page_title: Columbus (ISS module)
section_title: Research activities and payloads
hierarchical_section_title: Columbus (ISS module) / Research activities and payloads
caption_attribution_description: In the Space Station Processing Facility at NASA's Kennedy Space Center, the integrated cargo carrier-lite, or ICC-L, is ready to be lifted and placed in the payload canister for mission STS-122. Joining the primary payload, the Columbus module, the ICC-L is an unpressurized cross-bay carrier providing launch and return transportation with the space shuttle. It rests on a keel yoke assembly, seen underneath. The ICC-L carries three elements: a nitrogen tank assembly that is part of the external active thermal control system on the International Space Station, the European technology Exposure Facility composed of nine science instruments and an autonomous temperature measurement unit, and the SOLAR payload designed for sun observation. The nitrogen tank assembly is mounted underneath. The exposure facility is seen at left on top, and the SOLAR is on the right. The SOLAR will be transferred and stowed on the Columbus module during the third spacewalk of the mission. STS-122 is targeted for launch on Dec. 6 on space shuttle Atlantis.
context_page_description: Columbus is a science laboratory that is part of the International Space Station and is the largest single contribution to the ISS made by the European Space Agency.
  Like the Harmony and Tranquility modules, the Columbus laboratory was constructed in Turin, Italy by Thales Alenia Space. The functional equipment and software of the lab was designed by EADS in Bremen, Germany. It was also integrated in Bremen before being flown to the Kennedy Space Center in Florida in an Airbus Beluga. It was launched aboard Space Shuttle Atlantis on February 7, 2008 on flight STS-122. It is designed for ten years of operation. The module is controlled by the Columbus Control Centre, located at the German Space Operations Centre, part of the German Aerospace Center in Oberpfaffenhofen near Munich, Germany.
  The European Space Agency has spent €1.4 billion on building Columbus, including the experiments it carries and the ground control infrastructure necessary to operate them.
context_section_description: Activities in the lab are controlled on the ground by the Columbus Control Center (at DLR Oberpfaffenhofen in Germany) and by the associated User Support Operations Centres throughout Europe.
  The laboratory can accommodate ten active International Standard Payload Racks (ISPRs) for science payloads.
  Agreements with NASA allocate to ESA 51% usage of the Columbus Laboratory.
  ESA is thus allocated five active rack locations, with the other five being allocated to NASA.
  Four active rack locations are on the forward side of the deck, four on the aft side, and two are in overhead locations.
  Three of the deck racks are filled with life support and cooling systems.
  The remaining deck rack and the two remaining overhead racks are storage racks.
  In addition, four un-pressurized payload platforms can be attached outside the starboard cone, on the Columbus External Payload Facility (CEPF). Each external payload is mounted on an adaptor able to accommodate small instruments and experiments totalling up to 230 kilograms (507 lb).
  The following European ISPRs have been initially installed inside Columbus:
  Fluid Science Laboratory (FSL)
  European Physiology Modules (EPM)
  Biolab
  European Drawer Rack (EDR)
  European Stowage Rack
  The first external payloads were mounted on Columbus by crew members of the mission STS-122 mission. The three payloads mounted are:
  European Technology Exposure Facility (EuTEF) platform, which accommodates nine instruments: TRIBOLAB, PLEGPAY, MEDET, EUFIDE, DEBIE-2, FIPEX, EUTEMP, EXPOSE, DOSTEL, and the Earth Viewing Camera.
  Solar Monitoring Observatory (SOLAR)
  MISSE-6 (NASA payload)
  Planned additional external payloads:
  Atomic Clock Ensemble in Space (ACES)
  EXPORT
  Atmosphere-Space Interaction Monitor (ASIM)
  European Data Relay Satellite (EDRS) Communications Terminal, Ka-band
  See also:
  European Transportation Carrier (ISS Facility) (ETC)
  Columbus – External Payload Facility (Columbus-EPF)
  Bartolomeo facility
  In 2014 the ISS-RapidScat instrument was installed, which was operated until late 2016. ISS-RapidScat was transported to ISS by the SpaceX CRS-4 spaceflight.
caption: External payloads SOLAR and EuTEF installed on LCC-lite cargo carrier prior to launch on shuttle mission STS-122
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