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National Aeronautics and Space Administration

Inside the Multi-Payload 

Processing Facility

Aunique facility at Kennedy Space Center, the Multi-Payload Processing Facility (MPPF) 

was constructed in 1995 and is located in the 

Industrial Area at the Center.

The facility is 19,647 square feet in area, and 

true to its name, it can accommodate one or more 

payloads in processing at the same time depending 

on their size. The facility supports the Checkout 

Assembly Payload Processing Program but also 

provides services to the customers whose payloads 

arrive for testing and processing.

According to Facility Manager Joseph 

Talavera, the building is a100,000-particulatesper-million clean room, and that means it is an 

exceptionally clean environment for customers 

whose payloads require this. 

“It is probably one of the cleanest facilities in 

the area in regards to particulates,” said Talavera. 

“And we’ve worked very hard to also make the 

facility one of the most energy-efficient in the 

Industrial Area.” 

The goal was to reduce energy use by 10 percent, but in actuality, the team was able to reduce 

energy consumption by 17.5 percent. During processing and testing of the NASA-sponsored Solar 

Radiation and Climate Experiment (SORCE) 

Workers in the MPPF install the SORCE payload into the Pegasus launch vehicle.
spacecraft, for example, the facility continued to operate using 

only one air handler to cool the area.

The MPPF has a high bay and a low bay and is equipped 

with a 20-ton overhead crane. In addition, the MPLM Access 

Certification Equipment (MACE) training unit is also located 

inside the MPPF. The MACE is an exact replica of the U.S.-

made Unity module on the Station and is used to support training activities for the Space Station Processing Facility.

According to Talavera, the MPPF can accommodate 

several payload customers with the flexibility to meet air 

quality, cleanliness, scheduling and protocol requirements for 

each. “We always try to stay one step ahead to meet customers’ 

needs,” commented Talavera. “We strive to meet all customer 

requests.”

An example of the MPPF’s multi-processing abilities 

included payload processing activities for Missions STS-95 

and STS-88. Several payloads were processed inside the MPPF 

concurrently including the SPARTAN201, IEH-03, SAC-A 

and MightySAT-1 Also, prior to Mission STS-99, the very large 

Shuttle Radar Topography Mission payload was tested and 

verified inside the MPPF and occupied more than 95 percent of 

the facility’s high bay space.

In the Multi-Payload Processing Facility, workers with NASA’s Jet 

Propulsion Laboratory work on the carrier and horizontal antenna mast 

for the STS-99 Shuttle Radar Topography Mission. This radar system 

is gathering data that will result in the most accurate and complete 

topographic map of the Earth’s surface that has ever been assembled.

Photos above and below: The Solar Radiation and Climate Experiment 

(SORCE) payload arrived at KSC and was transported to the Industrial 

Area’s Multi-Payload Processing Facility (MPPF) low bay for testing and 

validation while awaiting the arrival of its launch vehicle, Pegasus. Built by 

the Orbital’s Launch Systems Group in Dulles, Va., Pegasus arrived at KSC 

from Vandenberg Air Force Base and was transported to the MPPF high 

bay for testing, verification and three flight simulations prior to launch. 

The two elements were mated in the MPPF before launch.

National Aeronautics and Space Administration

John F. Kennedy Space Center

Kennedy Space Center, Fla.

www.nasa.gov

FS-2005-07-025-KSC (Rev. 2006) NASA Facts