National Aeronautics and Space Administration

SPACE SHUTTLE MISSION

STS-133

PRESS KIT/February 2011

www.nasa.gov

The Final Flight of Discovery

CONTENTS 

FEBRUARY 2011 CONTENTS i

Section Page 

MISSION OVERVIEW ............................................................................................................... 1

TIMELINE OVERVIEW .............................................................................................................. 9

MISSION PROFILE ................................................................................................................... 11

MISSION OBJECTIVES ............................................................................................................ 13

MISSION PERSONNEL ............................................................................................................. 15

DISCOVERY CREW .................................................................................................................. 17

PAYLOAD OVERVIEW .............................................................................................................. 25

PERMANENT MULTIPURPOSE MODULE ................................................ ................................................25

EXPRESS LOGISTICS C A R R I E R 4 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ....... 3 1

R O B O N A U T 2 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .................... 3 4

RENDEZVOUS & DOCKING ....................................................................................................... 37

UNDOCKING, SEPARATION A N D D E P A R T U R E . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 8

SPACEWALKS ......................................................................................................................... 39

EXPERIMENTS ......................................................................................................................... 45

SHORT-DURATION EXPERIMENTS TO BE PERFORMED ON STS-133 ..................................................... 4 5

RESEARCH SAMPLES/HARDWARE TO BE DELIVERED TO STATION ON DISCOVERY .............................. 4 7

RESEARCH SAMPLES/HARDWARE TO BE RETURNED ON DIS C O V E R Y . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 1

SPACE SHUTTLE DETAILED TEST OBJECTIVES (DTO) AND DETAILED SUPPLEMENTARY 

OBJECTIVES ( D S O ) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ................. 5 4

HISTORY OF SPACE SHUTTLE DISCOVERY ............................................................................. 59

SHUTTLE REFERENCE DATA .................................................................................................... 63
Section Page 

ii CONTENTS FEBRUARY 2011

 

 

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

LAUNCH ............................................................................................................................................... 8 1

ABORT TO ORBIT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .................. 8 1

TRANSATLANTIC ABORT LANDING ...................................................................................................... 8 1

RETURN TO L AUNCH SITE .................................................................................................................... 8 1

ABORT ONCE AROUND ......................................................................................................................... 8 1

LANDING ............................................................................................................................................. 8 1

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

MEDIA ASSISTANCE ............................................................................................................... 97

PUBLIC AFFAIRS CONTACTS .................................................................................................. 99

 

 

 

 

 
FEBRUARY 2011 MISSION OVERVIEW 1

MISSION OVERVIEW 

At NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, space shuttle Discovery is poised for the STS-133 

launch from Launch Pad 39A following the roughly six-hour journey, known as “rollout,” from the 

Vehicle Assembly Building to the pad. Image credit: NASA/Jim Grossmann 

As space shuttle Discovery heads to the 

International Space Station on its final mission, 

it will be taking with it two key components – 

the Italian-built Permanent Multipurpose 

Module (PMM) and Express Logistics Carrier 4 

(ELC4) – that will provide spare parts and 

storage capacity to the orbiting complex. 

Discovery also will deliver Robonaut 2, which 

will become the first humanoid robot in space. 

The 39th flight of NASA’s most flown shuttle is 

scheduled to last 11 days, beginning at 

4:50 p.m. EST on Thursday, Feb. 24. The 

flight is designated Utilization and Logistics 

Flight 5 (ULF5) in the assembly sequence of 

the space station. 

The commander for Discovery’s final flight 

is veteran astronaut Steve Lindsey (Col., 

USAF, Retired). He will be joined by 

Pilot Eric Boe (Col., USAF) and Mission 

Specialists Steve Bowen (Capt., U.S. Navy), 

Dr. Michael Barratt, Nicole Stott and 

Alvin Drew (Col., USAF Retired). 
2 MISSION OVERVIEW FEBRUARY 2011

While seated at the commander’s station, NASA astronaut Steve Lindsey, 

STS-133 commander, participates in a post insertion/deorbit training session 

in the crew compartment trainer in the Space Vehicle Mock-up Facility at 

NASA’s Johnson Space Center. Lindsey is wearing a training version of 

his shuttle launch and entry suit. 

Lindsey has flown four times before, including 

twice on Space Shuttle Discovery. He was pilot 

on STS-95, where Senator John Glenn served as 

a payload specialist. Lindsey also commanded 

STS-121, a return to flight mission in July 2006. 

Boe previously served as the pilot of STS-126 in 

November 2008, which delivered a number of 

supplies and new equipment to the station. 

Drew flew on STS-118 in August 2007, which 

delivered a piece of the station’s truss structure. 

Barratt and Stott are previous residents of the 

International Space Station. Barratt served as a 

member of Expeditions 19 and 20 and Stott 

served as a member of Expeditions 20 and 21, 

all in 2009. 

On Jan. 19, Bowen replaced Tim Kopra as the 

STS-133 mission specialist 2 following a bicycle 

injury Jan. 15 that prohibited Kopra from 

supporting the target launch window. Bowen 

is a veteran of two shuttle flights, STS-126 in 

November 2008 and STS-132 in May 2010, and 

has conducted five spacewalks. Bowen will 

join Drew on the two planned spacewalks of 

the STS-133 mission. 

Discovery will spend two days heading toward 

its rendezvous with the International Space 

Station. On the second day of the flight, the 

crew will perform the standard scan of the 

shuttle’s thermal protection system using the 

orbiter boom sensor system attached to the end 

of Discovery’s robotic arm. While the 

inspection is underway, Bowen, Drew and Stott 

will work on preparing the spacesuits onboard 

the shuttle that will be transferred to the station 

after docking and will be used during the 

mission’s two spacewalks. 
FEBRUARY 2011 MISSION OVERVIEW 3

Dr. Michael Barratt assists fellow STS-133 Mission Specialist Steve Bowen during 

spacewalk training at the Neutral Buoyancy Laboratory in Houston. 

On the third day of the flight, Discovery will 

approach and dock with the space station. 

After the hatches are opened between the two 

spacecraft, both crews will begin working on 

transferring items between the two vehicles. 

Before the end of the day, Barratt and Stott will 

use the station’s robotic arm to retrieve ELC4 

from inside the shuttle’s payload bay and 

install it in the lower inboard position on the 

starboard side of the station’s truss structure. 

The cargo carrier weighs 8,235 pounds. ELC1 

and 2 were placed on the station’s truss 

structure during STS-129. ELC1 is mounted on 

the lower inboard position on the port side of 

the station. ELC2 is on the upper outboard side 

of the starboard truss, right next to where the 

Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer will be installed 

on STS-134. That mission also will deliver 

ELC3, which will be the final logistics carrier 

installed on the station. It will be positioned on 

the upper outboard attachment point on the 

port side. 

Flight day 4 will be focused on more transfer 

work, as well as preparations by Bowen and 

Drew for their spacewalk the next day. Both 

crews will walk through the choreography of 

the spacewalk, and both Bowen and Drew will 

spend the night camped out inside the Quest 

airlock. 
4 MISSION OVERVIEW FEBRUARY 2011

NASA astronaut Alvin Drew, STS-133 mission specialist, participates in a spacesuit fit check in the 

Space Station Airlock Test Article in the Crew Systems Laboratory at NASA’s Johnson Space 

Center. Astronaut Nicole Stott, mission specialist, assists Drew. 

The main activity for flight day 5 will be the 

spacewalk itself. While outside, Bowen and 

Drew will install a power extension cable that 

could be used between Unity and Tranquility in 

the event Tranquility ever loses power. It needs 

to be installed before the PMM is secured 

in place because of access to the work area. 

They will move the failed ammonia pump that 

Doug Wheelock and Tracy Caldwell Dyson 

removed during Expedition 24 from its 

temporary stowage location on the station’s 

mobile base structure to External Stowage 

Platform 2, which is on the side of the Quest 

airlock. The two spacewalkers will install a 

camera wedge, which will allow access to the 

external camera that is mounted on the 

starboard side of the station. This camera is 

located very close to where ELC4 will be 

installed, and to allow enough clearance for 

future spare parts to be loaded onto the carrier, 

this wedge will tilt the camera stanchion out of 

the way. Also, Bowen and Drew will install 

two rail stubs, which are small extensions on 

the end of the station’s mobile transporter rail. 

These stubs will allow the mobile transporter to 

travel the entire length of the rail with the crew 

and equipment translation aid (CETA) cart 

attached, and reach all of the work sites. 
FEBRUARY 2011 MISSION OVERVIEW 5

NASA astronaut Michael Barratt, STS-133 mission specialist, shakes hands with Robonaut 2 (R2) 

during media day in the Space Vehicle Mock-up Facility at NASA’s Johnson Space Center. 

Ron Diftler, NASA Robonaut project manager, is at left. 

For both spacewalks, Bowen will be designated 

extravehicular crew member 1 (EV1), and will 

wear the suit bearing red stripes. Drew, who 

will be making his first two spacewalks on 

STS-133, will be extravehicular crew member 2 

(EV2) and will wear the unmarked suit. 

Flight day 6 will be focused on the installation 

of the PMM. The PMM is about the same 

size as the Columbus laboratory and is also 

known as Leonardo, one of the multi-purpose 

logistics modules. It was modified to become a 

permanent module attached to the International 

Space Station. Once in orbit, the PMM will 

offer 2,472 additional cubic feet of pressurized 

volume for stowage and for scientific use. 

Barratt and Stott will operate the station’s 

robotic arm to install the PMM on the earthfacing side of the Unity node. The PMM will 

carry 14 racks to the station – an experiment 

rack, six resupply stowage platforms, five 

resupply stowage racks and two integrated 

stowage platforms. 

Among the items tucked away inside the PMM, 

is Robonaut 2, known as R2. Although its 

primary job for now is demonstrating to 

engineers how dexterous robots behave in 

space, the hope is that, through upgrades and 

advancements, it could one day venture outside 

the station to help spacewalkers make repairs 

or additions to the station or perform scientific 

work. Once R2 is unpacked, likely several 

months after it arrives, it will be initially 

operated inside the Destiny laboratory for 

operational testing, but over time, both its 

territory and its applications could expand. 

There are no plans to return R2 to Earth. 
6 MISSION OVERVIEW FEBRUARY 2011

Attired in a training version of his shuttle launch and entry suit, NASA astronaut Eric Boe, 

STS-133 pilot, occupies the pilot’s seat during a simulation exercise in the motion-base 

shuttle mission simulator in the Jake Garn Simulation and Training Facility at NASA’s 

Johnson Space Center. 

Flight day 7 will include the second and final 

spacewalk of the mission. Drew and Bowen 

will be the spacewalkers once again and will 

focus on removing thermal covers from the 

express pallet carrier assembly on ELC4. 

Bowen will remove a light-weight adapter plate 

assembly from the Columbus module and will 

install a new version of that payload bracket. 

Drew will reconfigure the starboard CETA cart 

and will install a new light fixture on it. Bowen 

will install a new camera pan and tilt unit on 

the Dextre robot and will remove thermal 

covers from the Tranquility node. Also, the 

spacewalkers will troubleshoot the radiator 

grapple stowage beams located on the port side 

of the station. This is being done in advance of 

some spare radiator panels that will arrive at 

the station in the future. 

Flight days 8 and 9 will be spent completing 

transfer work between Discovery and the space 

station. The crews will also enjoy some 

off-duty time prior to Discovery’s undocking, 

which will take place on flight day 10. 
FEBRUARY 2011 MISSION OVERVIEW 7

Space Shuttle Discovery lands on Runway 33 at the Shuttle Landing Facility at NASA’s 

Kennedy Space Center in Florida at 9:08 a.m. (EDT) on April 20, 2010, completing the 

15-day STS-131 mission to the International Space Station. 

Once Discovery undocks from the station, Boe 

will fly the shuttle in a final victory lap around 

the International Space Station complex. The 

shuttle crew will take detailed photographs of 

the external structure of the station, which 

serves as important documentation for the 

ground teams in Houston to monitor the 

orbiting laboratory. Once the loop of the 

station is finished, Discovery will fire its 

engines to take it away from the vicinity of the 

station. That same day, the crew will complete 

the late inspection of the shuttle’s heat shield to 

ensure that nothing was damaged during the 

docked phase of the mission. 

Flight day 11 will be spent checking out the 

reaction control system (RCS) jets and the flight 

control surfaces. Both of these systems will be 

put through their paces to ensure that they are 

ready to support Discovery’s landing. The RCS 

jets will be used during the early part of entry, 

up until the atmosphere builds up enough for 

the flight control surfaces to take over and steer 

the shuttle toward the runway. 

Discovery is scheduled to land on flight day 12 

at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida. At the 

time of its landing, Discovery will have traveled 

more than 143 million miles over the course of 

26 years in service to the nation and the world. 
8 MISSION OVERVIEW FEBRUARY 2011

External Tank Repairs 

During Discovery’s launch attempt on Nov. 8, 

2010, small cracks were found on the shuttle’s 

external tank mid-section, known as the 

intertank, specifically on the tops of two 

21-foot-long, U-shaped aluminum brackets, 

called stringers. Four additional small 

cracks were found on three stringers during 

thorough X-ray of the backside of the tank 

after Discovery was returned to the Vehicle 

Assembly Building before Christmas. 

Engineers completed modifications to 99 of 

the 108 stringers using a technique known as a 

“radius block modification,” which provides 

added structural support in areas known to 

carry much of the structural load of the external 

tank. These radius blocks essentially fit over 

existing stringer edges through which the 

securing rivets are installed to provide 

additional structural support. Engineers also 

modified the five stringers where cracks were 

found with a “doubler” that adds additional 

support to the repaired part of the stringer. 
FEBRUARY 2011 TIMELINE OVERVIEW 9

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 

• Discovery’s thermal protection system 

survey with shuttle robotic arm/orbiter 

boom sensor system (OBSS) 

• Extravehicular mobility unit, or spacesuit, 

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 

Discovery’s thermal protection system by 

Expedition 26 crew members Paolo Nespoli 

and Cady Coleman 

• Docking to Harmony/pressurized mating 

adapter 2 

• Hatch opening and welcoming 

• Canadarm2 grapple of Express Logistics 

Carrier 4 (ELC4) cargo pallet, handoff to 

shuttle robotic arm, and handoff back to 

Canadarm2 for installation on the starboard 

3 lower inboard attachment system 

Flight Day 4 

• Cargo transfer 

• OBSS handoff from Canadarm2 to shuttle 

robotic arm 

• Spacewalk tool preparation 

• Spacewalk 1 preparations by Bowen and 

Drew 

• Spacewalk 1 procedure review 

• Spacewalk 1 campout by Bowen and Drew 

in the Quest airlock 

Flight Day 5 

• Spacewalk 1 by Bowen and Drew 

(J612 power extension cable installation from 

Unity to Tranquility, transfer of failed pump 

module from the payload attachment 

bracket on the mobile base system to 

external stowage platform 2, installation of a 

wedge for camera port 3 and installation of 

starboard crew equipment and translation 

aid (CETA) cart rail stubs) 
10 TIMELINE OVERVIEW FEBRUARY 2011

Flight Day 6 

• Installation of the Permanent Multipurpose 

Module (PMM) to the nadir, or Earth-facing, 

port of Unity 

• Focused inspection of Discovery’s thermal 

protection heat shield, if required 

• Spacewalk 2 preparations by Bowen and 

Drew 

• Spacewalk 2 procedure review 

• Spacewalk 2 campout by Bowen and Drew 

in the Quest airlock 

Flight Day 7 

• PMM ingress and internal outfitting 

• Spacewalk 2 by Bowen and Drew (removal 

of thermal insulation from the ELC4, 

installation of CETA lights, troubleshooting 

of the port 1 truss radiator stowage beam 

bracket, removal and replacement of a cargo 

adapter plate on Columbus, installation of a 

pan and tilt unit on a camera on Dextre and 

removal of thermal covers) 

Flight Day 8 

• Cargo transfer to station from the PMM 

• Crew off duty time 

Flight Day 9 

• Reconfiguration of spacewalk equipment 

• Joint crew news conference 

• Crew off-duty time 

• Rendezvous tools checkout 

• Farewells and hatch closure 

• Centerline camera installation 

Flight Day 10 

• Discovery’s final undocking from station and 

fly-around 

• Final separation from the station 

• OBSS late inspection of Discovery’s thermal 

heat shield 

• OBSS berth 

Flight Day 11 

• Cabin stowage 

• Flight control system checkout 

• Reaction control system hot-fire test 

• Deorbit preparation briefing 

• Ku-band antenna stowage 

Flight Day 12 

• Deorbit preparations 

• Payload bay door closing 

• Deorbit burn 

• Discovery’s final landing at KSC 
FEBRUARY 2011 MISSION PROFILE 11

MISSION PROFILE 

CREW 

Commander: Steve Lindsey 

Pilot: Eric Boe 

Mission Specialist 1: Alvin Drew 

Mission Specialist 2: Steve Bowen 

Mission Specialist 3: Michael Barratt 

Mission Specialist 4: Nicole Stott 

LAUNCH 

Orbiter: Discovery (OV-103) 

Launch Site: Kennedy Space Center, 

Launch Pad 39A 

Launch Date: Feb. 24, 2011 

Launch Time: 4:50 p.m. EST (preferred 

in-plane launch time for 

Feb. 24) 

Launch Window: 10 Minutes 

Altitude: 122 Nautical Miles 

(140 Miles) orbital insertion; 

190 nautical miles 

(218 statute miles) 

rendezvous 

Inclination: 51.6 degrees 

Duration: 10 days, 18 hours, 59 minutes 

VEHICLE DATA 

Shuttle Liftoff Weight: 4,525,220

pounds 

Orbiter/Payload Liftoff Weight: 268,620 

pounds 

Orbiter/Payload Landing Weight: 204,736 

pounds 

Software Version: OI-34

Space Shuttle Main Engines: 

SSME 1: 2044 

SSME 2: 2048 

SSME 3: 2058 

External Tank: ET-137 

SRB Set: BI-144 

RSRM Set: RSRM-112 

SHUTTLE ABORTS 

Abort Landing Sites 

RTLS: Kennedy Space Center Shuttle 

Landing Facility 

TAL: Primary – Zaragoza, Spain 

Alternates – Morón, Spain and 

Istres, France 

AOA: Primary – Kennedy Space Center 

Shuttle Landing Facility 

Alternate – White Sands Space 

Harbor 

LANDING 

Landing Date: March 7, 2011 

Landing Time: 11:50 a.m. EST 

Primary landing Site: Kennedy Space Center 

PAYLOADS 

Express Logistics Carrier 4 (ELC4) 

Permanent Multipurpose Module (PMM) 
12 MISSION PROFILE FEBRUARY 2011

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FEBRUARY 2011 MISSION OBJECTIVES 13

MISSION OBJECTIVES 

1. Rendezvous and dock space shuttle 

Discovery to the International Space Station 

pressurized mating adapter 2 and perform 

mandatory safety briefing for all crew 

members. 

2. Robotically install Express Logistics Carrier 

4 (ELC4) to starboard three truss lower 

inboard common attach site. 

3. Robotically install Permanent Multipurpose 

Module (PMM) to Unity node nadir or 

Earth-facing port. 

4. PMM activities: Perform minimal 

activation and checkout to preserve module 

and cargo (if only a short time allowed for 

PMM activation, do enough to ensure the 

PMM survival. However, nominal timeline 

will allow full activation). Perform passive 

common berthing mechanism sealing 

surface inspection. 

5. Activate ELC4. 

6. Transfer and stow critical items per 

Utilization and Logistics Flight 5 (ULF5) 

transfer priorities list (TPL). 

7. Complete spacewalk tasks to support 

station operations. There are also several 

other spacewalk tasks deemed to fit within 

the existing spacewalk timelines; however, 

they may be deferred if the spacewalk is 

behind schedule. The spacewalk will not be 

extended to complete these tasks. 

8. Activate and check out PMM (this is the 

nominally planned activation). 

− Activate PMM systems. 

− Ingress PMM. 

− Install one portable fire extinguisher 

and one portable breathing apparatus 

in PMM. 

9. Perform daily space station payload status 

checks, as required. 

10. Transfer oxygen from the orbiter to the 

station airlock high pressure gas tanks; 

25 pounds minimum. 

11. Transfer nitrogen from the orbiter to the 

station airlock high pressure gas tanks; 

25 pounds minimum. 

12. Transfer remaining cargo items per flight 

ULF5 TPL. 

13. Perform daily middeck activities to support 

payloads (status checks). 

14. Perform space station payload research 

operations tasks. 

15. Complete camera port 3 (CP3) camera 

calibration, checkout and survey after the 

CP3 wedge is installed (spacewalk task), 

and downlink data for analysis. 
14 MISSION OBJECTIVES FEBRUARY 2011

16. Perform intravehicular activity tasks: 

− Install recycle filter tank assembly. 

− Remove and replace Tranquility node 

atmosphere revitalization rack carbon 

dioxide removal assembly bed. 

17. Transfer water from orbiter to space station 

per flight ULF5 TPL. 

18. Reboost the space station with the orbiter if 

mission resources allow and are consistent 

with station trajectory analysis and 

planning. 

19. Perform imagery survey of the space station 

exterior during orbiter fly-around after 

undock. 

20. Perform checkout of ELC4. 

21. Perform Developmental Test Objective 

(DTO) 701b (DragonEye Flash Light 

Intensification Detection and Ranging). 

22. Perform structural SDTOs (Station 

Developmental Test Objective) as follows: 

− Perform SDTO 13005-U, ISS structural 

life validation and extension, during 

ULF5 orbiter docking. 

− Perform SDTO 13005-U, ISS structural 

life validation and extension, during 

PMM installation (ISS wireless 

instrumentation system (IWIS)) 

required. 

− Perform SDTO 13005-U, ISS structural 

life validation and extension, during 

ULF5 mated reboost (IWIS required). 

− Perform SDTO 13005-U, ISS structural 

life validation and extension during 

ULF5 orbiter undocking (IWIS highly 

desired). 

23. Perform payloads of opportunity (not 

required during docked ops) if propellant 

available. 

− Ram Burn Observations 2 (RAMBO-2). 

− Maui Analysis of Upper Atmospheric 

Injections (MAUI). 

− Shuttle Exhaust Ion Turbulence 

Experiments (SEITE). 

− Shuttle Ionospheric Modification with 

Pulsed Local Exhaust (SIMPLEX). 

24. Perform program-approved spacewalk 

get-ahead tasks. These tasks do not fit in 

the existing spacewalk timelines; however, 

the spacewalk team will be trained and 

ready to perform them should the 

opportunity arise. The spacewalk 

operations team in mission control has the 

flexibility to select the tasks to be completed 

based on efficiencies gained in performing 

the already scheduled required tasks. 

25. Perform program approved interior 

get-ahead tasks. These tasks do not fit in 

the existing timelines; however, the 

operations team and crew will be trained 

and ready to perform should the 

opportunity arise. 

26. Perform imagery of space station’s Russian 

segment exterior for historical 

documentation. 
FEBRUARY 2011 MISSION PERSONNEL 15

MISSION PERSONNEL 

KEY CONSOLE POSITIONS FOR STS-133 

 Flt. Director CAPCOM PAO

Ascent Richard Jones Charlie Hobaugh 

Barry Wilmore (Wx) 

Josh Byerly 

Orbit 1 (Lead) Bryan Lunney Steve Robinson Josh Byerly 

Orbit 2 Ginger Kerrick Megan McArthur Pat Ryan 

Planning Rick LaBrode Mike Massimino Brandi Dean 

Entry Tony Ceccacci Charlie Hobaugh 

Barry Wilmore (Wx) 

Josh Byerly 

Shuttle Team 4 Paul Dye N/A N/A 

STATION Orbit 1 David Korth Hal Getzelman N/A 

STATION Orbit 2 (Lead) Royce Renfrew Stan Love N/A 

STATION Orbit 3 Chris Edelen Ricky Arnold N/A 

Station Team 4 Kwatsi Alibaruho 

JSC PAO Representative at KSC for Launch – Lynnette Madison

KSC Launch Commentator – Mike Curie

KSC Launch Director – Mike Leinbach

NASA Launch Test Director – Steve Payne 
16 MISSION PERSONNEL FEBRUARY 2011

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FEBRUARY 2011 CREW 17

DISCOVERY CREW 

The STS-133 mission patch is based upon 

sketches from the late artist Robert McCall; they 

were the final creations of his long and 

prodigious career. In the foreground, a solitary 

orbiter ascends into a dark blue sky above a 

roiling fiery plume. A spray of stars surrounds 

the orbiter and a top-lit crescent forms the 

background behind the ascent. The mission 

number, STS-133, is emblazoned on the patch 

center, and crew members’ names are listed on 

a sky-blue border around the scene. The shuttle 

Discovery is depicted ascending on a plume of 

flame as if it is just beginning a mission. 

However it is just the orbiter, without boosters 

or an external tank, as it would be at mission’s 

end. This is to signify Discovery’s completion 

of its operational life and the beginning of its 

new role as a symbol of NASA’s and the 

nation’s proud legacy in human spaceflight. 

Short biographical sketches of the crew follow 

with more detailed biographies available at: 

http://www.jsc.nasa.gov/bios/. 
18 CREW FEBRUARY 2011

CREW BIOGRAPHIES 

Steve Lindsey 

Retired U.S. Air Force Colonel Steve Lindsey, 

50, will serve as commander of STS-133. In his 

role as commander, he will have overall 

responsibility for the mission and will ensure 

that all objectives are executed safely. 

Lindsey has performed several technical duties 

that include working as the shuttle landing and 

rollout representative, deputy for shuttle 

operations, co-chairman of the space shuttle 

cockpit council and chief of International Space 

Station operations. His most recent position 

was chief of the astronaut corps where he was 

responsible for the mission preparation 

activities of all space shuttle and International 

Space Station crews and their support 

personnel. 

A veteran of four spaceflights, he has logged 

more than 1,203 hours in space. 
FEBRUARY 2011 CREW 19

Eric Boe 

Eric Boe, 46, a colonel in the U.S. Air Force, will 

serve as pilot of STS-133. 

Selected by NASA in 2000, he completed two 

years of training and evaluation, then was 

assigned technical duties in the astronaut office 

advanced vehicles branch, space station 

operations branch and space shuttle branch. 

For one year he served as NASA’s director of 

operations at the Gagarin Cosmonaut Training 

Center in Star City, Russia. 

Boe first served as a pilot on STS-126, a 15-day 

mission in November 2008. 
20 CREW FEBRUARY 2011

Alvin Drew 

In his second trip to space, Alvin Drew, 47, a 

retired colonel in the U.S. Air Force, will serve 

as a mission specialist on STS-133. Selected by 

NASA in 2000 and after completing astronaut 

training, he was initially assigned technical 

duties in the astronaut office space station 

operations branch. Drew then served as 

NASA’s director of operations at the Gagarin 

Cosmonaut Training Center in Star City, 

Russia. 

A command pilot, he has more than 25 years of 

experience and 3,500 hours of flying 

30 different types of aircraft. The Washington, 

D.C., native logged more than 305 hours in 

space during the STS-118 space shuttle mission 

in August 2007. 
FEBRUARY 2011 CREW 21

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 

2 on STS-133. 

Upon completion of Astronaut Candidate 

Training, Bowen was initially assigned 

technical duties in the Astronaut Office Station 

Operations Branch. Bowen has spent 34 hours 

and 30 minutes on spacewalks over the course 

of two shuttle missions − STS-126 in November 

of 2008 and STS-132 in May of 2010. 
22 CREW FEBRUARY 2011

Michael Barratt 

Dr. Michael Barratt, 51, will serve as a mission 

specialist on the STS-133 crew. 

Barratt, a board certified physician in internal 

and aerospace medicine, began his career in the 

space program as a project physician with 

KRUG Life Sciences in 1991, and joined NASA 

as a flight surgeon in 1992. From July 1995 

through July 1998, he served as medical 

operations lead for the space station and then 

served as lead crew surgeon for first expedition 

crew to the space station from July 1998 until 

selected as an astronaut candidate in 2000. 

He served numerous technical roles before 

training for his first mission as a flight engineer 

on Expeditions 19 and 20 in 2009. During that 

mission, he acquired 199 days of spaceflight 

experience. 
FEBRUARY 2011 CREW 23

Nicole Stott 

Nicole Stott, 47, also joined the astronaut ranks 

after working at NASA. Stott initially joined 

NASA at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida, 

serving numerous roles including vehicle 

operations engineer, NASA convoy 

commander, shuttle flow director for space 

shuttle Endeavour and orbiter project engineer 

for space shuttle Columbia. In 1998, she joined 

the Johnson Space Center team as a member of 

the aircraft operations division, where she 

served as a flight simulation engineer on the 

shuttle training aircraft. 

Stott, also selected as an astronaut in 2000, flew 

her first mission in 2009 as a flight engineer for 

the Expedition 20 and 21 crews, logging 91 days 

in space. Stott will serve as a mission specialist 

on the STS-133 crew. 
24 CREW FEBRUARY 2011

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FEBRUARY 2011 PAYLOAD OVERVIEW 25

PAYLOAD OVERVIEW 

This graphic depicts the space shuttle Discovery’s payload bay for STS-133, which includes the 

Permanent Multipurpose Module and the Express Logistics Carrier 4. The total payload 

weight, not counting the middeck, is 36,514 pounds. 

PERMANENT MULTIPURPOSE MODULE 

The Permanent Multipurpose Module (PMM) is 

a large, reusable pressurized element, carried 

in the space shuttle’s cargo bay, originally used 

to ferry cargo back and forth to the station. For 

STS-133, the PMM, known as Leonardo, was 

modified to become a permanent module 

attached to the International Space Station. 

Once in orbit, the PMM will offer 

2,472 additional cubic feet of pressurized 

volume for storage and for scientific use. The 

module is carried in the cargo bay of Discovery 

and will be connected to the Unity node on the 

station. 

To transform an existing logistics carrier used 

for 10 years into a permanent module able to 

stay an additional 10 years in orbit, 

modifications consisted of the following: 

• Enhance the module shielding with an 

improved micrometeoroid debris protective 

shield design to satisfy the new penetration 

requirements. 

• Provide the in-orbit maintenance capability 

by changing the internal harness routing 

and brackets layout to allow the crew 

accessibility to the internal equipment. 
26 PAYLOAD OVERVIEW FEBRUARY 2011

The PMM is 21 feet long and 15 feet in diameter – the same size as the 

European Space Agency’s Columbus module. 

• Provide easy interfaces for future 

exploitation of the retained resources. 

• Provide a certified life extension for all 

equipments and subsystems. 

• Developed a software update to eliminate 

faulty alarms. 

The Italian Space Agency contracted with 

Thales Alenia Space, which also designed and 

built the three multi-purpose logistic modules, 

to make the modifications. This module flew 

seven times as Leonardo, the multipurpose 

logistics module. As the PMM module, this 

will be its final flight and the last pressurized 

element to be added to the U.S. operating 

segment (USOS) of the station. 

On the STS-133 mission, the PMM will carry 

14 racks to the station – one experiment rack, 

six resupply stowage platforms (RSPs), 

five resupply stowage racks (RSRs), and 

two integrated stowage platforms (ISPs). 

The experiment rack carried in the PMM is the 

Express Rack 8. 

PMM Specifications

Dimensions: Length: 21 feet 

Diameter: 15 feet 

Payload Mass (launch): 28,353 pounds 

Empty Weight: 21,817 pounds 
FEBRUARY 2011 PAYLOAD OVERVIEW 27

In the Space Station Processing Facility at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, a technician 

installs multilayer insulation on the meteoroids and debris protective shield of the Permanent 

Multipurpose Module. The reflective silver mesh is Mylar, which is aluminized to protect hardware 

aboard the International Space Station from solar thermal radiation. 

Express Rack 8 

Express rack 8 is a multi-purpose payload rack 

system that stores and supports experiments 

aboard the International Space Station. Express 

stands for Expedite the Processing of 

Experiments to the Space Station. The Express 

rack system supports science experiments in 

any discipline by providing structural 

interfaces, power, data, cooling, water and 

other items needed to operate science 

experiments in space. 

With standardized hardware interfaces and a 

streamlined approach, the Express rack enables 

quick, simple integration of multiple payloads 

aboard the station. The system is composed of 

elements that remain on the station and 

elements that travel back and forth between the 

station and Earth via the space shuttle. Express 

racks remain in space continually. Experiments 

are replaced in the Express racks as needed, 

remaining on the station for periods ranging 

from three months to several years, depending 

on the experiment’s time requirements. 

Payloads within an Express rack can operate 

independently of each other, allowing for 

differences in temperature, power levels and 

schedules. The Express rack provides stowage, 
28 PAYLOAD OVERVIEW FEBRUARY 2011

power, data, command and control, video, 

water cooling, air cooling, vacuum exhaust and 

nitrogen supply to payloads. Each Express rack 

is housed in an international standard payload 

rack (ISPR), a refrigerator-sized container that 

serves as the rack’s exterior shell. 

Experiments contained within EXPRESS racks 

may be controlled by the station crew or 

remotely by the payload rack officer (PRO) on 

duty at the Payload Operations and Integration 

Center at Marshall Space Flight Center in 

Huntsville, Ala. Linked by computer to all 

payload racks aboard the station, the PRO 

routinely checks rack integrity, temperature 

control and proper working conditions for 

station research payloads. 

The following spare parts are also being carried 

in the PMM: 

Common Cabin Air Assembly Heat Exchanger 

The common cabin air assembly (CCAA) 

heat exchanger (HX) is a condensing heat 

exchanger – an integral part of the temperature 

and humidity control (THC) subsystem. 

The CCAA HX is used to automatically 

control temperature and humidity within the 

USOS according to the needs of the crew. 

The condensate is collected and sent to the 

condensate bus, where the water is reclaimed, 

and sent on to be processed into potable water. 

The CCAA HX is roughly 125 pounds 

when filled with water. The dimensions, 

minus hoses, are approximately 34.8 inches by 

21.4 inches by 17.5 inches. The unit is 

manufactured by Hamilton Sundstrand, 

Windsor Locks, Conn. The CCAA HX is 

configured to be used in the Harmony node. 
FEBRUARY 2011 PAYLOAD OVERVIEW 29

Boeing is responsible for sustaining engineering 

in the USOS. The hardware is sustained by the 

Boeing environmental controls and life support 

(ECLS) and THC team in Houston. This team 

manages and maintains all ECLS hardware and 

provides technical support to the station 

operations team in mission control. 

Pump Package Assembly 

The pump package assembly (PPA) is being 

delivered to serve as a second available spare 

on board the station. It provides the motive 

force for circulating coolant fluid throughout 

the Internal Thermal Control System (ITCS) 

loops. The PPAs are installed in both the lowand moderate-temperature loops of the Destiny 

laboratory, Harmony node and Tranquility 

node. 

It provides for coolant expansion/contraction 

due to thermal excursions and provides a 

reservoir for inadvertent coolant spill make-up. 

The bolted assembly consists of a central 

manifold, centrifugal pump driven with a 

brushless DC motor and a firmware controller, 

a noncondensable gas trap, various water lines, 

gas trap differential pressure sensor, flow 

meter, accumulator/reservoir, with coolant 

quantity sensor, filter (with isolation valves), 

pump outlet temperature sensor, pump inlet 

pressure sensor, filter delta pressure sensor, 

and a pump delta pressure sensor. The 

assembly is completely enclosed in thermal 

insulation. The PPA weighs 191 pounds with 

the ITCS fluid fill. It measures 29.64 inches by 

18.63 inches by 17.75 inches. The PPAs are 

manufactured by Honeywell, Inc., Torrance, 

Calif. 

The hardware is sustained by the Boeing Active 

Thermal Control System (ATCS) team in 

Houston. This team manages and maintains all 

ATCS hardware and provides technical support 

to the station operations team in mission 

control. 

Inlet 

The inlet is a large cabin fan and is used as an 

integral part of the temperature and humidity 

control (THC) subsystem. The cabin fan 

provides intra-module ventilation in all USOS 

modules. It is a multispeed, acoustically 

treated fan that maintains proper mixing of the 

cabin atmosphere. This Inlet ORU is being 

launched as a spare to keep on board. The inlet 

weighs 58.81 pounds and the dimensions are 

approximately 17.5 inches by 21 inches by 

24 inches. It is manufactured by Hamilton 

Sundstrand, Windsor Locks, Conn. The 

hardware is sustained by the Boeing ELCS, 

temperature, humidity controls, and ventilation 
30 PAYLOAD OVERVIEW FEBRUARY 2011

team in Houston. This team manages and 

maintains all ECLS hardware and provides 

technical support to the station operations team 

in mission control. 

Water Processor Assembly Water Storage 

Tank 

The water processor assembly (WPA) water 

storage tank detects conductivity and gas 

content of the water that has been produced by 

the WPA. The tank either provides storage of 

up to 125 pounds of acceptable water or rejects 

the water for reprocessing. It consists of a 

bellows tank with quantity sensors, solenoid 

valves, and sensors for determining the water’s 

acceptability for use. A conductivity sensor 

and a gas sensor are used to check the product 

water. Acceptable water is passed to the tank 

and stored before it is distributed to the potable 

water bus, while out-of-specification water is 

redirected back through the WPA for 

reprocessing. 

The water storage tank weighs 154 pounds 

when empty and is on the bottom shelf on the 

right side of water recovery system 1 rack. The 

dimensions, minus the hoses, are 

approximately 34.74 inches by 17.23 inches by 

19.38 inches. The unit is manufactured by 

Hamilton Sundstrand, Windsor Locks, Conn. 

The WPA water storage tank is configured to be 

used in the Tranquility node to support six 

crew members on the station. 

Boeing is responsible for sustaining engineering 

in the USOS. The hardware is sustained by the 

Boeing ECLS and water evaluation team in 

Houston. This team manages and maintains all 

ECLS hardware and provides technical support 

to the station operations team in mission 

control. 

Water Processor Assembly Waste Water Tank 

The WPA waste water tank provides up to 

100 pounds of storage of the condensate 

collected in the waste water bus from the 

station and urine distillate produced by the 

urine processor assembly before it is processed 

by the WPA. It consists of a bellows tank with 

quantity sensors and solenoid valves to allow 

isolation of the tank when it is full. 

The waste water tank weighs 230 pounds when 

full of waste water and 130 pounds when 

empty. The waste water tank is on the right 

side of the water recovery system 2 rack. The 

dimensions, minus the hoses, are 

approximately 32.54 inches by 17.30 inches by 

18.77 inches. The unit is manufactured by 

Hamilton Sundstrand, Windsor Locks, Conn. 

The WPA waste water tank is configured to be 

used in the Tranquility node to support 

six crew members on the station. 

 
FEBRUARY 2011 PAYLOAD OVERVIEW 31

The International Space Station contains several unpressurized platforms that include 

ELCs 1-4 and External Storage Platforms (ESP) 1-2. 

Boeing is responsible for sustaining engineering 

in the USOS. The hardware is sustained by the 

Boeing ECLS and water evaluation team in 

Houston. This team manages and maintains all 

ECLS hardware and provides technical support 

to the station operations team in mission 

control. 

EXPRESS LOGISTICS CARRIER 4 

The Express Logistics Carrier (ELC) is a 

platform designed to support external payloads 

mounted to the International Space Station 

starboard and port trusses with either deep 

space or Earthward views. Each pallet spans 

the entire width of the shuttle’s payload bay, 

can carry science experiments and serves as a 

parking place for spare hardware that can be 

replaced robotically once in space. For STS-133, 

Discovery will carry the ELC4 to the station to 

be positioned on the starboard 3 (S3) truss 

lower inboard passive attachment system 

(PAS). ELC1 and ELC2 were placed on the 

station’s truss structure during STS-129. ELC1 

is mounted on the port 3 (P3) truss element 

unpressurized cargo carrier attachment system 

(UCCAS) while ELC2 is placed on the S3 truss 

upper outboard PAS. 

The weight of ELC4 is approximately 

8,161 pounds. Remmele Engineering, based in 

Minneapolis, built the integral aluminum ELC 

decks for NASA. Engineers from NASA 

Goddard Space Flight Center’s carriers 

development office developed the lightweight 

ELC design, which incorporates elements of 

both the express pallet and the unpressurized 

logistics carrier. Orbital Science Corporation 

built the ELC. 
The ELC is designed to be carried in the space 

shuttle cargo bay to the station, fully integrated 

with cargo. Four ELCs will be attached to the 

station before the scheduled retirement of the 

space shuttle. Two ELCs will be attached to the 

S3 and two ELCs will be mated to the P3. By 

attaching at the S3/P3 sites, a variety of views 

such as deep space or Earthward directions 

with a combination of forward or aft pointing 

allows for many possible viewing 

opportunities. Cargo stationed on the ELC will 

be exposed to the microgravity and vacuum 

environments of space for extended periods of 

32 PAYLOAD OVERVIEW FEBRUARY 2011

A spare Heat Rejection Subsystem (HRS) radiator is shown installed in a stowed configuration 

on the ExPRESS Logistics Carrier 4 (ELC4) which is being flown on the STS-133 mission. The 

heat is transferred to the HRS radiator via flowing liquid ammonia. The ammonia, through loops 

in the panels, allows the heat to be radiated to the “coldness” of deep space. The spare will remain 

installed on ELC4 while on the International Space Station. 

time while docked to the station, unshielded 

from incident radiation and orbital debris. 

The following item will be carried on ELC4: 

Heat Rejection Subsystem Radiator 

The heat rejection subsystem (HRS) consists of 

a base, eight panels, torque panel, torque arm, 

an interconnected fluid system, a scissors-type 

deployment mechanism and a computer 

controlled motor/cable deployment system. 

Part of the station’s external active thermal 

control system (EATCS), the HRS radiator 

rejects thermal energy via radiation. 
FEBRUARY 2011 PAYLOAD OVERVIEW 33

This graphic depicts the installed location of the PMM and ELC4 on the station. 

Radiator Specifications

Dimensions: Length: 74.6 feet 

Diameter: 11.2 feet 

Area: 1.554 ft.^2

Weight: 2,475 pounds

The EATCS provides heat rejection capabilities 

for pressurized modules and the main power 

distribution electronics on the starboard 0, 

starboard 1 (S1) and port 1 (P1) trusses by a 

closed-loop, actively controlled, coolant loop to 

maintain components at acceptable 

temperatures. Heat is transferred to the HRS 

radiator via flowing liquid anhydrous 

ammonia. Hot ammonia flows through the 

radiator panels and heat is conducted from the 

ammonia tubes to the cooler panel surface and 

radiated to the “coldness” of deep space. 

Flowing ammonia exits the HRS radiator at a 

cooler temperature so the closed-loop cycle 

may continue. The HRS radiator unit 

launching on ELC4 as part of the STS-133 

mission is a spare, if needed, for one of the six 

HRS radiators that are part of the EATCS (three 

each on S1 and P1). This spare HRS radiator 

will remain in a stowed configuration on ELC-4 

until needed. Lockheed Martin manufactured 

the radiator. Boeing configured and integrated 

the HRS radiator onto the ELC4. 

Boeing has the responsibility under its 

Checkout, Assembly and Payload Processing 

Services contract with NASA for payload 

integration and processing for every major 

payload that flies on each space shuttle flight. 

The Boeing PMM and ELC processing team 

provides all engineering and hands-on work 

including payload support, project planning, 

receipt of payloads, payload processing, 

maintenance of associated payload ground 

systems and logistics support. This includes 

integration of payloads into the space shuttle, 

test and checkout of the payload with the 

orbiter systems, launch support and orbiter 

post-landing payload activities. 
34 PAYLOAD OVERVIEW FEBRUARY 2011

ROBONAUT 2 

Almost 200 people from 15 countries have 

visited the International Space Station, but so 

far the orbiting complex has only ever had 

human crew members – until now. 

Robonaut 2, the latest generation of the 

Robonaut astronaut helpers, is set to launch to 

the space station aboard space shuttle 

Discovery on the STS-133 mission. It will be the 

first humanoid robot in space, and although its 

primary job for now is teaching engineers how 

dexterous robots behave in space, the hope is 

that through upgrades and advancements, it 

could one day venture outside the station to 

help spacewalkers make repairs or additions to 

the station or perform scientific work. 

R2, as the robot is called, will launch inside the 

Leonardo Permanent Multipurpose Module, 

which will be packed with supplies and 

equipment for the station and then installed 

permanently on the Unity node. Once R2 is 

unpacked – likely several months after it arrives 

– it will initially be operated inside the Destiny 

laboratory for operational testing, but over 

time, both its territory and its applications 

could expand. There are no plans to return R2 

to Earth. 

History 

Work on the first Robonaut began in 1997. The 

idea was to build a humanoid robot that could 

assist astronauts on tasks where another pair of 

hands would be helpful, or venture forth in 

their stead for jobs either too dangerous for 

crew members to risk or too mundane for them 

to spend time on. The result was R1, a 

human-like prototype of a robot that could 

perform maintenance tasks or be mounted on a 

set of wheels to explore the surface of the moon 

or Mars. No funding was available to make R1 

more than a prototype, however, and active 

work on the robot stopped in 2006. 

The same year, however, General Motors (GM) 

expressed an interest in hearing about the 

project. The company had been developing its 

own dexterous robots and, after seeing what 

NASA had already accomplished, proposed 

teaming up. A Space Act Agreement was 

signed in 2007 to allow GM to benefit from 

NASA’s experience and NASA to benefit from 

GM’s funding. 

In February 2010, R2 was unveiled – a faster, 

more dexterous, more technologically advanced 

dexterous humanoid robot than had ever 

been seen before. Its potential was quickly 

recognized and space was made on one of the 

few remaining shuttle missions to provide it a 

ride to the space station. There, it will make 

both history as the first humanoid robot in 

space, and progress as engineers get their first 

look at how a humanoid robot actually 

performs in the absence of gravity. 

Future 

R2’s first assignment will be aboard the 

International Space Station. The conditions 

aboard the space station provide an ideal 

proving ground for robots to work shoulder to 

shoulder with people in microgravity. Once 

this has been demonstrated inside the station, 

software upgrades and lower bodies can be 

added, allowing R2 to move around and 

eventually work outside in the vacuum of 

space. This will help NASA understand robotic 

capabilities for future deep space missions. 

As R2 technology matures, similar robots could 

be sent deeper into space to test the system in 

more extreme thermal and radiation conditions. 
FEBRUARY 2011 PAYLOAD OVERVIEW 35

Someday, R2 could service communications, 

weather and reconnaissance satellites, which 

have direct benefits on Earth. 

The next step for robotic capabilities such as R2 

would be to explore near-Earth objects, 

including asteroids and comets, and eventually 

Mars and Mars’ moons. The robot will serve as 

a scout, providing advanced maps and soil 

samples, and beginning work on the 

infrastructure that astronauts would need. The 

crew that follows would then be much more 

prepared for the exploration ahead. 

This evolution of capabilities for both robotic 

and human exploration will make a planetary 

surface mission possible. This human-robotic 

partnership will allow surface missions to be 

conducted safely by a smaller crew – without 

sacrificing mission plans and results. 

There is a logical progression for the next 

generation of space exploration. Our first look 

at a new destination is through a telescope, then 

through the eyes of a robotic precursor such as 

R2, followed by arrival of human explorers. 

Humans and robots exploring the solar system 

together will provide greater results than either 

could achieve alone, enabling an exciting future 

of new discoveries. 

Upgrading for Space 

R2 was designed as a prototype to be used here 

on Earth as a way to better understand what 

would be needed to eventually send a robot to 

space. However, when R2 was unveiled, the 

system was so impressive that mission 

managers decided to go ahead and send it to 

the space station, but not without a few 

upgrades. Outer skin materials were 

exchanged to meet the station’s stringent 

flammability requirements; shielding was 

added to reduce electromagnetic interference 

and processors were upgraded to increase the 

robot’s radiation tolerance. The original fans 

were replaced with quieter ones to 

accommodate the station’s restrictive noise 

environment and the power system was 

rewired to run on the station’s direct current 

system, rather than the alternating current used 

on the ground. 

Space Readiness Testing 

Before being declared ready to brave the rigors 

of spaceflight, R2 was put through its paces to 

make sure the robot could both endure the 

environment and exist in it without doing 

damage. Tests were conducted to make sure 

the robot wasn’t too loud, didn’t emit 

electromagnetic waves that would interfere 

with other station systems and could run well 

on the station’s power system. It also 

underwent vibration testing that simulated the 

conditions it will experience during its launch 

onboard space shuttle Discovery to make sure it 

was ready for the ride. 

Working on the Station 

Initially, R2’s primary role on the space station 

will be experimental. The robot will begin its 

life in space stationed in the Destiny laboratory, 

where it will be put through tasks and 

operations similar to ones that it has already 

performed on Earth, which will allow engineers 

to work out the pitfalls of operating a dexterous 

humanoid robot in space. As R2 proves its 

mettle, the robot may graduate to station 

maintenance tasks, such as vacuuming or 

cleaning filters. And with upgrades that would 

allow it to function in the vacuum of space, it 

could also perform repairs on the outside of the 

station or simply help astronauts as work 

outside. 
36 PAYLOAD OVERVIEW FEBRUARY 2011

Specifications 

Materials: Nickel-plated carbon 

fiber and aluminum 

Weight: 300 pounds 

Height: 3 feet, 3.7 inches 

(from waist to head) 

Shoulder width: 2 feet, 7.4 inches 

Degrees of freedom: 42 Sensors: 350+ 

Processors: 38 Power PC Processors

Energy usage: 120 volts DC 

What Robonauts are Made Of

A robot meant to work with humans

and use human tools begins to look

humanlike by default. However R2’s head Behind R2’s visor are four visible light 

houses not its brain, but its vision equipment. cameras – two to provide stereo vision

for the robot and its operators and two

auxiliary cameras.

A fifth infrared camera is 

R2 has three degrees housed in the mouth area for 

of freedom in its depth perception.

neck, allowing it to look

left, right, up or down.

Each arm boasts

seven degrees of

freedom and the strength to hold

20 pounds in any pose in Earth’s gravity.

Here on Earth and at the space 

station, R2’s backpack holds its power

conversion system, allowing itto

basically be plugged in. On another 

planetary surface the backpack would 

hold the robot’s batteries.

Robonaut 2’s hands have 12 degrees of freedom --

four in the thumb, three each in the index and middle R2 thinks with its stomach –literally.

fingers and one each in the ring and pinky fingers. Each With its head full of cameras, the only

finger has a grasping force of 5 pounds. place with enough room for a brain is

the robot’s torso.

Each arm is 

2 feet, 

8 inches long,

giving the 

R2 a total 

wingspan of

8 feet.
FEBRUARY 2011 RENDEZVOUS & DOCKING 37

RENDEZVOUS & DOCKING 

Discovery’s launch for the STS-133 mission is 

precisely timed to lead to a link up with the 

International Space Station about 220 miles 

above the 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, Discovery 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 distance to the 

station during the next orbit. 

As Discovery moves closer, 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 Steve Lindsey, with help from 

Pilot Eric Boe and other crew members, will 

manually fly the shuttle for the remainder of 

the approach and docking. 

Lindsey will stop Discovery about 600 feet 

below the station. Timing the next steps to 

occur with proper lighting, he will maneuver 

the shuttle through an approximate eightminute back flip called the Rendezvous Pitch 

Maneuver, also known as the R-bar Pitch 

Maneuver since Discovery is in line with an 

imaginary vertical R-bar directly below the 

station. During this maneuver, station crew 

members Paolo Nespoli and Cady Coleman 

will photograph Discovery’s upper and lower 

surfaces through windows of the Zvezda 

Service Module. Nespoli will use a digital 

camera equipped with an 800 mm lens to 

provide up to one-inch resolution and Coleman 

will document the thermal protection system 

armed with a camera outfitted with a 400 mm 

lens providing three-inch resolution. 

The photography is one of several techniques 

used to inspect the shuttle’s outer surface for 

possible damage. Areas of special interest 

include the thermal protection tiles, the 

reinforced carbon-carbon panels along the wing 

leading edges and the nosecap, landing gear 

doors and the elevon cove. The digital photos 

will be downlinked through the station’s 

Ku-band communications system for analysis 

by imagery experts in mission control. 

When Discovery completes its back flip, it will 

be back where it started with its payload bay 

facing the station. Lindsey 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 Discovery’ docking 

mechanism. 

Using a video camera mounted in the center of 

the orbiter docking system, Lindsey will line up 

the docking ports of the two spacecraft. If 

necessary, he will pause the shuttle 30 feet from 

the station to ensure the 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 

Discovery and the station are moving at about 
38 RENDEZVOUS & DOCKING FEBRUARY 2011

17,500 mph. Lindsey will keep the docking 

mechanisms aligned to a tolerance of three 

inches. 

When Discovery 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. Discovery’s 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, Boe will turn the steering jets back on 

and manually control Discovery within a tight 

corridor as the shuttle separates from the 

station. 

Discovery will move to a distance of about 

450 feet, where Boe will begin to fly around the 

station. Discovery will circle the shuttle around 

the station at a distance of 600-700 feet. 

Once the shuttle completes 1.5 revolutions of 

the complex, Boe will fire Discovery’s jets to 

leave the area. The shuttle will begin to 

increase its distance behind the station with 

each trip around the earth while the crew 

conducts one last inspection of the heat shield 

using the Orbiter Boom Sensor System. 

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. 
FEBRUARY 2011 SPACEWALKS 39

SPACEWALKS 

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

mission's first session of Extravehicular Activity (EVA) as construction 

and maintenance continue on the International Space Station. 

Following the failure of a pump module on the 

International Space Station in August 2010, the 

spacewalk plan for STS-133 underwent a major 

overhaul. What had been planned for 

noncritical tasks that simply had not yet found 

a home became a chance to finish up work 

started on the three unplanned spacewalks 

conducted by Expedition 24 Flight Engineers 

Tracy Caldwell Dyson and Doug Wheelock. 

For the STS-133 mission, Mission Specialists 

Steve Bowen and Al Drew will spend 13 hours 

outside the station on flight days 5 and 7. 

Bowen, the lead spacewalker for the mission, 

will wear a spacesuit marked with solid red 

stripes, while Drew will wear an all-white 

spacesuit. These will be the sixth and seventh 

spacewalks for Bowen, who performed three 

spacewalks on STS-126 in November of 2008 

and two spacewalks on STS-132 in May of 2010, 

totaling 34 hours and 30 minutes. It will be 

Drew’s first time to venture outside the space 

station. 

When a spacewalk – also called extravehicular 

activity (EVA) for short – is being conducted, 

one crew member inside the International 

Space Station is assigned the job of 
40 SPACEWALKS FEBRUARY 2011

Intravehicular (IV) officer, or spacewalk 

choreographer. In this case, that crew member 

will be Mission Specialist Nicole Stott. 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 an 

ammonia tank assembly and other pieces of 

hardware. Mission Specialist Michael Barratt 

and Expedition 26 Commander Scott Kelly will 

be given that responsibility for this mission. 

During the first spacewalk, they will be ferrying 

Bowen between worksites as he carries the 

failed pump module to a storage position. 

During the second spacewalk, Bowen will ride 

on the arm as he stows a lightweight adaptor 

plate assembly in Discovery’s cargo bay, 

installs a video camera on Dextre, the special 

purpose dexterous manipulator, and removes 

some of Dextre’s insulation. 

Preparations will start the night before each 

spacewalk, when the astronauts spend time in 

the station’s Quest airlock. This practice is 

called the campout prebreathe protocol and is 

used to purge nitrogen from the spacewalkers’ 

systems and prevent decompression sickness, 

also known as “the bends.” 

During the campout, Bowen and Drew will 

isolate themselves inside the airlock while the 

air pressure is lowered to 10.2 pounds per 

square inch (psi). The station is kept at the 

near-sea-level pressure of 14.7 psi. The 

morning of the spacewalk, the astronauts will 

wear oxygen masks while the airlock’s pressure 

is raised back to 14.7 psi for an hour and the 

hatch between the airlock and the rest of the 

station is opened. That allows the spacewalkers 

to perform their morning routines before 

returning to the airlock, where the air pressure 

is lowered again. Approximately 50 minutes 

after the spacewalkers don their spacesuits, the 

prebreathe protocol will be complete. 

The procedure enables spacewalks to begin 

earlier in the crew’s day than was possible 

before the protocol was adopted. 

EVA-1 

Duration: 6 hours, 30 minutes 

EVA Crew: Bowen and Drew 

IV Crew: Stott 

Robotic Arm Operators: Barratt and Kelly 

EVA Operations: 

• J612 extension cable installation 

• Install pump module vent tool 

• Failed pump module storage 

• Relocate a tool stanchion 

• Install camera wedge on starboard 1 truss 

segment 

• Install extensions to the mobile transporter 

rail 

• Expose Message in a Bottle experiment to 

space 

Of course, one of the primary goals of STS-133 

is to deliver the new Permanent Multipurpose 

Module (PMM), to the space station. But before 

it can be attached to the Unity node, an 

extension cable must be installed on the J612 

cable. The cable, which powers secondary 

airlock heaters, will be inaccessible after the 

PMM is installed in its current state. The 

extension cable will make any future 

replacements of the system that might be 

necessary easier. 

Installing the extension cable will take Bowen 

and Drew about 30 minutes. To do so, Bowen 

will remove dust caps from the cable and 
FEBRUARY 2011 SPACEWALKS 41

release some wire ties currently holding the 

J612 cable in place. Then, he will disconnect the 

original cable from the Unity node and connect 

the extension cable in its place, before tying 

down the extension cable. Drew, meanwhile, 

will connect the extension cable to the original 

cable, which runs to the Quest airlock. He will 

also work to secure the cables in place. 

From there, Bowen will move to the external 

stowage platform 2, where a foot restraint will 

be waiting for him to attach it to the space 

station’s robotic arm. On it, Bowen will move 

to the payload orbital replacement unit 

accommodation (POA), which is basically one 

of the robotic arm “hands” without the arm, 

used to temporarily store equipment. In this 

case, the equipment is the pump module that 

failed over the summer. To remove the pump 

module from the POA, Bowen will install a 

handle on the module and then have the 

robotics officers release the POA’s hold on the 

it. He will carry the module back to the 

external stowage platform, which will be its 

long-term storage location. 

While Bowen retrieves the module, Drew will 

retrieve from the port truss’ crew equipment 

and translation aid, (CETA), cart a tool that will 

be used to remove remaining ammonia from 

the pump module. 

Bowen and Drew will work together to secure 

the pump module. Four bolts will be installed 

to hold it in place. They will also install the tool 

Drew retrieved – called the vent tool – for use 

on the second spacewalk. 

Once that task is over, Bowen will climb off of 

the robotic arm. While he does so, Drew will 

move to a piece of the station’s truss near the 

center of the system – the Z1 segment – where 

he will fold back two flaps of insulation on a 

remote power control module, relocate a tool 

stanchion and retrieve another foot restraint, 

this one to store inside the airlock. 

Afterward, Bowen and Drew will come back 

together to install a camera wedge on a video 

camera on the first starboard segment of the 

station’s truss. The wedge will give the camera 

added clearance that it will need once the 

ExPRESS Logistics Carrier 4 that Discovery 

delivered is installed nearby. 

To install the wedge, Drew will remove the 

camera’s stanchion by removing one bolt. The 

wedge will be secured to the truss using a bolt, 

and then the stanchion bolted back onto the 

wedge. The task should take about an hour. 

The spacewalkers will then move together 

further down the starboard truss to the solar 

alpha rotary joint at the starboard three 

segment. There, they will be installing two 

extensions to the station’s mobile transporter 

track, which will allow the mobile transporter 

to travel the entire length of the track with the 

CETA cart and still reach all the worksites. 

Each extension (one on either rail of the track) 

will be secured by two bolts. 

Drew and Bowen will wrap up their work at S3 

by pushing two “stops” out of the way on the 

rails – one meant to keep the mobile transporter 

from passing and one meant to keep a 

spacewalker’s tether from passing. 

The last task for the first spacewalk of the 

mission will be for Bowen and Drew to 

participate in the Japan Aerospace Exploration 

Agency activity called Message in a Bottle. 

They will open and fill a metal cylinder that has 

been signed by other astronauts who have 

flown in space. The bottle will then be returned 

to the ground for public display. 
42 SPACEWALKS FEBRUARY 2011

Astronaut Alvin Drew dons a training version of his spacesuit in preparation for a spacewalk 

training session in the waters of the Neutral Buoyancy Laboratory near NASA’s Johnson Space 

Center. Crewmate Nicole Stott assists Drew. 

EVA-2 

Duration: 6 hours, 30 minutes 

EVA Crew: Bowen and Drew

IV Crew: Stott

Robotic Arm Operators: Barratt and Kelly 

EVA Operations: 

• Vent remaining ammonia from failed pump 

module 

• Stow lightweight adapter plate assembly in 

Discovery’s cargo bay 

• Remove insulation on the ExPRESS logistics 

carrier avionics 

• Install Dextre camera 

• Remove Dextre insulation cover 

• Install light in port crew and equipment 

translation aid cart 

• Reconfigure port radiator beam valve 

module insulation 

• Troubleshoot port radiator grapple fixture 

stowage beams 

• Remove insulation on Tranquility node 

power cables 

• Install covers on Dextre, space station 

robotic arm and payload orbital 

replacement unit attachment cameras 
FEBRUARY 2011 SPACEWALKS 43

The second spacewalk of the mission will 

include one more task to finish up the work 

with the failed pump module. That task – 

removing the remaining ammonia from the 

pump module – will take Drew about an hour. 

The balance of the two spacewalker’s six and a 

half hours scheduled outside the station will be 

spent on the assorted tasks originally assigned 

to the STS-133 mission. 

The pump module work will be first up on 

Drew’s timeline. As the vent tool will have 

been installed on the first spacewalk, Drew will 

simply have to open the vent and wait about 

two minutes for ammonia to be vented out to 

space. (The tool allows it to vent without 

contaminating Drew’s spacesuit with 

ammonia.) Once it is done, he will remove the 

tool and take it back to the Quest airlock. 

Meanwhile, Bowen will be climbing back into 

the foot restraint on the station’s robotic arm. 

He will ride the robotic arm to the end of that 

module to pick up a lightweight adapter plate 

assembly, which has been used to attach 

experiments to the exterior of Columbus. 

Bowen will store it on the sidewall carrier in the 

shuttle’s cargo bay to return home with 

Discovery. This task was originally scheduled 

for STS-131, but canceled due to time 

constraints. Bowen will need to remove one 

bolt to retrieve the plate and install one bolt to 

secure it in the cargo bay. Drew will assist, if 

needed. 

When he is not assisting Bowen with the 

adapter plate, Drew will remove some 

insulation from the avionics assembly on the 

new ExPRESS Logistics Carrier 4 and retrieve 

three sets of stowage bags from the CETA cart 

on the port side of the station’s truss system. 

The spacewalkers will continue to work 

separately throughout the rest of the 

spacewalk. The robotic arm will fly Bowen to 

the special purpose dexterous manipulator, or 

Dextre. There, he will install a second camera 

(using one bolt) on the robot and remove an 

unnecessary insulation blanket, while Drew 

installs a light on the port CETA cart. To install 

the light, Drew will disconnect a cable on a 

stanchion on the CETA cart and connect it to 

the new light, then drive one bolt to hold it in 

place. 

From there, Drew will travel to a radiator beam 

on the first port segment of the truss and install 

insulation on its valve module fluid line. He 

will also spend some time troubleshooting a 

radiator grapple fixture stowage beam. The 

beam, which was originally installed on 

STS-131, would be used temporarily to store 

handles that would be necessary if a radiator 

ever needed to be replaced. However, during 

its installation, the astronauts noticed the beam 

was looser than they expected. Experts on the 

ground think this might be because the two 

bolts securing it did not seat properly or were 

misaligned. 

So, to fix that, Drew will be releasing the two 

bolts and redriving them. If that does not work, 

Drew may be asked to remove the beam 

altogether and check it for clearance issues or 

even bring it inside for further troubleshooting. 

Bowen may assist Drew, if necessary. 

Afterward, Drew will move to the Tranquility 

node to remove some insulation covering 

electrical connectors. In the meantime, Bowen 

will have gotten off the robotic arm. Since he’ll 

be in the vicinity, his next task will be to install 

a lens cover on the camera on the arm’s elbow 

joint. The cover will protect the lens from any 
44 SPACEWALKS FEBRUARY 2011

erosion that might be caused by the thruster 

plume of visiting vehicles that the arm is used 

to dock. It is attached using a lever that locks it 

into place. 

The rest of the spacewalk will be spent 

installing similar covers on other cameras. 

Bowen will install one of Dextre’s cameras 

(the one he did not install earlier in the 

spacewalk). And Drew’s last tasks will be to 

install a lens cover on the POA’s camera. 
FEBRUARY 2011 EXPERIMENTS 45

EXPERIMENTS 

The STS-133 mission will deliver the Permanent 

Multipurpose Module, a veteran pressurized 

cargo carrier that has been converted to a 

permanent storage and research module. 

Inside the Italian-built Leonardo module will be 

the first human-like robot to be tested in orbital 

conditions, and a host of experiments and 

supplies for the International Space Station 

crew. 

Nearly 150 experiments are continuing aboard 

the station as the transition from assembly 

work to expanded research on the international 

laboratory progresses. They span the basic 

categories of biological and biotechnology, 

human research, physical and materials 

sciences, technology development, Earth and 

space science and educational activities. 

Robonaut 2 (R2), will be installed in the 

U.S. Destiny laboratory, providing scientists 

and engineers on the ground and crews on the 

station an opportunity to test how humans and 

human-like robots can work shoulder-toshoulder in microgravity. Once this has been 

demonstrated inside the station, software 

upgrades and lower bodies can be added, 

potentially allowing R2 to move around inside 

the station and eventually work outside in the 

vacuum of space. This will help NASA 

understand robotic capabilities for future deep 

space missions. 

Three new facilities will be delivered to the 

station for use in a variety of investigations: the 

Boiling Experiment Facility (BXF), which will 

support microgravity experiments on the heat 

transfer and vapor removal processes in 

boiling; the eighth Express rack, which will be 

installed in the Destiny laboratory, and the 

urine monitoring system, which will simplify 

for crew members the process of collecting 

waste samples while in the station’s waste and 

hygiene compartment. 

The STS-133 mission includes a mix of research 

that will be performed on the space shuttle 

Discovery and on the station during and after 

the shuttle mission. Among the new 

experiments being delivered by Discovery will 

be the Microheater Array Boiling Experiment 

and the Nucleate Pool Boiling Experiment, both 

of which will use the new BXF facility, and a 

cucumber-development experiment called 

Dynamism of Auxin Efflux Facilitators 

Responsible for Gravity-regulated Growth and 

Development in Cucumber (CsPINs), which 

will continue to expand the body of knowledge 

on how plants react to the microgravity 

environment. 

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. 

SHORT-DURATION EXPERIMENTS TO 

BE PERFORMED ON STS-133 

Biology and Biotechnology 

Mouse Immunology-2 will expand the 

knowledge base of the effects of space 

environment on mammalian immunology and 

provide fundamental knowledge for current 

applications that form a foundation for future 

long-duration space exploration missions. 
46 EXPERIMENTS FEBRUARY 2011

Principal investigator: Roberto Garofalo, 

professor in the Department of Pediatrics at the 

University of Texas Medical Branch at 

Galveston. 

National Lab Pathfinder – Vaccine 

(NLP-Vaccine) is a pathfinder investigation for 

the use of the International Space Station as a 

National Laboratory after station assembly is 

complete. It contains several different 

pathogenic (disease causing) organisms. This 

research is investigating the use of space flight 

to develop potential vaccines for the prevention 

of different infections caused by these 

pathogens on Earth and in microgravity. 

(NASA) 

Growth and Survival of Colored Fungi in 

Space (CFS-A) is an experiment designed to 

determine the effect of microgravity and cosmic 

radiation on the growth and survival of colored 

fungi species. Principal investigators: Dumitru 

Hasegan, George Mogildea, Marian Mogildea 

Romanian Institute for Space Science, 

Bucharest. (ESA) 

Hypersole will determine how balance control 

is affected by changes in skin sensitivity preand 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. 

The principal investigator for Hypersole is 

Dr. Leah R. Bent of the University of Guelph in 

Guelph, Ontario, Canada. (CSA) 

Human Research 

Sleep-Wake Actigraphy and Light Exposure 

During Spaceflight-Short (Sleep-Short)

examines the effects of space flight on the 

sleep cycles 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. 

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 space. Understanding the 

direction in which the spacecraft engine plume, 

or exhaust flows could be significant to the safe 

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 burn experiments 

using ground-based radar. Principal 
FEBRUARY 2011 EXPERIMENTS 47

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) 

RESEARCH SAMPLES/HARDWARE TO 

BE DELIVERED TO STATION ON 

DISCOVERY 

Biology and Biotechnology 

Biomedical Analyses of Human Hair Exposed 

to a Long-term Space Flight (Hair) examines 

the effect of long-duration spaceflight on gene 

expression and trace element metabolism in the 

human body. Principal investigator: Chiaki 

Mukai, JAXA, Tsukuba, Japan. (JAXA)

Dynamism of Auxin Efflux Facilitators 

Responsible for Gravity-regulated Growth 

and Development in Cucumber (CsPINs) uses 

cucumber seedlings to analyze the effect of 

gravity on the expressions of Auxin Efflux 

Facilitators, or CsPINs, and unravel their 

contributions to gravimorphogenesis (peg 

formation). The experiment also differentiates 

hydrotropism from gravitropism in roots and 

compares the expression of CsPINs to figure 

out the interacting mechanism between the two 

tropisms. Principal investigator: Hideyuki 

Takahashi, Tohoku University, Sendai, Miyagi, 

Japan. (JAXA) 

Mycological Evaluation of Crew Exposure to 

ISS Ambient Air 3 (Myco-3) evaluates crew 

exposure to microorganisms such as fungi that 

can act as allergens via inhalation and adhesion 

to the skin from space station ambient air. 

Principal investigator: Chiaki Mukai, JAXA, 

Tsukuba, Japan. (JAXA) 

Educational Activities 

International Space Station Ham Radio 

(ISS Ham Radio) allows crewmembers on the 

station to perform ham radio contacts. With the 

help of amateur radio clubs and ham radio 

operators, astronauts and cosmonauts aboard 

the station speak directly with large groups of 

the general public, showing teachers, students, 

parents, and communities how amateur radio 

energizes students about learning. ISS Ham 

Radio inspires students about science, 

technology engineering and mathematics by 

allowing them to talk directly with the crews 

living and working aboard the station. 

Principal investigator: Kenneth Ransom, 

Johnson Space Center, Houston. (NASA) 

Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency 

Education Payload Observation 6 (JAXA 

EPO 6) activities demonstrate artistic activities 

in the space station’s Kibo laboratory to 

enlighten the general public about microgravity 

research and human space flight. Principal 

investigators: Takuro Osaka, University of 

Tsukuba, Tsukuba, Japan; Teruhiko Tabuchi, 

JAXA, Tsukuba, Japan; Yoshie Ozeki, JAXA, 

Tsukuba, Japan. (JAXA) 

Human Research 

Bisphosphonates as a Countermeasure to 

Space Flight Induced Bone Loss 

(Bisphosphonates) will determine whether 

antiresorptive agents, which help reduce bone 

loss, in conjunction with the routine inflight 

exercise program, will protect station crew 

members from the regional decreases in bone 
48 EXPERIMENTS FEBRUARY 2011

mineral density documented on previous 

station missions. Adrian LeBlanc, Division of 

Space Life Sciences, Universities Space 

Research Association, Houston, and Toshio 

Matsumoto, University of Tokushima, 

Kuramoto, Japan. (NASA) 

Elaboratore Immagini Televisive – Space 2 

(ELITE-S2) will investigate the connection 

between brain, visualization and motion in the 

absence of gravity. By recording and analyzing 

the three-dimensional motion of astronauts, this 

study will help engineers apply ergonomics 

into future spacecraft designs and determine 

the effects of weightlessness on breathing 

mechanisms for long-duration missions. This 

experiment is a cooperative effort with the 

Italian Space Agency, ASI. Principal 

investigator: Francesco Lacquaniti, M.D., 

University of Rome Tor Vergata, Rome, Italy. 

(NASA) 

Cardiac Atrophy and Diastolic Dysfunction 

During and After Long Duration Spaceflight: 

Functional Consequences for Orthostatic 

Intolerance, Exercise Capability and Risk for 

Cardiac Arrhythmias (Integrated

Cardiovascular) will quantify the extent, time 

course and clinical significance of cardiac 

atrophy, or decrease in the size of the heart 

muscle, associated with long-duration space 

flight. This experiment will also identify the 

mechanisms of this atrophy and the functional 

consequences for crew members who will 

spend extended periods of time in space. 

Principal investigators: Benjamin D. Levine, 

Institute for Exercise and Environmental 

Medicine, Presbyterian Hospital and University 

of Texas Southwestern Medical Center at 

Dallas, Michael W. Bungo, University of Texas 

Medical School, Houston. (NASA) 

Nutritional Status Assessment (Nutrition) is 

the most comprehensive in-flight study done by 

NASA to date of human physiologic changes 

during long-duration space flight. 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, such as 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) is NASA’s 

first evaluation of a dietary countermeasure to 

decrease 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 

well-controlled conditions. Biological samples 

from the space station, including blood and 

urine, are collected, processed and archived 

during the preflight, in-flight and post-flight 
FEBRUARY 2011 EXPERIMENTS 49

phases of space station missions. This 

investigation has been developed to archive 

biosamples for use as a resource for future 

space flight-related research. Curator: 

Kathleen A. McMonigal, Johnson Space Center, 

Houston. (NASA) 

Evaluation of Maximal Oxygen Uptake and 

Submaximal Estimates of VO2max Before, 

During, and After Long Duration 

International Space Station Missions 

(VO2max) documents changes in maximum 

oxygen uptake for crew members on board the 

station on long-duration missions. Accurate 

VO2max measurements will allow NASA to 

determine if submaximal exercise testing data 

will provide results that allow accurate 

estimation of the crew members’ aerobic 

capacity during and after space flight. Data 

from this experiment will help refine future test 

requirements and optimize the testing used to 

track aerobic capacity during and after space 

flight. Principal investigator: Alan D. Moore, 

Jr., Johnson Space Center, Houston. (NASA) 

Cardiovascular Health Consequences of 

Long-Duration Space Flight (Vascular) studies 

the impact of space flight on the blood vessels 

of long-duration space explorers. Data is 

collected before, during and after space flight to 

assess inflammation of the artery walls, changes 

in blood vessel properties and cardiovascular 

fitness to create specific countermeasures for 

future long-duration space explorers beyond 

low Earth orbit. Principal investigator: Richard 

Lee Hughson, University of Waterloo, 

Waterloo, Ontario, Canada. (CSA) 

Mental Representation of Spatial Cues During 

Space Flight (3D-Space) 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 space 

flight 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) 

Effect of Long-term Microgravity Exposure 

on Cardiac Autonomic Function by Analyzing 

24-hours Electrocardiogram (Biological 

Rhythms) examines the effect of long-term 

microgravity exposure on cardiac 

autonomic function by analyzing 24-hour 

electrocardiogram of long-duration station 

crew members. Principal investigator: 

Chiaki Mukai, JAXA, Tsukuba, Japan. (JAXA) 

Physical and Materials Sciences 

Burning and Suppression of Solids (BASS)

will test the hypothesis that materials in 

microgravity burn as well as, if not better 

than, the same material in normal gravity 

with other conditions being identical (i.e., 

pressure, oxygen concentration, temperature). 

Paul Ferkul, National Center for Space 

Exploration Research, Cleveland. (NASA) 

Binary Colloidal Alloy Test – 6 (BCAT-6) is a 

suite of investigations that photograph 

randomized colloidal samples in microgravity 

to determine their resulting structure over time. 

The use of EarthKAM software and hardware 

will allow the scientists to capture the kinetics, 

or evolution, of their samples, as well as the 

final equilibrium state of each sample. Results 

will help scientists develop fundamental 

physics concepts previously hindered by the 

effects of gravity. Data may lead to 
50 EXPERIMENTS FEBRUARY 2011

improvements in supercritical fluids used in 

rocket propellants biotechnology applications, 

and advancements in fiber-optics technology. 

Principal investigators: David A. Weitz and 

Peter J. Lu, Ph.D., Harvard University, 

Cambridge, Mass.; Paul M. Chaikin, Princeton 

University, Princeton, N.J., Arjun Yodh, 

University of Pennsylvania, University Park, 

Pa.; Barbara Frisken, Ph.D., Simon Fraser 

University, Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada; 

Matthew Lynch, Ph.D., Procter and Gamble, 

Cincinnati, Ohio. (NASA) 

Structure and Liftoff In Combustion 

Experiment (SLICE) investigates the structure 

of lifting and lifted flames; whereby the flame 

detaches from the nozzle and stabilizes at a 

downstream position. Results from this 

investigation are used to maximize the science 

return from the future Coflow Laminar 

Diffusion Flame experiment. Principal 

investigator: Marshall B. Long, Yale University, 

New Haven, Conn. (NASA) 

Production of High Performance 

Nanomaterials in Microgravity 2 

(Nanoskeleton-2) aims to clarify the effect of 

gravity on oil flotation, sedimentation and 

convection on crystals generated in 

microgravity. Principal investigators: 

Masakazu Abe, Tokyo University of Science; 

Naokiyo Koshikawa, JAXA. (JAXA) 

Technology 

Boiling eXperiment Facility – Microheater 

Array Boiling Experiment (BXF-MABE) will 

obtain data to understand the process involved 

with boiling in gravity and microgravity. The 

research should enable the development of 

more efficient cooling systems on future 

spacecraft and on Earth. Principal investigator: 

Jungho Kim, Ph.D., University of Maryland, 

College Park, Md. (NASA) 

Boiling Experiment Facility – Nucleate Pool 

Boiling Experiment (BXF-NPBX) will provide 

an understanding of heat transfer and vapor 

removal processes that take place during 

nucleate boiling from a well characterized 

surface in microgravity. Such an 

understanding is needed for optimum design 

and safe operation of heat exchange equipment 

employing phase change for transfer of heat in 

microgravity. Principal investigator: Vijay 

Dhir, University of California – Los Angeles. 

(NASA) 

Robonaut 2 will provide an ideal proving 

ground for robots to work shoulder-to-shoulder 

with people in microgravity. Once this has 

been demonstrated inside the station, software 

upgrades and lower bodies can be added, 

allowing R2 to move around and eventually 

work outside in the vacuum of space. This will 

help NASA understand robotic capabilities for 

future deep space missions. Principal 

investigator: Myron A. Diftler, Johnson Space 

Center, Houston. (NASA) 

Vehicle Cabin Atmosphere Monitor (VCAM)

identifies gases that are present in minute 

quantities in the International Space Station 

breathing air that could harm the crew’s health. 

If successful, instruments like VCAM could 

accompany crew members during longduration exploration missions. Principal 

investigator: Ara Chutjian, Ph.D., California 

Institute of Technology and Jet Propulsion 

Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif. (NASA) 

Passive Dosimeter for Lifescience Experiment 

in Space (PADLES) measures radiation 

exposure levels onboard the station using 

passive and integrating dosimeters to detect 
FEBRUARY 2011 EXPERIMENTS 51

radiation levels. Principal investigator: Aiko 

Nagamatsu, Japan Aerospace Exploration 

Agency, Tsukuba, Japan. (JAXA) 

Facilities 

Expedite the Processing of Experiments to 

Space Station Rack 8 (EXPRESS Rack 8) is a 

multipurpose payload rack system that stores 

and supports experiments aboard the space 

station. The EXPRESS Rack system supports 

science experiments in any discipline by 

providing structural interfaces, power, data, 

cooling, water and other items needed to 

operate science experiments in space. Principal 

investigator: Annette Sledd, Marshall Space 

Flight Center, Huntsville, Ala. (NASA) 

Urine Monitoring System (UMS) is designed 

to collect an individual crew member’s urine 

void, gently separate liquid from air, accurately 

measure each void volume, allow for void 

sample acquisition, and discharge the 

remaining urine into the waste and hygiene 

compartment onboard the International Space 

Station. Principal investigator: Daniel L. 

Feeback, Johnson Space Center, Houston. 

(NASA) 

RESEARCH SAMPLES/HARDWARE TO 

BE RETURNED ON DISCOVERY 

Biology and Biotechnology 

National Laboratory Pathfinder – Cells – 4: 

Jatropha-2 (NLP-Cells-4) assesses the effects of 

microgravity on the formation, establishment 

and multiplication of undifferentiated cells and 

evaluates changes in cell structure, growth and 

development, genetic changes and differential 

gene expression of Jatropha curcas, a biofuel 

plant. This study identifies significant changes 

that occur in microgravity which could 

contribute to the development of new cultivars 

of this biofuel plant. Principal investigator: 

Wagner Vendrame, University of Florida, 

Homestead, Fla. (NASA) 

STS-133 will return tree samples for the 

Canadian APEX-CSA2 experiment. APEXCSA2 will compare the gene expression and 

tissue organization of the white spruce 

(Picea glauca) in microgravity and on Earth. 

Twenty-four white spruce seedlings were 

launched to the space station aboard the Space 

Shuttle Discovery on STS-132 in April 2010. 

The seedlings grew for 30 days in microgravity 

before being harvested and frozen in a 

special solution at -80 degrees Celsius for 

genetic analysis. APEX-CSA2 is led by 

Dr. Jean Beaulieu of Natural Resources 

Canada’s Canadian Wood Fibre Centre in 

Quebec City, Canada, with the close 

collaboration of the Canadian Space Agency 

and NASA. 

Gravity Related Genes in Arabidopsis – A 

(Genara-A) seeks to provide an understanding 

of microgravity induced altered molecular 

activities which will help to find plant systems 

that compensate the negative impact on plant 

growth in space. Principal investigator: 

Eugenie Carnero-Diaz, Universite Pierre et 

Marie Curie, Paris. (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) 

Biomedical Analyses of Human Hair Exposed 

to a Long-term Space Flight (Hair) examines 

the effect of long-duration space flight on gene 
52 EXPERIMENTS FEBRUARY 2011

expression and trace element metabolism 

in the human body. Principal investigator: 

Chiaki Mukai, JAXA, Tsukuba, 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, 

Tohoku University, Sendai, Japan. (JAXA) 

Microbial Dynamics in International Space 

Station – II (Microbe-II) monitors microbes in 

the Kibo laboratory which may affect the health 

of crew members. The monitoring of the stress 

from microbes to a crew member is evaluated 

as a space medical impact. Principal 

investigators: Koichi Makimura, Teikyo 

University; Masao Nasu, Osaka University. 

(JAXA) 

Mycological Evaluation of Crew Exposure to 

ISS Ambient Air (Myco) evaluates crew 

exposure to microorganisms such as fungi that 

can act as allergens via inhalation and adhesion 

to the skin from space station ambient air. 

Principal investigator: Chiaki Mukai, JAXA, 

Tsukuba, Japan. (JAXA) 

Human Research 

Validation of Procedures for Monitoring Crew 

Member Immune Function (Integrated 

Immune) will assess the clinical risks resulting 

from the adverse effects of space flight 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 space flight 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 space flight. 

Principal investigator: Clarence Sams, Johnson 

Space Center, Houston. (NASA) 

Long Term Microgravity: A Model for 

Investigating Mechanisms of Heart Disease 

with New Portable Equipment (Card) studies 

blood pressure decreases in the human body 

exposed to microgravity onboard the station. 

Principal investigator: Peter Norsk, University 

of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark. (ESA) 

SOdium LOading in Microgravity (SOLO)

studies the mechanisms of fluid and salt 

retention in the body during space flight. 

Microgravity leads to an activation of sodium 

retaining hormones even at normal sodium 

intake levels and causes positive sodium 

balances. SOLO is a continuation of extensive 

research into the mechanisms of fluid and salt 

retention in the body during bed rest and space 

flights. Principal investigator: Martina Heer, 

Institute of Aerospace Medicine, Cologne, 

Germany. (ESA) 

Educational Activities 

NanoRacks-CubeLabs is a multipurpose 

research facility aboard the International Space 

Station which supports NanoRacks-CubeLabs 

modules by providing power and data transfer 

capabilities to operate investigations in 

microgravity. (NASA) 

Message in a Bottle, Education Payload 

Operations 5 (JAXA EPO 5) includes 

curriculum-based educational activities that 

will demonstrate basic principles of science, 

mathematics, technology, engineering and 

geography. These activities are videotaped and 
FEBRUARY 2011 EXPERIMENTS 53

then used in classroom lectures. EPO is 

designed to support the NASA mission to 

inspire the next generation of explorers. 

Message in a Bottle involves an astronaut on a 

spacewalk capturing space in a bottle that will 

be brought back to Earth. In doing so, the 

astronaut would not only create a memento of 

his or her time in space but also a message for 

present and future humankind. Once the bottle 

is placed in people’s hands, it would become a 

conduit between humans and space, between 

this world and the one beyond us. It would 

inspire wonder about our extraterrestrial 

activities in this new age of exploration and 

make us realize that Earth itself is merely one 

small part of the entire universe. Principal 

investigators: Shiro Matsui, Kyoto City 

University of Arts, Kyoto, Japan; Hidekazu 

Tanaka, JAXA, Tsukuba, Japan. (JAXA) 

Physical and Materials Sciences 

Coarsening in Solid Liquid Mixtures-2 

(CSLM-2) examines the kinetics of competitive 

particle growth within a liquid metal matrix. 

During this process, small particles of tin 

suspended in a liquid tin-lead matrix shrink by 

losing atoms to larger particles of tin, causing 

the larger particles to grow, or coarsen. This 

study defines the mechanisms and rates of 

coarsening in the absence of gravitational 

settling. This work has direct applications to 

metal alloy manufacturing on Earth, including 

materials critical for aerospace applications 

such as the production of better aluminum 

alloys for turbine blades. Principal investigator: 

Peter W. Voorhees, Northwestern University, 

Evanston, Ill. (NASA) 

Smoke and Aerosol Measurement Experiment 

(SAME) measures smoke properties, or particle 

size distribution, of typical particles from 

spacecraft fire smoke to provide data to support 

requirements for smoke detection in space and 

identify ways to improve smoke detectors on 

future spacecraft. Principal investigator: 

David Urban, Glenn Research Center, 

Cleveland. (NASA) 

DEvice for the study of Critical LIquids and 

Crystallization – High Temperature Insert 

(DECLIC-HTI) is a multi-user facility used to 

study transparent media and their phase 

transitions in microgravity onboard the 

International Space Station. The High 

Temperature Insert (HTI) portion of DECLIC 

studies water near its critical point. 

Principal investigators: Yves Garrabos, Institut 

de Chimie de la Matière Condensée de 

Bordeaux, France; Daniel Beysens, Physique et 

Mecanique des Milieux Heterogenes, 

Universities Paris 6 and Paris 7, Paris. (ESA) 

Selectable Optical Diagnostics Instrument – 

Aggregation of Colloidal Suspensions 

(SODI-Colloid) will study the aggregation, or 

mass, phenomena of colloids, which are tiny 

solid particles suspended in a liquid, in the 

microgravity environment onboard the station. 

Principal investigator: Gerard Wegdam, Van 

der Waals-Zeeman Institute, University of 

Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands. 

(ESA) 

Two Dimensional NanoTemplate in 

Microgravity (2D-NanoTemplate) fabricates 

large and highly oriented nano-scale 

two-dimensional arranged peptide arrays by 

suppressing convection, sedimentation and 

buoyancy. Principal investigator: Takatoshi 

Kinoshita, Nagoya Institute of Technology, 

Nagoya, Aichi, Japan. (JAXA) 
54 EXPERIMENTS FEBRUARY 2011

Technology 

Passive Dosimeter for Lifescience Experiment 

in Space (PADLES) measures radiation 

exposure levels on board the station using 

passive and integrating dosimeters to detect 

radiation levels. Principal investigator: Aiko 

Nagamatsu, Japan Aerospace Exploration 

Agency, Tsukuba, Japan. (JAXA) 

For more information on the research and 

technology demonstrations performed on the 

International Space Station, visit 

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

SPACE SHUTTLE DETAILED TEST 

OBJECTIVES (DTO) AND DETAILED 

SUPPLEMENTARY OBJECTIVES (DSO) 

DTO 854 Boundary Layer Transition 

Flight Experiment 

The Boundary Layer Transition (BLT) flight 

experiment will gather information on the effect 

of high Mach number boundary layer transition 

caused by a protuberance on the space shuttle 

during the re-entry trajectory. 

The experiment is designed to further 

understand the high Mach number thermal 

environments created by a protuberance on the 

lower side of the orbiter during re-entry. The 

protuberance was built on a BRI-18 tile 

originally developed as a heat shield upgrade 

on the orbiters. Due to the likely geometry and 

re-entry profile of future exploration vehicles, 

these vehicles will experience a high Mach 

number boundary layer transition during 

atmospheric entry. By flying this protuberance 

during the orbiter’s re-entry, a high Mach 

number transition environment will be created 

on a small zone of the orbiter’s underside, 

which will aid in gaining an improved 

understanding of the heating in high Mach 

number environments. 

STS-133 will be the fourth phase of the flight 

experiment and will include data gathered on a 

0.5-inch tall protuberance at Mach 19 speed. 

This protuberance height will allow engineers 

to collect the highest-speed boundary layer 

transition data ever experienced on the orbiter. 

Boundary layer transition is a disruption of the 

smooth, laminar flow of supersonic air across 

the orbiter’s belly and occurs normally when 

the orbiter’s velocity has dropped to around 

eight to 10 times the speed of sound, starting 

toward the back of the heat shield and moving 

forward. Known as “tripping the boundary 

layer,” this phenomenon can create eddies of 

turbulence that, in turn, result in higher 

downstream heating. 

For the experiment, a heat shield tile with a 

“speed bump” on it was installed under 

Discovery’s left wing to intentionally disturb 

the airflow in a controlled manner and make 

the airflow turbulent. The bump is four inches 

long and approximately 0.4 inch wide. Ten 

thermocouples are installed on several tiles, 

including the protuberance tile and tiles 

downstream of the protuberance. 

Additionally, data from this experiment will 

expand the aerodynamics and aeroheating 

knowledge base and will be used to verify and 

improve design efforts for future spacecraft. 

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 
FEBRUARY 2011 EXPERIMENTS 55

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 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. 

DTO 701B Dragon Eye Flash LIDAR 

On behalf of SpaceX of Hawthorne, Calif., 

NASA’s Commercial Crew and Cargo Program 

Office (C3PO) is sponsoring a second 

investigation of “DragonEye,” a pulsed laser 

navigation sensor that SpaceX’s Dragon vehicle 

would use to approach the International Space 

Station. The test is to gain confidence and 

experience with how the DragonEye sensor 

performs before the system is used on the 

Dragon vehicle’s third demonstration which 

includes rendezvous with the station. 

The DragonEye DTO will mount to the shuttle’s 

existing trajectory control system carrier 

assembly on the orbiter’s docking system. 

SpaceX will be taking data in parallel with the 

shuttle’s Trajectory Control Sensor (TCS) 

system. Both TCS and DragonEye will be 

”looking” at the retroreflectors that are on the 

station. After the flight, SpaceX will compare 

the data DragonEye collected against the data 

TCS collected and evaluate DragonEye’s 

performance. 

The DTO will use an advanced scientific 

concepts DragonEye flash light intensification 

detection and ranging (LIDAR) relative 

navigation sensor. The DragonEye on this 

mission incorporates several design and 

software improvements from the version flown 

earlier on STS-127 that provide increased 

performance. 

DragonEye has been baselined as SpaceX‘s 

primary relative navigation sensor, and it 

provides a three dimensional image based on 

the time of flight of a single laser pulse from the 

sensor to the target and back. It provides both 

range and bearing information from targets that 

can reflect the light back such as the 

pressurized mating adapter 2 and those on the 

nadir side of station’s Japanese Kibo laboratory. 

During departure, there will be an opportunity 

to image the target on the Leonardo permanent 

multipurpose module, which is being installed 

on this shuttle mission. The DragonEye LIDAR 

is eye-safe and will also be unpowered when 

docked to the station, so there are no safety 

concerns for spacewalks. The DragonEye DTO 

will include a thermal imager as on STS-127, 

and a new GPS receiver. 
56 EXPERIMENTS FEBRUARY 2011

The C3PO office manages the Commercial 

Orbital Transportation Services (COTS) projects 

which has a Space Act Agreement with SpaceX. 

COTS is an effort by NASA to stimulate a 

commercial market for spaceflight services. 

While SpaceX’s recoverable Dragon spacecraft 

was designed to transport crew, it will initially 

be used to carry both pressurized and 

unpressurized cargo to the station. 

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. 

DSO 640 Physiological Factors 

Exposure to the microgravity conditions of 

spaceflight causes astronauts to experience 

alterations in multiple physiological systems. 

These physiological changes include 

sensorimotor disturbances, cardiovascular 

deconditioning and loss of muscle mass and 

strength. These changes might affect the ability 

of crew members to perform critical mission 

tasks immediately after landing on a planetary 

surface following prolonged spaceflight. 

To understand how changes in physiological 

function affect functional performance, an 

interdisciplinary pre- and postflight testing 

regimen called a Functional Task Test (FTT) has 

been developed that systematically evaluates 

both astronaut postflight functional 

performance and related physiological changes. 

The overall objective of the FTT is to identify 

the key underlying physiological factors that 

contribute to performance of functional tests 

that are representative of critical mission tasks. 

This study will identify which physiological 

systems contribute the most to impaired 

performance on each functional test. This will 

allow us to identify the physiological systems 

that play the largest roles in decrements in 

overall functional performance. Using this 

information we can design and implement 

countermeasures that specifically target the 

physiological systems most responsible for the 

altered functional performance associated with 

spaceflight. 
FEBRUARY 2011 EXPERIMENTS 57

For more information about this and other 

DSOs, visit 

https://rlsda.jsc.nasa.gov/scripts/experiment/ex

per.cfm?exp_index=1448

and 

https://rlsda.jsc.nasa.gov/docs/research/researc

h_detail.cfm?experiment_type_code=35&resear

chtype= 
58 EXPERIMENTS FEBRUARY 2011

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FEBRUARY 2011 HISTORY OF SPACE SHUTTLE DISCOVERY 59

HISTORY OF SPACE SHUTTLE DISCOVERY 

Space shuttle Discovery ends its spaceflight 

career with more missions than any other 

vehicle in the fleet; serving as a symbol of 

American pride and leadership in human 

spaceflight. 

Discovery was launched on its maiden voyage 

(STS-41D) on Aug. 30, 1984 and since has 

completed 38 missions. It was the third orbital 

vehicle manufactured following Columbia and 

Challenger. 

Construction of Discovery began in August 

1979 at the Palmdale, Calif. manufacturing 

plant. Designated OV-103, it was transported 

to Kennedy Space Center in November 1983 

ahead of its maiden voyage. 

BACKGROUND 

The choice of the name “Discovery” carried on 

a tradition drawn from some historic, 

Earth-bound exploring ships of the past. One 

of these sailing forerunners was the vessel used 

in the early 1600s by Henry Hudson to explore 

Hudson Bay and search for a northwest 

passage from the Atlantic to the Pacific. 

Another such ship was used by British explorer 

James Cook in the 1770s during his voyages in 

the South Pacific, leading to the discovery of the 

Hawaiian Islands. In addition, two British 

Royal Geographical Society ships have carried 

the name “Discovery” as they sailed on 

expeditions to the North Pole and the Antarctic. 

Destined for exploring the heavens instead of 

the seas, it was only fitting that NASA’s 

Discovery carried the Hubble Space Telescope 

into space during mission STS-31 in April 1990, 

and provided both the second and third Hubble 

servicing missions (STS-82 in February 1997 

and STS-103 in December 1999). 

During its many successful trips to space, 

Discovery has carried satellites aloft, ferried 

modules and crew to the International Space 

Station, and provided the setting for countless 

scientific experiments. 

UPGRADES AND FEATURES 

Just like all of the orbiters, Discovery has 

undergone some major modifications over the 

years. The most recent began in 2002 and was 

the first carried out at Kennedy. It provided 

99 upgrades and 88 special tests, including new 

changes to make it safer for flight. 

Discovery had the distinction of being chosen 

as the “Return to Flight” orbiter twice. The first 

was for STS-26 in 1988, and the second when it 

carried the STS-114 crew on its mission to the 

International Space Station in July 2005. 

Discovery benefited from lessons learned in the 

construction and testing of Enterprise, 

Columbia and Challenger. At rollout, its 

weight was some 6,870 pounds less than 

Columbia. 

Beginning in the fall of 1995, the orbiter 

underwent a nine-month orbiter maintenance 

down period in Palmdale, Calif. during which 

it was outfitted with a fifth set of cryogenic 

tanks and an external airlock to support 

missions to the International Space Station. It 

returned to Kennedy, atop its Boeing 747 

shuttle carrier aircraft, in June 1996. 
60 HISTORY OF SPACE SHUTTLE DISCOVERY FEBRUARY 2011

Following STS-105, Discovery became the first 

of the orbiter fleet to undergo an orbiter major 

modification period at Kennedy. Work began 

in September 2002, and along with the 

scheduled upgrades, additional safety 

modifications were added as part of the 

preparations for the 2005 Return to Flight 

mission. 

CONSTRUCTION MILESTONES 

Jan. 29, 1979 

Contract Award 

Aug. 27, 1979 

Start long lead fabrication of crew module 

June 20, 1980 

Start fabrication lower fuselage 

Nov. 10, 1980 

Start structural assembly of aft fuselage 

Dec. 8, 1980 

Start initial system installation aft fuselage 

March 2, 1981 

Start fabrication/assembly of payload bay doors 

Oct. 26, 1981 

Start initial system installation, crew module, 

Downey 

Jan. 4, 1982 

Start initial system installation upper forward 

fuselage 

March 16, 1982 

Midfuselage on dock, Palmdale 

March 30, 1982 

Elevons on dock, Palmdale 

April 30, 1982 

Wings arrive at Palmdale from Grumman 

April 30, 1982 

Lower forward fuselage on dock, Palmdale 

July 16, 1982 

Upper forward fuselage on dock, Palmdale 

Aug. 5, 1982 

Vertical stabilizer on dock, Palmdale 

Sept. 3, 1982 

Start of final assembly 

Oct. 15, 1982 

Body flap on dock, Palmdale 

Jan. 11, 1983 

Aft fuselage on dock, Palmdale 

Feb. 25, 1983 

Complete final assembly and closeout 

installation, Palmdale 

Feb. 28, 1983 

Start initial subsystems test, power-on, 

Palmdale 

May 13, 1983 

Complete initial subsystems testing 

July 26, 1983 

Complete subsystems testing 

Aug. 12, 1983 

Completed final acceptance 

Oct. 16, 1983 

Rollout from Palmdale 

Nov. 5, 1983 

Overland transport from Palmdale to Edwards 

Air Force Base, Calif. 

Nov. 9, 1983 

Delivery to Kennedy Space Center 

June 2, 1984 

Flight readiness firing 
FEBRUARY 2011 HISTORY OF SPACE SHUTTLE DISCOVERY 61

Aug. 30, 1984 

First flight (STS-41-D) 

Nov. 1, 2010 

Final scheduled flight (STS-133) 

FLIGHT MILESTONES 

1. STS-41D (Aug. 30 – Sept. 5, 1984) 

2,210,000 miles 

2. STS-51A (Nov. 8-16, 1984) 

2,870,000 miles 

3. STS-51C (Jan. 24-27, 1985) 

1,242,566 miles 

4. STS-51D (April 12-19, 1985) 

2,889,785 miles 

5. STS-51G (June 17-24, 1985) 

2,916,127 miles 

6. STS-51I (Aug. 27 – Sept. 3, 1985) 

2,500,000 miles 

7. STS-26 (Sept. 29 – Oct. 3, 1988) 

1,430,505 miles 

8. STS-29 (March 13-18, 1989) 

1,800,000 miles 

9. STS-33 (Nov. 22-27, 1989) 

2,045,056 miles 

10. STS-31 (April 24-29, 1990) 

2,068,213 miles 

11. STS-41 (Oct. 6-10, 1990) 

1,707,445 miles 

12. STS-39 (April 28 – May 6, 1991) 

3,475,000 miles 

13. STS-48 (Sept. 12-18, 1991) 

2,193,670 miles 

14. STS-42 (Jan. 22-30, 1992) 

3,349,830 miles 

15. STS-53 (Dec.2-9, 1992) 

3,034,680 miles 

16. STS-56 (April 9-17, 1993) 

3,853,997 miles 

17. STS-51 (Sept. 12-22, 1993) 

4,106,411 miles 

18. STS-60 (Feb. 3-11, 1994) 

3,439,704 miles 

19. STS-64 (Sept. 9-20, 1994) 

4,576,174 miles 

20. STS-63 (Feb. 2-11, 1995) 

2,922,000 miles 

21. STS-70 (July 13-22, 1995) 

3,700,000 miles 

22. STS-82 (Feb. 11-21, 1997) 

3,800,000 miles 

23. STS-85 (Aug. 7-19, 1997) 

4,725,000 miles 

24. STS-91 (June 2-12, 1998) 

3,800,000 miles 

25. STS-95 (Oct. 29 – Nov. 7, 1998) 

3,644,459 miles 

26. STS-96 (May 27 – June 6, 1999) 

4,051,000 miles 

27. STS-103 (Dec. 19-27, 1999) 

3,267,360 miles 

28. STS-92 (Oct. 11-24, 2000) 

5,331,301 miles 

29. STS-102 (March 8-21, 2001) 

5,357,432 miles 

30. STS-105 (Aug. 10-22, 2002) 

4,912,389 miles 

31. STS-114 (July 26 – Aug. 9, 2005) 

5,796,419 miles 

32. STS-121 (July 4-17, 2006) 

5,293,923 miles 
62 HISTORY OF SPACE SHUTTLE DISCOVERY FEBRUARY 2011

33. STS-116 (Dec. 9-22, 2006) 

5,330,398 miles 

34. STS-120 (Oct. 23 – Nov. 7, 2007) 

6,249,432 miles 

35. STS-124 (May 31 – June 14, 2008) 

5,735,643 miles 

36. STS-119 (March 15-28, 2009) 

5,304,106 miles 

37. STS-128 (Aug. 28 – Sept. 11, 2009) 

5,755,275 miles 

38. STS-131 (April 5-20, 2010) 

6,232,235 miles 

39. STS-133 (Feb. 24 – March 7, 2011) 

Approx. 4.5 million miles 

Total Discovery Miles 

142,917,535 (through STS-131) 

DISCOVERY BY THE NUMBERS 

Discovery miles 142,917,535 (through 

traveled STS-131) 

Days in orbit 

50 

352 (

Orbits 5,62

minut

8

8,441 h

es, 41 s

ours, 

econds)

Flights 38 (through STS-131) 

Individual crew 180 (through STS-131) 

members 

Russian Mir space 1 (STS-91 June 1998) 

station dockings 

International Space 12 (through STS-131) 

Station dockings 
FEBRUARY 2011 SHUTTLE REFERENCE DATA 63

SHUTTLE REFERENCE DATA 

SHUTTLE ABORT MODES 

Redundant Set Launch Sequencer 

(RSLS) Aborts 

These occur when the onboard 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 KSC and achieve the proper main 

engine cutoff conditions so the vehicle can 

glide to 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 FEBRUARY 2011

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 the 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 if 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; Morón, 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 
FEBRUARY 2011 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 in space. 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 onboard 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 

onboard methods, such as cue cards, dedicated 
66 SHUTTLE REFERENCE DATA FEBRUARY 2011

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 

Sept. 2, 1994, 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, 
FEBRUARY 2011 SHUTTLE REFERENCE DATA 67

NASA managers set Oct. 2, 1994, 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 

normal operating level at about 60 seconds. 

This reduces stress on the vehicle. The main 
68 SHUTTLE REFERENCE DATA FEBRUARY 2011

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 

(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 (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 (SRBs) 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 

(ET), and orbiter, and to transmit the weight 

load through their structure to the mobile 

launcher platform (MLP).
FEBRUARY 2011 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 (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 

United Space Alliance (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 nonmotor 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 
70 SHUTTLE REFERENCE DATA FEBRUARY 2011

flow to ensure that the refurbished components 

satisfy all flight performance requirements. 

ATK Launch Systems (ATK) 

ATK Launch Systems of Brigham City, Utah, 

manufactures space shuttle reusable solid 

rocket motors (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 

(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 

The aft integrated electronic assembly (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. 
FEBRUARY 2011 SHUTTLE REFERENCE DATA 71

Hydraulic Power Units 

There are two self-contained, independent 

hydraulic power units (HPUs) on each SRB. 

Each HPU consists of an auxiliary power unit 

(APU); fuel supply module (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. 
72 SHUTTLE REFERENCE DATA FEBRUARY 2011

The hydraulic pump speed is 3,600 rpm and 

supplies hydraulic pressure of 3,050, plus or 

minus 50 psi. A high-pressure relief valve 

provides overpressure protection to the 

hydraulic system and relieves at 3,750 psi. 

The APUs/HPUs and hydraulic systems are 

reusable for 20 missions. 

Thrust Vector Control 

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 thrust vector 

control (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 

Each SRB contains two rate gyro assemblies 

(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. 
FEBRUARY 2011 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 (PIC) low voltage is 

indicated; and there are no holds from the 

launch processing system (LPS). 

The solid rocket motor ignition commands are 

sent by the orbiter computers through the 

master events controllers (MECs) to the NSDs 

installed in the safe and arm device in each 

SRB. A pyrotechnic initiation controller (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 (GPC) launch 

sequence also controls certain critical main 

propulsion system valves and monitors the 

engine-ready indications from the SSMEs. The 

main propulsion system (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 (T - 3) seconds as well as the 

fire 1 command being issued to arm the SRBs. 

At T - 3 seconds, the vehicle base bending load 

modes are allowed to initialize. 
74 SHUTTLE REFERENCE DATA FEBRUARY 2011

At T - 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 onboard 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 systemr (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 (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 
FEBRUARY 2011 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 (RCC) panels. 

The ET attach ring camera and forward skirt 

camera are activated by a global positioning 

system command at approximately T - 1 minute 

56 seconds to begin recording at 

approximately T - 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 

The range safety system (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 (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 NASA standard detonators (NSDs) provide 

the spark to ignite the CDF that in turn ignites 
76 SHUTTLE REFERENCE DATA FEBRUARY 2011

the linear-shaped charge for space shuttle 

destruction. The safe and arm device provides 

mechanical isolation between the NSDs and the 

CDF before launch and during the SRB 

separation sequence. 

The first message, called arm, allows the 

onboard logic to enable a destruct and 

illuminates a light on the flight deck display 

and control panel at the commander and pilot 

station. The second message transmitted is the 

fire command. The SRB distributors in the 

SRBs are cross-strapped together. Thus, if one 

SRB received an arm or destruct signal, the 

signal would also be sent to the other SRB. 

Electrical power from the RSS battery in each 

SRB is routed to RSS system A. The recovery 

battery in each SRB is used to power RSS 

system B as well as the recovery system in the 

SRB. The SRB RSS is powered down during the 

separation sequence, and the SRB recovery 

system is powered up. 

Descent and Recovery 

After separation and at specified altitudes, the 

SRB forward avionics system initiates the 

release of the nose cap, which houses a pilot 

parachute and drogue parachute; and the 

frustum, which houses the three main 

parachutes. Jettison of the nose cap at 

15,700 feet deploys a small pilot parachute and 

begins to slow the SRB decent. At an altitude 

of 15,200 feet the pilot parachute pulls the 

drogue parachute from the frustum. The 

drogue parachute fully inflates in stages, and at 

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

which initiates the deployment of the three 

main parachutes. The parachutes also inflate in 

stages and further slow the decent of the SRBs 

to their final velocity at splashdown. The 

parachutes slow each SRB from 368 mph at first 

deployment to 52 mph at splashdown, allowing 

for the recovery and reuse of the boosters. 

Two 176-foot recovery ships, Freedom Star and 

Liberty Star, are on station at the splashdown 

zone to retrieve the frustums with drogue 

parachutes attached, the main parachutes and 

the SRBs. The SRB nose caps and solid rocket 

motor nozzle extensions are not recovered. The 

SRBs are dewatered using an enhanced diver 

operating plug to facilitate tow back. These 

plugs are inserted into the motor nozzle and 

air is pumped into the booster, causing it to 

lay flat in the water to allow it to be easily 

towed. The boosters are then towed back to 

the refurbishment facilities. Each booster is 

removed from the water and components are 

disassembled and washed with fresh and 

deionized water to limit saltwater corrosion. 

The motor segments, igniter and nozzle are 

shipped back to ATK in Utah for 

refurbishment. The nonmotor components and 

structures are disassembled by USA and are 

refurbished to like-new condition at both KSC 

and equipment manufacturers across the 

country. 

SPACE SHUTTLE SUPER LIGHT WEIGHT 

TANK 

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 
FEBRUARY 2011 SHUTTLE REFERENCE DATA 77

metal alloy used for the shuttle’s current tank. 

The tank’s structural design has also been 

improved, making it 30 percent stronger and 

5 percent less dense. 

The SLWT, like the standard tank, is 

manufactured at 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 

(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, called ablator, is a denser 

composite material made of silicone resins and 

cork. 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 
78 SHUTTLE REFERENCE DATA FEBRUARY 2011

hydrogen fuel at -423 degrees Fahrenheit 

and the liquid oxygen tank at near 

-297 degrees Fahrenheit, even as the tank sits 

under the hot Florida sun. At the same time, 

the foam prevents a buildup of ice on the 

outside of the tank. 

The foam insulation must be durable enough to 

endure a 180-day stay at the launch pad, 

withstand temperatures up to 115 degrees 

Fahrenheit, humidity as high as 100 percent, 

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

and even fungus. Then, during launch, the 

foam must tolerate temperatures as high as 

2,200 degrees Fahrenheit generated by 

aerodynamic friction and radiant heating from 

the 3,000 degrees Fahrenheit main engine 

plumes. Finally, when the external tank begins 

reentry into the Earth’s atmosphere about 

30 minutes after launch, the foam maintains the 

tank’s structural temperatures and allows it to 

safely disintegrate over a remote ocean location. 

Though the foam insulation on the majority of 

the tank is only 1-inch thick, it adds 

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

of the tank subjected to the highest heating, 

insulation is somewhat thicker, between 1.5 to 

3 inches thick. Though the foam’s density 

varies with the type, an average density is 

about 2.4 pounds per cubic foot. 

Application of the foam, whether automated by 

computer or hand-sprayed, is designed to meet 

NASA’s requirements for finish, thickness, 

roughness, density, strength and adhesion. As 

in most assembly production situations, the 

foam is applied in specially designed, 

environmentally controlled spray cells and 

applied in several phases, often over a period of 

several weeks. Before spraying, the foam’s raw 

material and mechanical properties are tested 

to ensure they meet NASA specifications. 

Multiple visual inspections of all foam surfaces 

are performed after the spraying is complete. 

Most of the foam is applied at NASA’s 

Michoud Assembly Facility in New Orleans 

when the tank is manufactured, including most 

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

These closeouts are done either by hand 

pouring or manual spraying. Additional 

closeouts are completed once the tank reaches 

NASA’s Kennedy Space Center, Fla. 

The 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 

(PAL) ramps. 
FEBRUARY 2011 SHUTTLE REFERENCE DATA 79

Liquid Hydrogen Tank & Liquid Oxygen 

Intertank Flange Closeouts 

The liquid hydrogen tank flange located at the 

bottom of the intertank and the liquid oxygen 

tank flange located at the top of the intertank 

provide joining mechanisms with the intertank. 

After each of these three component tanks, 

liquid oxygen, intertank and liquid hydrogen, 

are joined mechanically, the flanges at both 

ends are insulated with foam. An enhanced 

closeout, or finishing, procedure was added to 

improve foam application to the stringer, or 

intertank ribbing, and to the upper and lower 

area of both the liquid hydrogen and liquid 

oxygen intertank flanges. 

Liquid Oxygen Feedline Bellows 

The liquid oxygen feedline bellows were 

reshaped to include a “drip lip” that allows 

condensate moisture to run off and prevent 

freezing. A strip heater was added to the 

forward bellow to further reduce the potential 

of high density ice or frost formation. Joints on 

the liquid oxygen feedline assembly allow the 

feedline to move during installation and during 

liquid hydrogen tank fill. Because it must flex, 

it cannot be insulated with foam like the 

remainder of the tank. 

Other tank improvements include: 

Liquid Oxygen & Liquid Hydrogen 

Protuberance Airload (PAL) Ramps 

External tank ET-119, which flew on the second 

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

was the first tank to fly without PAL ramps 

along portions of the liquid oxygen and 

liquid hydrogen tanks. These PAL ramps were 

extensively studied and determined to not be 

necessary for their original purpose, which was 

to protect cable trays from aeroelastic instability 

during ascent. Extensive tests were conducted 

to verify the shuttle could fly safely without 

these particular PAL ramps. Extensions were 

added to the ice frost ramps for the pressline 

and cable tray brackets, where these PAL ramps 

were removed to make the geometry of the 

ramps consistent with other locations on 

the tank and thereby provide consistent 

aerodynamic flow. Nine extensions were 

added, six on the liquid hydrogen tank and 

three on the liquid oxygen tank. 

Engine Cutoff Sensor Modification 

Beginning with STS-122, ET-125, which 

launched on Feb. 7, 2008, the engine cutoff 

(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 
80 SHUTTLE REFERENCE DATA FEBRUARY 2011

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 

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

manually or hand-sprayed. PDL is an acronym 

for product development laboratory, the first 

supplier of the foam during the early days of 

the external tank’s development. PDL is 

applied by pouring foam ingredients into a 

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

bottom, of the liquid hydrogen tank. 

Liquid Oxygen Feedline Brackets 

ET-128 also was the first tank to fly with 

redesigned liquid oxygen feedline brackets. 

Titanium brackets, much less thermally 

conductive than aluminum, replaced aluminum 

brackets at four locations, XT 1129, XT 1377, 

Xt 1624 and Xt 1871. This change minimizes ice 

formation in under-insulated areas, and 

reduces the amount of foam required to cover 

the brackets and the propensity for ice 

development. Zero-gap/slip plane Teflon 

material was added to the upper outboard 

monoball attachment to eliminate ice adhesion. 

Additional foam has been added to the liquid 

oxygen feedline to further minimize ice 

formation along the length of the feedline. 
FEBRUARY 2011 LAUNCH & LANDING 81

LAUNCH AND LANDING 

LAUNCH 

As with all previous space shuttle launches, 

Discovery 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 

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. 

TRANSOCEANIC ABORT LANDING 

The loss of one or more main engines midway 

through powered flight would force a landing 

at either Zaragoza, Spain; Morón, Spain; or 

Istres, France. For the launch to proceed, 

weather conditions must be acceptable at one of 

these transoceanic abort landing (TAL) sites. 

RETURN TO LAUNCH SITE 

If one or more engines shut down early and 

there is not enough energy to reach Zaragoza or 

another TAL site, the shuttle would pitch 

around back toward the Kennedy Space Center 

(KSC) until within gliding distance of the 

shuttle landing facility. For the launch to 

proceed, weather conditions must be forecast to 

be acceptable for a possible landing at KSC 

about 20 minutes after liftoff. 

ABORT ONCE AROUND 

An abort once around 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. The 

KSC shuttle landing facility is the primary 

landing site for an AOA, and White Sands 

Space Harbor, N.M., is the backup site. 

LANDING 

The primary landing site for Discovery on 

STS-133 is Kennedy’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 FEBRUARY 2011

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FEBRUARY 2011 ACRONYMS/ABBREVIATIONS 83

ACRONYMS AND ABBREVIATIONS 

A/G Alignment Guides 

A/L Airlock 

AAA Avionics Air Assembly 

ABC Audio Bus Controller 

ACBM Active Common Berthing Mechanism 

ACDU Airlock Control and Display Unit 

ACO Assembly Checkout Officer 

ACS Atmosphere Control and Supply 

ACU Arm Control Unit 

ADS Audio Distribution System 

AE Approach Ellipsoid 

AEP Airlock Electronics Package 

AHMS Advanced Health Management System 

AI Approach Initiation 

AIS Automatic Identification System 

AJIS Alpha Joint Interface Structure 

AM Atmosphere Monitoring 

AMOS Air Force Maui Optical and Supercomputing Site 

AOA Abort Once Around 

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 

ATO Abort To Orbit 

ATU Audio Terminal Unit 

BAD Broadcast Ancillary Data 

BC Bus Controller 
84 ACRONYMS/ABBREVIATIONS FEBRUARY 2011

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 

BSM Booster Separation Motors 

BSS Basic Software 

BSTS Basic Standard Support Software 

BXF Boiling Experiment Facility 

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 

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 

CCHA Crew Communication Headset Assembly 

CCP Camera Control Panel 

CCT Communication Configuration Table 

CCTV Closed-Circuit Television 

CDF Confirmed Detonator 

CDR Space Shuttle Commander 

CDRA Carbon Dioxide Removal Assembly 

CETA Crew Equipment Translation Aid 

CHeCS Crew Health Care System 

CHX Cabin Heat Exchanger 

CISC Complicated Instruction Set Computer 

CLA Camera Light Assembly 

CLPA Camera Light Pan Tilt Assembly 

CMG Control Moment Gyro 
FEBRUARY 2011 ACRONYMS/ABBREVIATIONS 85

COTS Commercial Off the Shelf 

CP3 

Commercial Orbital Transportation Service 

Camera Port 3 

CPA 

CPB 

Control Panel Assembly 

Camera Power Box 

CR 

CRT 

CSA 

CSA-CP 

CSLM-2 

CTC 

CVIU 

Change Request 

Cathode-Ray Tube 

Canadian Space Agency 

Compound Specific Analyzer 

Coarsening in Solid Liquid Mixtures-2 

Cargo Transport Container 

Common Video Interface Unit 

CVT Current Value Table 

CZ Communication Zone 

DB Data Book 

DC 

DCSU 

DDCU 

Docking Compartment 

Direct Current Switching Unit 

DC-to-DC Converter Unit 

DEM Demodulator 

DFL Decommutation Format Load 

DIU Data Interface Unit 

DMS 

DMS-R 

DPG 

DPU 

DRTS 

DYF 

Data Management System 

Data Management System-Russian 

Differential Pressure Gauge 

Baseband Data Processing Unit 

Japanese Data Relay Satellite 

Display Frame 

E/L 

EATCS 

EBCS 

ECC 

Equipment Lock 

External Active Thermal Control System 

External Berthing Camera System 

Error Correction Code 

ECLS 

ECLSS 

ECS 

ECU 

Environmental Controls and Life Support 

Environmental Control and Life Support System 

Environmental Control System 

Electronic Control Unit 

EDSU 

EDU 

External Data Storage Unit 

EEU Driver Unit 

EE End Effector 

EETCS 

EEU 

Early External Thermal Control System 

Experiment Exchange Unit 
86 ACRONYMS/ABBREVIATIONS FEBRUARY 2011

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 

ELITE-S2 Elaboratore Immagini Televisive – Space 2 

ELM-ES Japanese Experiment Logistics Module – Exposed Section 

ELM-PS Japanese Experiment Logistics Module – Pressurized Section 

ELPS Emergency Lighting Power Supply 

EMGF Electric Mechanical Grapple Fixture 

EMI Electro-Magnetic Imaging 

EMU Extravehicular Mobility Unit 

E-ORU EVA Essential ORU 

EP Exposed Pallet 

EPS Electrical Power System 

ES Exposed Section 

ESA European Space Agency 

ESC JEF System Controller 

ESP2 External Storage Platform 2 

ESW Extended Support Software 

ET External Tank 

ETCS External Thermal Control System 

ETI Elapsed Time Indicator 

ETRS EVA Temporary Rail Stop 

ETVCG External Television Camera Group 

EV Extravehicular 

EVA Extravehicular Activity 

EXP-D Experiment-D 

Express Ecpedite 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 
FEBRUARY 2011 ACRONYMS/ABBREVIATIONS 87

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 

FSM Fuel Supply Module 

FSW Flight Software 

FTT Functional Task Test 

GAS Get-Away Special 

GATOR Grappling Adaptor to On-orbit Railing 

GCA Ground Control Assist 

GLA General Lighting Assemblies 

General Luminaire Assembly 

GLONASS Global Navigational Satellite System 

GM General Motors 

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 

HD High Definition 

HEPA High Efficiency Particulate Acquisition 

HPA High Power Amplifier 

HPGT High Pressure Gas Tank 

HPP Hard Point Plates 

HPU Hydraulic Power Unit 

HRDR High Rate Data Recorder 

HREL Hold/Release Electronics 

HRFM High Rate Frame Multiplexer 

HRM Hold Release Mechanism 

HRMS High Rate Multiplexer and Switcher 

HRS Heat Rejection Subsystem 
88 ACRONYMS/ABBREVIATIONS FEBRUARY 2011

HTV H-II Transfer Vehicle 

HTVCC HTV Control Center 

HTV Prox 

HX 

HTV Proximity 

Heat Exchanger 

I/F

IAA 

IAC 

 Interface 

Intravehicular Antenna Assembly 

Internal Audio Controller 

IBM International Business Machines 

ICB 

ICC 

ICS 

ICS-EF 

IDRD 

IELK 

IFHX 

IMCS 

IMCU 

IMV 

Inner Capture Box 

Integrated Cargo Carrier 

Interorbit Communication System 

Interorbit Communication System - Exposed Facility 

Increment Definition and Requirements Document 

Individual Equipment Liner Kit 

Interface Heat Exchanger 

Integrated Mission Control System 

Image Compressor Unit 

Intermodule Ventilation 

INCO Instrumentation and Communication Officer 

IP International Partner 

IP-PCDU ICS-PM Power Control and Distribution Unit 

IP-PDB 

ISP 

ISPR 

ISS 

ISSSH 

ITCS 

ITS 

IV 

Payload Power Distribution Box 

International Standard Payload 

International Standard Payload Rack 

International Space Station 

International Space Station Systems Handbook 

Internal Thermal Control System 

Integrated Truss Segment 

Intravehicular 

IVA 

IVSU 

Intravehicular Activity 

Internal Video Switch Unit 

IWIS ISS Wireless Instrumentation System 

JAXA 

JCP 

Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency 

JEM Control Processor 

JEF 

JEM 

JEMAL

JEM Exposed Facility 

Japanese Experiment Module 

 JEM Airlock 

JEM-EF 

JEM-PM 

JEMRMS 

Japanese Experiment Module Exposed Facility 

Japanese Experiment Module – Pressurized Module 

Japanese Experiment Module Remote Manipulator System 
FEBRUARY 2011 ACRONYMS/ABBREVIATIONS 89

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 

KSC Kennedy Space Center 

LB Local Bus 

LCA LAB Cradle Assembly 

LCD Liquid Crystal Display 

LED Light Emitting Diode 

LEE Latching End Effector 

LIDAR Light Intensification Detection and Ranging 

LMC Lightweight MPESS Carrier 

LSW Light Switch 

LTA Launch-to-Activation 

LTAB Launch-to-Activation Box 

LTL Low Temperature Loop 

MA Main Arm 

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 
MEC Master Event Controller 

MECO 

MELFI 

MGB 

MIP 

MISSE 

MKAM 

MLE 

MLI 

MLM 

MLP 

Main Engine Cut Off 

Minus Eighty-Degree Laboratory Freezer for station 

Middle Grapple Box 

Mission Integration Plan 

Materials International Space Station Experiment 

Minimum Keep Alive Monitor 

Middeck Locker Equivalent 

Multi-layer Insulation 

Multipurpose Laboratory Module 

Mobile Launcher Platform 

MMOD

MOD 

 Micrometeoroid/Orbital Debris 

Modulator 

MON Television Monitor 

MPC 

MPESS 

MPEV 

MPL 

MPLM 

MPM 

MPV 

Main Processing Controller 

Multipurpose Experiment Support Structure 

Manual Pressure Equalization Valve 

Manipulator Retention Latch 

Multipurpose Logistics Module 

Manipulator Positioning Mechanism 

Manual Procedure Viewer 

MRM Mini-Research Module 

MSD 

MSFC 

MSP 

Mass Storage Device 

Marshall Space Flight Center 

Maintenance Switch Panel 

MSS 

MT

Mobile Servicing System 

 Mobile Tracker 

MTL 

MUX

Mobile Transporter 

Moderate Temperature Loop 

 Data Multiplexer 

NASA 

NCS 

National Aeronautics and Space Administration 

Node Control Software 

NET No Earlier Than 

NLP National Lab Pathfinder 

NLT No Less Than 

n.mi. nautical mile 

NPRV 

NSV

Negative Pressure Relief Valve 

 Network Service 

NTA 

NTSC 

Nitrogen Tank Assembly 

National Television Standard Committee 

90 ACRONYMS/ABBREVIATIONS FEBRUARY 2011
FEBRUARY 2011 ACRONYMS/ABBREVIATIONS 91

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 

ORCA Oxygen Recharge Compressor Assembly 

ORU Orbital Replacement Unit 

OS Operating System 

OSA Orbiter-based Station Avionics 

OSE Orbital Support Equipment 

OTCM ORU and Tool Changeout Mechanism 

OTP ORU and Tool Platform 

P/L Payload 

PAL Protuberance Airload 

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 Power Control Unit 

Plasma Contactor Unit 

PDA Payload Disconnect Assembly 

PDB Power Distribution Box 

PDGF Power and Data Grapple Fixture 

PDH Payload Data Handling unit 

PDL Product Development Laboratory 

PDRS Payload Deployment Retrieval System 

PDU Power Distribution Unit 

PEC Passive Experiment Container 

PEHG Payload Ethernet Hub Gateway 

PFE Portable Fire Extinguisher 

PFRAM Passive Flight Releasable Attachment Mechanism 

PGSC Payload General Support Computer 
92 ACRONYMS/ABBREVIATIONS FEBRUARY 2011

PIB Power Interface Box 

PIC 

PIU 

PLB 

PLBD 

PLC 

PLT 

PM 

Pyrotechnic Initiation Controller 

Payload Interface Unit 

Payload Bay 

Payload Bay Door 

Pressurized Logistics Carrier 

Payload Laptop Terminal 

Space Shuttle Pilot 

Pressurized Module 

PMA 

PMCU 

PMM 

PMU 

POA 

POR 

 Pump Module 

Pressurized Mating Adapter 

Power Management Control Unit 

Pressurized Multipurpose Module 

Pressurized Mating Adapter 

Payload Orbital Replacement Unit (ORU) Accommodation 

Point of Resolution 

PPA 

PPRV 

Pump Package Assembly 

Positive Pressure Relief Valve 

PRCS 

PREX 

Primary Reaction Control System 

Procedure Executor 

PRLA 

PRO 

PROX 

psia 

PSP 

PSRR 

PTCS 

PTR 

Payload Retention Latch Assembly 

Payload Rack Officer 

Proximity Communications Center 

Pounds per Square Inch Absolute 

Payload Signal Processor 

Pressurized Section Resupply Rack 

Passive Thermal Control System 

Port Thermal Radiator 

PTU 

PVCU 

Pan/Tilt Unit 

Photovoltaic Controller Unit 

PVM Photovoltaic Module 

PVR Photovoltaic Radiator 

PVTCS Photovoltaic Thermal Control System 

QD Quick Disconnect 

R&MA 

RACU 

Restraint and Mobility Aid 

Russian-to-American Converter Unit 

RAM 

RAMBO-2 

Read Access Memory 

Ram Burn Observation-2 

RBVM Radiator Beam Valve Module 

RCC Range Control Center 
FEBRUARY 2011 ACRONYMS/ABBREVIATIONS 93

RCS Reaction Control System 

RCT Rack Configuration Table 

RF Radio Frequency 

RGA Rate Gyro Assemblies 

RHC Rotational Hand 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 

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 Return Stowage Platform 

RSR Resupply Stowage Rack 

RSS Range Safety System 

RT Remote Terminal 

R2 Robonaut 2 

RTAS Rocketdyne Truss Attachment System 

RTLS Return To Launch Site 

RVFS Rendezvous Flight Software 

RWS Robotics Workstation 

S Starboard 

SAFER Simplified Aid for EVA Rescue 

SAM SFA Airlock Attachment Mechanism 

SAME Smoke and Aerosol Measurement Experiment 

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 

SEDA Space Environment Data Acquisition equipment 

SEDA-AP Space Environment Data Acquisition equipment - Attached Payload 

SEITE Shuttle Exhaust Ion Turbulence Experiments 
94 ACRONYMS/ABBREVIATIONS FEBRUARY 2011

SELS SpaceOps Electronic Library System 

SEU Single Event Upset 

SFA Small Fine Arm 

SFAE SFA Electronics 

SI Smoke Indicator 

SIMPLEX Shuttle Ionospheric Modification with Pulsed Local EXhaust 

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 

SLWT Super Light Weight Tank 

SM Service Module 

SMDP Service Module Debris Panel 

SOC System Operation Control 

SODF Space Operations Data File 

SPA Small Payload Attachment 

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 

STR Starboard Thermal Radiator 

STS Space Transfer System 

STVC SFA Television Camera 

SVS Space Vision System 
FEBRUARY 2011 ACRONYMS/ABBREVIATIONS 95

T Thrust 

TA Thruster Assist 

TAC TCS Assembly Controller 

TAC-M TCS Assembly Controller - M 

TAL Transoceanic Abort Landing 

TCA Thermal Control System Assembly 

TCB Total Capture Box 

TCCS Trace Contaminant Control System 

TCCV Temperature Control and Check Valve 

TCS Thermal Control System 

Trajectory Control Sensor 

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 Thrust Vector Control 

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 

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 
96 ACRONYMS/ABBREVIATIONS FEBRUARY 2011

VAJ 

VBSP 

VCU 

Vacuum Access Jumper 

Video Baseband Signal Processor 

Video Control Unit 

VDS 

VLU 

VRA 

VRCS 

VRCV 

Video Distribution System 

Video Light Unit 

Vent Relief Assembly 

Vernier Reaction Control System 

Vent Relief Control Valve 

VRIV Vent Relief Isolation Valve 

VSU Video Switcher Unit 

VSW Video Switcher 

WAICO 

WCL 

WETA 

WIF 

Waiving and Coiling 

Water Cooling Loop 

Wireless Video System External Transceiver Assembly 

Work Interface 

WPA 

WRM 

WRS 

WS

Water Processor Assembly 

Water Recovery and Management 

Water Recovery System 

 Water Separator 

Work Site 

Work Station 

WVA Water Vent Assembly 

ZSR Zero-g Stowage Rack 
FEBRUARY 2011 MEDIA ASSISTANCE 97

MEDIA ASSISTANCE 

NASA TELEVISION AND INTERNET 

The digital NASA Television system provides 

higher quality images and better use of satellite 

bandwidth, meaning multiple channels from 

multiple NASA program sources at the same 

time. 

Digital NASA TV has the following four digital 

channels: 

1. NASA Public Service (“Free to Air”), 

featuring documentaries, archival 

programming, and coverage of NASA 

missions and events. 

2. NASA Education Services (“Free to 

Air/Addressable”), dedicated to providing 

educational programming to schools, 

educational institutions and museums. 

3. NASA Media Services (“Addressable”), for 

broadcast news organizations. 

4. NASA Mission Operations (Internal Only). 

Digital NASA TV channels may not always 

have programming on every channel 

simultaneously. 

NASA Television Now in High Definition 

NASA TV now has a full-time High Definition 

(HD) Channel available at no cost to cable and 

satellite service providers. Live coverage of 

space shuttle missions; on-orbit video of Earth 

captured by astronauts aboard the International 

Space Station; and rocket launches of advanced 

scientific spacecraft are among the 

programming offered on NASA HD. Also 

available are imagery from NASA’s vast array 

of space satellites, as well as media briefings, 

presentations by expert lecturers, astronaut 

interviews and other special events, all in the 

improved detail and clarity of HD. 

Getting NASA TV via satellite (AMC3 

Transponder 15C) 

In continental North America, Alaska and 

Hawaii, NASA Television’s Public, Education, 

Media and HD channels are MPEG-2 digital 

C-band signals carried by QPSK/DVB-S 

modulation on satellite AMC-3, transponder 

15C, at 87 degrees west longitude. Downlink 

frequency is 4000 MHz, horizontal polarization, 

with a data rate of 38.86 Mhz, symbol rate of 

28.1115 Ms/s, and 3/4 FEC. A Digital Video 

Broadcast (DVB) compliant Integrated Receiver 

Decoder (IRD) is needed for reception. 

Effective Sept. 1, 2010, NASA TV changed the 

primary audio configuration for each of its four 

channels to AC-3, making each channel’s 

secondary audio MPEG 1 Layer II. 

For NASA TV downlink information, schedules 

and links to streaming video, visit 

http://www.nasa.gov/ntv

Television Schedule 

A schedule of key mission 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/missi

on_schedule.html
98 MEDIA ASSISTANCE FEBRUARY 2011

Status Reports 

Status reports and timely updates on launch 

countdown, mission progress, and landing 

operations will be posted at: 

http://www.nasa.gov/shuttle

Internet Information 

Information on NASA and its programs is 

available through the NASA Home Page and 

the NASA Public Affairs Home Page: 

http://www.nasa.gov

or 

http://www.nasa.gov/newsinfo/index.html

Information on the International Space Station 

is available at: http://www.nasa.gov/station

The NASA Human Space Flight Web contains 

an up-to-date archive of mission imagery, video 

and audio at: http://spaceflight.nasa.gov

Information on safety enhancements for the 

2005 Return to Flight effort is available at: 

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

dex.html

Resources for educators can be found at: 

http://education.nasa.gov
FEBRUARY 2011 PUBLIC AFFAIRS CONTACTS 99

PUBLIC AFFAIRS CONTACTS 

NASA HEADQUARTERS 

WASHINGTON 

John Yembrick 

International Partners and 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

JOHNSON SPACE CENTER 

HOUSTON 

James Hartsfield 

Chief, Mission and Media Support 

281-483-5111 

james.a.hartsfield@nasa.gov

Kylie Clem 

Newsroom Manager 

281-483-5111 

kylie.s.clem@nasa.gov

Kyle Herring 

Space Shuttle Program 

281-483-5111 

kyle.j.herring@nasa.gov

Rob Navias 

Mission Operations Lead 

281-483-5111 

rob.navias-1@nasa.gov

Kelly Humphries 

International Space Station Program and 

Mission Operations Directorate 

281-483-5111 

kelly.o.humphries@nasa.gov

Nicole Cloutier-Lemasters 

Astronauts 

281-483-5111 

nicole.cloutier-1@nasa.gov

Josh Byerly 

COTS, Orion and Mission Operations 

281-483-5111 

josh.byerly@nasa.gov

Bill Jeffs 

Space Life Sciences 

281-483-5111 

william.p.jeffs@nasa.gov
100 PUBLIC AFFAIRS CONTACTS FEBRUARY 2011

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER 

CAPE CANAVERAL, FLA. 

Allard Beutel 

News Chief 

321-867-2468 

allard.beutel@nasa.gov

Candrea Thomas 

Space Shuttle 

321-867-2468 

candrea.k.thomas@nasa.gov

Tracy Young 

International Space Station 

321-867-2468 

tracy.g.young@nasa.gov

MARSHALL SPACE FLIGHT CENTER 

HUNTSVILLE, ALA. 

Dom Amatore 

Public Affairs Office Manager 

256-544-0034 

dominic.a.amatore@nasa.gov

June Malone 

News Chief 

256-544-0034 

june.e.malone@nasa.gov

Steve Roy 

Space Shuttle Propulsion and Space Station 

Science 

256-544-0034 

steven.e.roy@nasa.gov

Jennifer Stanfield 

Propulsion Systems 

256-544-0034 

jennifer.stanfield@nasa.gov

STENNIS SPACE CENTER 

BAY ST. LOUIS, MISS. 

Rebecca Strecker 

News Chief 

228-688-3249 

rebecca.a.strecker@nasa.gov

Paul Foerman 

Public Affairs Team Lead 

228-688-1880 

paul.foerman-1@nasa.gov

AMES RESEARCH CENTER 

MOFFETT FIELD, CALIF. 

Michael Mewhinney 

News Chief 

650-604-3937 

michael.s.mewhinney@nasa.gov

Rachel Hoover 

Space Science 

650-604-0643 

rachel.hoover@nasa.gov

Ruth Marlaire 

Earth Sciences 

650-604-4709 

ruth.marlaire@nasa.gov

Cathy Weselby 

650-604-2791 

cathy.weselby@nasa.gov

Karen Jenvey 

650-604-4034 

karen.jenvey@nasa.gov
FEBRUARY 2011 PUBLIC AFFAIRS CONTACTS 101

DRYDEN FLIGHT RESEARCH CENTER 

EDWARDS, CALIF. 

Kevin Rohrer 

Public Affairs Team Lead 

661-276-3595 

kevin.j.rohrer@nasa.gov

Alan Brown 

News Chief 

661-276-2665 

alan.brown@nasa.gov

Leslie Williams 

Space Shuttle 

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 

Space Ops 

216-433-2037 

sally.v.harrington@nasa.gov

Katherine Martin 

Spaceflight Systems, Research and Technology 

216-433-2406 

katherine.martin@nasa.gov

LANGLEY RESEARCH CENTER 

HAMPTON, VA. 

Marny Skora 

Communications Director 

757-864-6121 

marny.skora@nasa.gov

Keith Henry 

News Chief 

757-864-6120 

h.k.henry@nasa.gov

Kathy Barnstorff 

Space Ops 

757-864-9886 

katherine.a.barnstorff@nasa.gov

Amy Johnson 

Exploration 

757-864-7022 

amy.johnson@nasa.gov

UNITED SPACE ALLIANCE 

Kari Fluegel 

Houston Operations 

281-280-6959 

281-796-7712 

kari.l.fluegel@usa-spaceops.com

Tracy Yates 

Florida Operations 

321-861-3956 

321-750-1739 (cell) 

tracy.e.yates@usa-spaceops.com

BOEING 

Ed Memi 

International Space Station/Space Shuttle 

Communications 

The Boeing Co. 

Space Exploration Division 

281-226-4029 

edmund.g.memi@boeing.com
102 PUBLIC AFFAIRS CONTACTS FEBRUARY 2011

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 

EUROPEAN SPACE AGENCY (ESA) 

Jean Coisne 

Head of European Astronaut Centre Outreach 

office 

Communication Department 

49-2203-60-01-110 

jean.coisne@esa.int

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

ROSCOSMOS 

Asya Samojlova 

Assistant to Alexander Vorobiev, Press 

Secretary to the General Director 

7-495-975-4458 (Press Office) 

pressfka@roscosmos.ru or press@roscosmos.ru