The Z 1 truss is a collection of black boxes, gyroscopes and antenna systems connected to a structure that will form the backbone of the station as more and more hardware is added during the coming months. It's as if you're going on vacation and you strategically pack the trunk of your car so you don't waste a square inch of it. Now that NASA officially owns the hardware, KSC workers can begin final checks and tests leading to installing the equipment inside shuttle Discovery s cargo bay in time for a targeted October 5 liftoff. The floor of the station processing facility is packed with hardware waiting for launch. Face inside the Space Station Processing Facility and you will see the Z 1 truss, to be launched in October.
Destiny is in good shape.
At the end of this week we re going to start the last acceptance test. Watch an animation of Zvezda's docking. Farther down the giant hall you can see the Italian-provided supply modules that will be launched by the shuttle to help keep the station up to date with the latest hardware for performing experiments. Smaller pieces of the station that are not as easily identified sit inside crates or work platforms all over the floor, leaving little room for people to maneuver without bumping into each other. But waiting for some two years to fly this mission hasn t dampened the spirits of the astronauts who will take the Z 1 truss up to the station in October and attach it to the orbiting outpost during the course of four spacewalks.