202-358-1100 

jbuck@nasa.gov

Michael Braukus 

Research in Space 

202-358-1979 

michael.j.braukus@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
102 PUBLIC AFFAIRS CONTACTS MAY 2010

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 

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 

Rebecca Strecker 

News Chief 

228-688-3249 

rebecca.a.strecker@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.s.mewhinney@nasa.gov

Rachel Prucey 

Public Affairs Officer 

650-604-0643 

Rachel.L.Prucey@nasa.gov

Ruth Marlaire 

Public Affairs Officer 

650-604-4709 

ruth.marlaire@nasa.gov

Cathy Weselby 

Public Affairs Officer 

650-604-2791 

cathy.weselby@nasa.gov

Karen Hanner 

Public Affairs Officer 

650-604-4034 

karen.c.hanner@nasa.gov
MAY 2010 PUBLIC AFFAIRS CONTACTS 103

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

Sally Harrington 

Public Affairs Specialist 

216-433-2037 

sally.v.harrington@nasa.gov

Katherine Martin 

Public Affairs Specialist 

216-433-2406 

katherine.martin@nasa.gov

LANGLEY RESEARCH CENTER 

HAMPTON, VIRGINIA 

Marny Skora 

Head, Office of Communications 

757-864-6121 

marny.skora@nasa.gov

Keith Henry 

News Chief 

757-864-6120 

h.k.henry@nasa.gov

Kathy Barnstorff 

Public Affairs Officer 

757-864-9886 

katherine.a.barnstorff@nasa.gov

Amy Johnson 

Public Affairs Officer 

757-864-7022 

amy.johnson@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
104 PUBLIC AFFAIRS CONTACTS MAY 2010

BOEING 

Edmund G. Memi 

Manager, Communications 

The Boeing Co. 

Space Exploration Division 

281-226-4029 

edmund.g.memi@boeing.com

Adam Morgan 

Boeing 

International Space Station 

281-226-4030 

adam.k.morgan@boeing.com

JAPAN AEROSPACE EXPLORATION 

AGENCY (JAXA) 

Kumiko Sagara 

JAXA Public Affairs Representative 

Houston 

281-792-7468 

sagara.kumiko@jaxa.jp

JAXA Public Affairs Office 

Tokyo, Japan 

011-81-50-3362-4374 

proffice@jaxa.jp

CANADIAN SPACE AGENCY (CSA) 

Jean-Pierre Arseneault 

Manager, Media Relations & Information 

Services 

Canadian Space Agency 

514-824-0560 (cell) 

jean-pierre.arseneault@asc-csa.gc.ca

Media Relations Office 

Canadian Space Agency 

450-926-4370