STS027-05-020 (2-6 Dec. 1988) --- In the foreground, astronauts Robert L. Gibson (left) and Guy S. Gardner, commander and pilot, respectively, for the STS-27 mission, repair a 3/4-inch video reel on the middeck of the Earth-orbiting space shuttle Atlantis. Photo credit: NASA

Documentation of the Ham Video unit installed in the Columbus European Laboratory. Part number (P/N) is HAM-11000-0F, serial number (S/N) is 01, barcode is HAMV0001E. Image was taken during Expedition 39 Ham Video commissioning activities and released by astronaut on Twitter.

STS031-05-002 (24-29 April 1990) --- A 35mm camera with a "fish eye" lens captured this high angle image on Discovery's middeck. Astronaut Kathryn D. Sullivan works with the IMAX camera in foreground, while Astronaut Steven A. Hawley consults a checklist in corner. An Arriflex motion picture camera records student ion arc experiment in apparatus mounted on stowage locker. The experiment was the project of Gregory S. Peterson, currently a student at Utah State University.

STS035-10-015 (2-10 Dec 1990) --- This busy scene shows cameras and supportive photographic gear temporarily stowed on Space Shuttle Columbia's aft flight deck. It was photographed with a 35mm camera by astronaut Jeffrey A. Hoffman, mission specialist, who called the cluster a "camera forest." The seven STS-35 crewmembers trained to record a wide variety of imagery with an equally broad range of equipment. In addition to cameras, a spot meter, film, a pair of binoculars, a bracket, lenses, lens cleaner and other photographic equipment are in the scene. Clouds over ocean waters are framed by an aft flight deck window at upper right.

iss055e018690 (April 11, 2018) --- NASA astronaut Scott Tingle prepares video equipment for a series of education videos being recorded for the STEMonstration campaign which demonstrates scientific concepts in space for students and teachers.

STS080-325-006 (19 Nov.-7 Dec. 1996) --- Astronaut Thomas D. Jones, STS-80 mission specialist, looks over a photo-television checklist on the flight deck of the Earth-orbiting space shuttle Columbia.

STS60-29-009 (10 Feb 1994) --- On the Space Shuttle Discovery's aft flight deck, Russian cosmonaut Sergei K. Krikalev prepares for one chore while performing another. Using the Shuttle Amateur Radio Experiment (SAREX) gear, the mission specialist was talking with students in Maine. He holds a camcorder, which was later called into action to record inflight activities. Krikalev joined five NASA astronauts for eight days in space aboard Discovery.

STS027-14-021 (2-6 Dec. 1988) --- Astronaut Guy S. Gardner, STS-27 pilot, appears to have enough cameras as he prepares to take photographs onboard the Earth-orbiting space shuttle Atlantis. Photo credit: NASA

S92-45751 (1 Sept 1992) --- Astronaut Mario Runco Jr., mission specialist assigned to fly aboard the Space Shuttle Endeavour for the STS-54 mission, gets in some rehearsal time with a camcorder. He is on the middeck of a Shuttle trainer.

STS027-10-021 (2-6 Dec. 1988) --- Astronaut Richard M. (Mike) Mullane, STS-27 mission specialist, is able to handle a number of cameras with the aid of the microgravity in the shirt sleeve environment of the Earth-orbiting space shuttle Atlantis. Photo credit: NASA

ISS024-E-012294 (19 Aug. 2010) --- Russian cosmonaut Fyodor Yurchikhin, Expedition 24 flight engineer, works with High Definition Video (HDV) camera equipment in the Zvezda Service Module of the International Space Station.

ISS024-E-012293 (19 Aug. 2010) --- Russian cosmonaut Fyodor Yurchikhin, Expedition 24 flight engineer, works with High Definition Video (HDV) camera equipment in the Zvezda Service Module of the International Space Station.

ISS024-E-012296 (19 Aug. 2010) --- Russian cosmonaut Fyodor Yurchikhin, Expedition 24 flight engineer, works with High Definition Video (HDV) camera equipment in the Zvezda Service Module of the International Space Station.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - In the Space Station Processing Facility, STS-114 crew members get hands-on experience with a Video Stanchion Support Assembly (VSSA). From left are Mission Specialist Soichi Noguchi, Commander Eileen Collins and Mission Specialists Charles Camarda and Stephen Robinson. Noguchi is with the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, JAXA. Camarda is a new addition to the mission crew. The STS-114 crew is at KSC to take part in crew equipment and orbiter familiarization.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - In the Space Station Processing Facility, STS-114 crew members get hands-on experience with a Video Stanchion Support Assembly (VSSA). From left are Mission Specialists Andrew Thomas, Stephen Robinson and Soichi Noguchi, who is with the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, JAXA. Thomas is a new addition to the mission crew. The STS-114 crew is at KSC to take part in crew equipment and orbiter familiarization.

S86-30088 (March 1986) --- Salvage operations offshore of Kennedy Space Center, are depicted in this artist’s concept showing a grapple and recovery fixture (left) being directed through the use of a remote video system suspended from the recovery ship. Photo credit: NASA

S91-50404 (1 Nov 1991) --- Bebe Ly of the Information Systems Directorate's (ISD) Software Technology Branch at the Johnson Space Center (JSC) gives virtual reality a try. The stereo video goggles and head[phones allow her to see and hear in a computer-generated world and the gloves allow her to move around and grasp objects. Ly is a member of the team that developed the C Language Integrated production System (CLIPS) which has been instrumental in developing several of the systems to be demonstrated in an upcoming Software Technology Exposition at JSC.

Documentation of two free-flying Astrobee robots (Queen and Bumble), equipped with LED Targets for the Smartphone Video Guidance Sensor (SVGS) experiment, during SVGS science 3 session. An SVGS LED Target is attached to the Life Sciences Glovebox (LSG) rack, JPM1F5 in the Kibo Japanese Experiment Module (JEM).

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - In the foreground, STS-114 Mission Specialists Andrew Thomas (left) and Stephen Robinson (right) lift the Video Stanchion Support Assembly (VSSA) that will fly on STS-114 (Logistics Flight 1). Members of the crew are at KSC for equipment familiarization.

ISS021-E-024311 (12 Nov. 2009) --- European Space Agency astronaut Frank De Winne, Expedition 21 commander, moves a High Definition Video (HDV) camera and equipment from the Kibo laboratory into the Harmony node of the International Space Station.

Documentation of a free-flying Astrobee robot (Queen), equipped with an LED Target for the Smartphone Video Guidance Sensor (SVGS) experiment, during SVGS science 3 session. Four SVGS LED Targets are attached to the Life Sciences Glovebox (LSG) rack, JPM1F5 in the Kibo Japanese Experiment Module (JEM).

ISS020-E-032798 (21 Aug. 2009) --- Cosmonaut Roman Romanenko, Expedition 20 flight engineer, works with video equipment and a Russian payload TkhN-7 Self-Propagating High-Temperature Synthesis in the Zvezda Service Module of the International Space Station.

Phillip Stallcup with Agilent Technologies in Huntsville, Ala., talks with NASA employees Leslie Ladner (l) and Kelly Sullivan about spectrum analyzers and other test equipment during the Stennis Technology Expo on May 26. The expo was hosted by NASA Solutions for Enterprise-Wide Procurement and featured various exhibitors demonstrating the latest in a range of technologies, such as training equipment, secure data storage, video networks, distance learning and data management.

STS028-17-033 (August 1989) --- Astronaut Mark N. Brown, STS-28 mission specialist, pauses from a session of motion-picture photography conducted through one of the aft windows on the flight deck of the Earth-orbiting Space Shuttle Columbia. He is using an Arriflex camera. The horizon of the blue and white appearing Earth and its airglow are visible in the background.

The Microgravity Science Glovebox is a facility for performing microgravity research in the areas of materials, combustion, fluids and biotechnology science. The facility occupies a full ISPR, consisting of: the ISPR rack and infrastructure for the rack, the glovebox core facility, data handling, rack stowage, outfitting equipment, and a video subsystem. MSG core facility provides the experiment developers a chamber with air filtering and recycling, up to two levels of containment, an airlock for transfer of payload equipment to/from the main volume, interface resources for the payload inside the core facility, resources inside the airlock, and storage drawers for MSG support equipment and consumables.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - In the Space Station Processing Facility, members of several Space Shuttle mission crews get a close look at the Video Stanchion Support Assembly (VSSA) that will fly on STS-114 (Logistics Flight 1). Holding one piece at left are STS-116 Mission Specialist Christer Fuglesang (European Space Agency) and STS-121 Mission Specialist Carlos Noriega. Looking at the VSSA on the table is STS-114 Mission Specialist Andrew Thomas. The crews are at KSC for equipment familiarization.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - In the Space Station Processing Facility, members of several Space Shuttle mission crews get a close look at the Video Stanchion Support Assembly (VSSA) that will fly on STS-114 (Logistics Flight 1). At left is STS-116 Mission Specialist Christer Fuglesang (European Space Agency), at center is STS-121 Mission Specialist Carlos Noriega, and at right is STS-114 Mission Specialist Andrew Thomas. The crews are at KSC for equipment familiarization.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - In the Space Station Processing Facility, members of several Space Shuttle mission crews get a close look at the Video Stanchion Support Assembly (VSSA) that will fly on STS-114 (Logistics Flight 1). From left are STS-114 Mission Specialist Andrew Thomas, STS-118 Mission Specialist Scott Parazynski and STS-114 Mission Specialist Stephen Robinson. At right is astronaut Barry Wilmore. The crews are at KSC for equipment familiarization.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - In the Space Station Processing Facility, members of several Space Shuttle mission crews get a close look at the Video Stanchion Support Assembly (VSSA) that will fly on STS-114 (Logistics Flight 1). From left are STS-118 Mission Specialist Barbara Morgan, STS-116 Mission Specialist Christer Fuglesang (European Space Agency), and STS-118 Mission Specialists Scott Parazynski and Dafydd Williams (Canadian Space Agency). The crews are at KSC for equipment familiarization.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -In the Space Station Processing Facility, members of several Space Shuttle mission crews get a close look at the Video Stanchion Support Assembly (VSSA) that will fly on STS-114 (Logistics Flight 1).. Manipulating the VSSA (in the center) is STS-116 Mission Specialist Christer Fuglesang (European Space Agency). At left is STS-118 Commander Scott Kelly; behind Fuglesang is STS-121 Mission Commander Steven Lindsey. The crews are at KSC for equipment familiarization.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - In the Space Station Processing Facility, members of several Space Shuttle mission crews get a close look at the Video Stanchion Support Assembly (VSSA) that will fly on STS-114 (Logistics Flight 1). On the left are STS-114 Mission Specialist Stephen Robinson and STS-116 Mission Specialist Christer Fuglesang (European Space Agency). Center right is STS-114 Mission Specialist Andrew Thomas. The crews are at KSC for equipment familiarization.

jsc2025e047411 (5/27/2025) --- The High school Students United with NASA to Create Hardware (HUNCH) has designed a device to replace Bogen arms aboard the International Space Station. The HUNCH Utility Bracket (HUB) can be attached to frames and rails and can hold cameras, iPads, and other equipment. The HUB has a jointed design that allows ample range of movement and flexibility. This device aims to aid crew members with tasks such as recording videos and holding iPads to increase efficiency of operations aboard space station. (Image courtesy of HUNCH)

jsc2025e047412 (5/27/2025) --- The High school Students United with NASA to Create Hardware (HUNCH) has designed a device to replace Bogen arms aboard the International Space Station. The HUNCH Utility Bracket (HUB) can be attached to frames and rails and can hold cameras, iPads, and other equipment. The HUB has a jointed design that allows ample range of movement and flexibility. This device aims to aid crew members with tasks such as recording videos and holding iPads to increase efficiency of operations aboard space station. (Image courtesy of HUNCH)

jsc2025e047414 (5/27/2025) --- The High school Students United with NASA to Create Hardware (HUNCH) has designed a device to replace Bogen arms aboard the International Space Station. The HUNCH Utility Bracket (HUB) can be attached to frames and rails and can hold cameras, iPads, and other equipment. The HUB has a jointed design that allows ample range of movement and flexibility. This device aims to aid crew members with tasks such as recording videos and holding iPads to increase efficiency of operations aboard space station. (Image courtesy of HUNCH)

jsc2025e047417 (5/27/2025) --- The High school Students United with NASA to Create Hardware (HUNCH) has designed a device to replace Bogen arms aboard the International Space Station. The HUNCH Utility Bracket (HUB) can be attached to frames and rails and can hold cameras, iPads, and other equipment. The HUB has a jointed design that allows ample range of movement and flexibility. This device aims to aid crew members with tasks such as recording videos and holding iPads to increase efficiency of operations aboard space station. (Image courtesy of HUNCH)

jsc2025e047418 (5/27/2025) --- The High school Students United with NASA to Create Hardware (HUNCH) has designed a device to replace Bogen arms aboard the International Space Station. The HUNCH Utility Bracket (HUB) can be attached to frames and rails and can hold cameras, iPads, and other equipment. The HUB has a jointed design that allows ample range of movement and flexibility. This device aims to aid crew members with tasks such as recording videos and holding iPads to increase efficiency of operations aboard space station. (Image courtesy of HUNCH)

jsc2025e047415 (5/27/2025) --- The High school Students United with NASA to Create Hardware (HUNCH) has designed a device to replace Bogen arms aboard the International Space Station. The HUNCH Utility Bracket (HUB) can be attached to frames and rails and can hold cameras, iPads, and other equipment. The HUB has a jointed design that allows ample range of movement and flexibility. This device aims to aid crew members with tasks such as recording videos and holding iPads to increase efficiency of operations aboard space station. (Image courtesy of HUNCH)

jsc2025e047413 (5/27/2025) --- The High school Students United with NASA to Create Hardware (HUNCH) has designed a device to replace Bogen arms aboard the International Space Station. The HUNCH Utility Bracket (HUB) can be attached to frames and rails and can hold cameras, iPads, and other equipment. The HUB has a jointed design that allows ample range of movement and flexibility. This device aims to aid crew members with tasks such as recording videos and holding iPads to increase efficiency of operations aboard space station. (Image courtesy of HUNCH)

STS-105-E-5097 (12 August 2001) --- Expedition Two, Expedition Three and STS-105 crewmembers work with some video equipment in the U.S. Laboratory. From left to right are: cosmonaut Yury V. Usachev, Expedition Two mission commander; Daniel T. Barry, STS-105 mission specialist; Scott J. Horowitz, STS-105 commander - holding a camcorder; James S. Voss, Expedition Two flight engineer - holding a high definition video camera; cosmonaut Vladimir N. Dezhurov, Expedition Three flight engineer; Frank L. Culbertson, Expedition Three mission commander; and Patrick G. Forrester, STS-100 mission specialist. This image was taken with a digital still camera.

Onboard Space Shuttle Columbia (STS-94) Mission Specialist Donald A. Thomas observes an experiment in the glovebox aboard the Spacelab Science Module. Thomas is looking through an eye-piece of a camcorder and recording his observations on tape for post-flight analysis. Other cameras inside the glovebox are also recording other angles of the experiment or downlinking video to the experiment teams on the ground. The glovebox is thought of as a safety cabinet with closed front and negative pressure differential to prevent spillage and contamination and allow for manipulation of the experiment sample when its containment has to be opened for observation, microscopy and photography. Although not visible in this view, the glovebox is equipped with windows on the top and each side for these observations.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - In the Space Station Processing Facility, members of several Space Shuttle mission crews get a close look at the Video Stanchion Support Assembly (VSSA) that will fly on STS-114 (Logistics Flight 1). Closest to the VSSA, in front, are astronaut Michael Gerhnardt and STS-114 Mission Specialist Stephen Robinson. Leaning over behind them is STS-116 Mission Specialist Christer Fuglesang (European Space Agency); right of center is STS-114 Mission Specialist Andrew Thomas. The crews are at KSC for equipment familiarization.

This high-resolution image captures the inside of the Orion crew module on flight day one of the Artemis I mission. At left is Commander Moonikin Campos, a purposeful passenger equipped with sensors to collect data that will help scientists and engineers understand the deep-space environment for future Artemis missions. At center is the Callisto payload, a technology demonstration of voice-activated audio and video technology from Lockheed Martin in collaboration with Amazon and Cisco. Callisto could assist future astronauts on deep-space missions. Below and to the right of Callisto is the Artemis I zero-gravity indicator, astronaut Snoopy.

STS065-214-037 (8-23 July 1994) --- Ready to begin one of her busy twelve hour shifts, payload specialist Dr. Chiaki Naito-Mukai enters the International Microgravity Laboratory (IML-2) science module in the cargo bay via the tunnel connecting it to the Space Shuttle Columbia's cabin. Dr. Mukai joined six NASA astronauts for more than two weeks of experimenting in Earth orbit. This photo was among the first released by NASA following IML-2. Also onboard were NASA astronauts Robert D. Cabana, James D. Halsell, Jr., Richard J. Hieb, Carl E. Walz, Donald A. Thomas and Leroy Chiao. Dr. Mukai represented the National Space Development Agency (NASDA) of Japan.

STS-31 Mission Specialist (MS) Kathryn D. Sullivan monitors and advises ground controllers of the activity inside the Student Experiment (SE) 82-16, Ion arc - studies of the effects of microgravity and a magnetic field on an electric arc, mounted in front of the middeck lockers aboard Discovery, Orbiter Vehicle (OV) 103. Pilot Charles F. Bolden uses a video camera and an ARRIFLEX motion picture camera to record the activity inside the special chamber. A sign in front of the experiment reads "SSIP 82-16 Greg's Experiment Happy Graduation from STS-31." SSIP stands for Shuttle Student Involvement Program. Gregory S. Peterson who developed the experiment (Greg's Experiment) is a student at Utah State University and monitored the experiment's operation from JSC's Mission Control Center (MCC) during the flight. Decals displayed in the background on the orbiter galley represent the Hubble Space Telescope (HST), the United States (U.S.) Naval Reserve, Navy Oceanographers, U.S. Navy, and University of Kansas.

A color video camera mounted to the top of the External Tank (ET) provided this spectacular never-before-seen view of the STS-112 mission as the Space Shuttle Orbiter Atlantis lifted off in the afternoon of October 7, 2002, The camera provided views as the the orbiter began its ascent until it reached near-orbital speed, about 56 miles above the Earth, including a view of the front and belly of the orbiter, a portion of the Solid Rocket Booster, and ET. The video was downlinked during flight to several NASA data-receiving sites, offering the STS-112 team an opportunity to monitor the shuttle's performance from a new angle. Atlantis carried the S1 Integrated Truss Structure and the Crew and Equipment Translation Aid (CETA) Cart. The CETA is the first of two human-powered carts that will ride along the International Space Station's railway providing a mobile work platform for future extravehicular activities by astronauts. Landing on October 18, 2002, the Orbiter Atlantis ended its 11-day mission.

A color video camera mounted to the top of the External Tank (ET) provided this spectacular never-before-seen view of the STS-112 mission as the Space Shuttle Orbiter Atlantis lifted off in the afternoon of October 7, 2002. The camera provided views as the orbiter began its ascent until it reached near-orbital speed, about 56 miles above the Earth, including a view of the front and belly of the orbiter, a portion of the Solid Rocket Booster, and ET. The video was downlinked during flight to several NASA data-receiving sites, offering the STS-112 team an opportunity to monitor the shuttle's performance from a new angle. Atlantis carried the S1 Integrated Truss Structure and the Crew and Equipment Translation Aid (CETA) Cart. The CETA is the first of two human-powered carts that will ride along the International Space Station's railway providing a mobile work platform for future extravehicular activities by astronauts. Landing on October 18, 2002, the Orbiter Atlantis ended its 11-day mission.

STS083-312-031 (4-8 April 1997) --- Payload specialist Gregory T. Linteris (left) is seen at the Mid Deck Glove Box (MGBX), while astronaut Donald A. Thomas, mission specialist, works at the Expedite the Processing of Experiments to Space Station (EXPRESS) rack. MGBX is a facility that allows scientists the capability of doing tests on hardware and materials that are not approved to be handled in the open Spacelab. It is equipped with photographic, video and data recording capability, allowing a complete record of experiment operations. Experiments performed on STS-83 were Bubble Drop Nonlinear Dynamics and Fiber Supported Droplet Combustion. EXPRESS is designed to provide accommodations for Sub-rack payloads on Space Station. For STS-83, it held two payloads. The Physics of Hard Colloidal Spheres (PHaSE) and ASTRO-Plant Generic Bioprocessing Apparatus (ASTRO-PGBA), a facility with light and atmospheric controls which supports plant growth for commercial research.

Astronauts Rick Sturckow (right) and Pat Forrester make a presentation Aug. 2 at NASA Stennis Space Center near Bay St. Louis, Miss., about their recent space shuttle mission, STS-117. Sturckow and Forrester thanked employees for the reliability and safe performance of the space shuttle's main engines, which are all tested and proved flight-worthy at SSC. The astronauts delivered a video of their mission's highlights, held a question-and-answer session, met one-on-one with employees and presented two Silver Snoopy awards during their visit. The STS-117 mission, which launched June 8, delivered a truss segment and a set of U.S. solar arrays, batteries and associated equipment to the International Space Station. Sturckow commanded the mission; Forrester was a mission specialist who performed two of STS-117's four spacewalks.

Workers (center) in the Space Station Processing Facility, explain use of video cameras to members of the STS-100 crew (far left and far right) during Crew Equipment Interface Test activities. The cameras will be mounted on the booms and end effectors of the Space Station Remote Manipulator System (SSRMS), also known as the Canadian arm, and will give astronauts maximum visibility for operations and maintenance tasks on the International Space Station. Part of the payload on mission STS-100, the SSRMS is the primary means of transferring payloads between the orbiter payload bay and the International Space Station for assembly. The 56-foot-long robotic arm includes two 12-foot booms joined by a hinge. Seven joints on the arm allow highly flexible and precise movement. Mission STS-100 is scheduled to launch April 19, 2001

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- In the Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility clean room, part of the flight hardware for the Hubble Space Telescope Servicing mission is on display for media representatives. Dr. John Campbell, associate director, Hubble Space Telescope, provides commentary for a video being recorded for NASA by videographer Glen Benson (right). Between them is George Diller, public information officer for KSC. This mission is designed to replace aging parts on the nine-year-old observatory and to upgrade some of its functioning systems. During the flight, the astronaut crew will replace all six of Hubble's gyroscopes, a fine guidance sensor, the observatory's main computer, and other equipment. The 10-day mission is scheduled to launch no earlier than Dec. 2 at 4:32 a.m. EST from Launch Complex 39

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - An artist’s conception of the autonomous Demonstration for Autonomous Rendezvous (DART) spacecraft as it approaches the Multiple Paths, Beyond-Line-of-Site Communications (MUBLCOM) satellite. NASA is testing the DART as a docking system for next generation vehicles to guide spacecraft carrying cargo or equipment to the International Space Station, or retrieving or servicing satellites in orbit. Before the new system can be implemented on piloted spacecraft, it has to be tested in space. The computer-guided DART is equipped with an Advanced Video Guidance Sensor and a Global Positioning System that can receive signals from other spacecraft to allow DART to move within 330 feet of the target. DART is scheduled to launch from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California no earlier than Oct. 18. It will be released from a Pegasus XL launch vehicle carried aloft by an Orbital Sciences Corporation aircraft. The fourth stage of the Pegasus rocket will remain attached as an integral part of the spacecraft, allowing it to maneuver in space. Once in orbit, DART will race toward the target, the MUBLCOM satellite, for a rendezvous.

STS043-04-038 (2-11 Aug 1991) --- Astronaut James C. Adamson, STS-43 mission specialist, checks on an experiment on Atlantis? flight deck. Part of the experiment, Optical Communications Through the Shuttle Window (OCTW), can be seen mounted in upper right. The OCTW system consists of two modules, one inside the orbiter crew cabin (as pictured here) and one in the payload bay. The crew compartment version houses an optoelectronic transmitter/receiver pair for video and digital subsystems, test circuitry and interface circuitry. The payload bay module serves as a repeater station. During operation a signal is transmitted through the shuttle window to a bundle of optical fiber cables mounted in the payload bay near an aft window. The cables carry optical signals from the crew compartment equipment to the OCTW payload bay module. The signals are returned via optical fiber cable to the aft flight deck window, retransmitted through the window, and received by the crew compartment equipment.

The first United States Microgravity Laboratory (USML-1) provided scientific research in materials science, fluid dynamics, biotechnology, and combustion science in a weightless environment inside the Spacelab module. This photograph is a close-up view of the Glovebox in operation during the mission. The Spacelab Glovebox, provided by the European Space Agency, offers experimenters new capabilities to test and develop science procedures and technologies in microgravity. It enables crewmembers to handle, transfer, and otherwise manipulate materials in ways that are impractical in the open Spacelab. The facility is equipped with three doors: a central port through which experiments are placed in the Glovebox and two glovedoors on both sides with an attachment for gloves or adjustable cuffs and adapters for cameras. The Glovebox has an enclosed compartment that offers a clean working space and minimizes the contamination risks to both Spacelab and experiment samples. Although fluid containment and ease of cleanup are major benefits provided by the facility, it can also contain powders and bioparticles; toxic, irritating, or potentially infectious materials; and other debris produced during experiment operations. The facility is equipped with photographic/video capabilities and permits mounting a microscope. For the USML-1 mission, the Glovebox experiments fell into four basic categories: fluid dynamics, combustion science, crystal growth, and technology demonstration. The USML-1 flew aboard the STS-50 mission in June 1992.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - An artist’s conception of the autonomous Demonstration for Autonomous Rendezvous (DART) spacecraft as it approaches the Multiple Paths, Beyond-Line-of-Site Communications (MUBLCOM) satellite. NASA is testing the DART as a docking system for next generation vehicles to guide spacecraft carrying cargo or equipment to the International Space Station, or retrieving or servicing satellites in orbit. Before the new system can be implemented on piloted spacecraft, it has to be tested in space. The computer-guided DART is equipped with an Advanced Video Guidance Sensor and a Global Positioning System that can receive signals from other spacecraft to allow DART to move within 330 feet of the target. DART is scheduled to launch from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California no earlier than Oct. 18. It will be released from a Pegasus XL launch vehicle carried aloft by an Orbital Sciences Corporation aircraft. The fourth stage of the Pegasus rocket will remain attached as an integral part of the spacecraft, allowing it to maneuver in space. Once in orbit, DART will race toward the target, the MUBLCOM satellite, for a rendezvous.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - An artist’s conception of the autonomous Demonstration for Autonomous Rendezvous (DART) spacecraft as it approaches the Multiple Paths, Beyond-Line-of-Site Communications (MUBLCOM) satellite. NASA is testing the DART as a docking system for next generation vehicles to guide spacecraft carrying cargo or equipment to the International Space Station, or retrieving or servicing satellites in orbit. Before the new system can be implemented on piloted spacecraft, it has to be tested in space. The computer-guided DART is equipped with an Advanced Video Guidance Sensor and a Global Positioning System that can receive signals from other spacecraft to allow DART to move within 330 feet of the target. DART is scheduled to launch from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California no earlier than Oct. 18. It will be released from a Pegasus XL launch vehicle carried aloft by an Orbital Sciences Corporation aircraft. The fourth stage of the Pegasus rocket will remain attached as an integral part of the spacecraft, allowing it to maneuver in space. Once in orbit, DART will race toward the target, the MUBLCOM satellite, for a rendezvous.

Created from a 1/16th model of a German World War II tank, the TAV (Tire Assault Vehicle) was an important safety feature for the Convair 990 Landing System Research Aircraft, which tested space shuttle tires. It was imperative to know the extreme conditions the shuttle tires could tolerate at landing without putting the shuttle and its crew at risk. In addition, the CV990 was able to land repeatedly to test the tires. The TAV was built from a kit and modified into a radio controlled, video-equipped machine to drill holes in aircraft test tires that were in imminent danger of exploding because of one or more conditions: high air pressure, high temperatures, and cord wear. An exploding test tire releases energy equivalent to two and one-half sticks of dynamite and can cause severe injuries to anyone within 50 ft. of the explosion, as well as ear injury - possibly permanent hearing loss - to anyone within 100 ft. The degree of danger is also determined by the temperature pressure and cord wear of a test tire. The TAV was developed by David Carrott, a PRC employee under contract to NASA.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. – Elon Musk, chief executive officer and chief designer for SpaceX, participates in a post-launch news conference being held in the Press Site auditorium at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida by video teleconference. The SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket launched into space at 3:44 a.m. EDT from Space Launch Complex-40 on Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida. The launch is the company's second demonstration test flight for NASA's Commercial Orbital Transportation Services Program, or COTS. During the flight, the capsule will conduct a series of check-out procedures to test and prove its systems, including rendezvous and berthing with the International Space Station. If the capsule performs as planned, the cargo and experiments it is carrying will be transferred to the station. The cargo includes food, water and provisions for the station’s Expedition crews, such as clothing, batteries and computer equipment. Under COTS, NASA has partnered with two aerospace companies to deliver cargo to the station. For more information, visit http://www.nasa.gov/spacex. Photo credit: NASA/Kim Shiflett

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. – Participating in a post-launch news conference in the Press Site auditorium at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida are, from left, George H. Diller, NASA Public Affairs, William Gerstenmaier, associate administrator of NASA’s Human Exploration and Operations Directorate, Alan Lindenmoyer, manager of NASA’s Commercial Crew and Cargo Program, and Gwynne Shotwell, president of SpaceX. Also participating by video teleconference, on the screen at right, is Elon Musk, chief executive officer and chief designer for SpaceX. The SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket launched into space at 3:44 a.m. EDT from Space Launch Complex-40 on Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida. The launch is the company's second demonstration test flight for NASA's Commercial Orbital Transportation Services Program, or COTS. During the flight, the capsule will conduct a series of check-out procedures to test and prove its systems, including rendezvous and berthing with the International Space Station. If the capsule performs as planned, the cargo and experiments it is carrying will be transferred to the station. The cargo includes food, water and provisions for the station’s Expedition crews, such as clothing, batteries and computer equipment. Under COTS, NASA has partnered with two aerospace companies to deliver cargo to the station. For more information, visit http://www.nasa.gov/spacex. Photo credit: NASA/Kim Shiflett

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- Sgt. Mark Hines, of Kennedy Space Center (KSC) Security, points out a view of a fire on the Forward Looking Infrared Radar (FLIR) video screen to Greg Dunn, of Florida's Division of Forestry, as KSC pilots fly NASA's Huey UH-1 helicopter over fires burning in Volusia County, Florida. The FLIR includes a beach-ball sized infrared camera that is mounted on the helicopter's right siderail and a real-time TV monitor and recorder installed inside. The helicopter has also been outfitted with a portable global positioning satellite (GPS) system to support the Division of Forestry as they fight the brush fires which have been plaguing the state as a result of extremely dry conditions and lightning storms. While the FLIR collects temperature data and images, the GPS system provides the exact coordinates of the fires being observed and transmits the data to the firefighters on the ground. KSC's security team routinely uses the FLIR equipment prior to Shuttle launch and landing activities to ensure that the area surrounding the launch pad and runway are clear of unauthorized personnel. KSC's Base Operations Contractor, EG&G Florida, operates the NASA-owned helicopter.

Developed by Boeing, at the Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC) Space Station Manufacturing building, the Window Observational Rack Facility (WORF) will help Space Station crews take some of the best photographs ever snapped from an orbiting spacecraft by eliminating glare and allowing researchers to control their cameras and other equipment from the ground. The WORF is designed to make the best possible use of the high-quality research window in the Space Station's U.S. Destiny laboratory module. Engineers at the MSFC proposed a derivative of the EXPRESS (Expedite the Processing of Experiments to the Space Station) Rack already used on the Space Station and were given the go-ahead. The EXPRESS rack can hold a wide variety of experiments and provide them with power, communications, data, cooling, fluids, and other utilities - all the things that Earth-observing experiment instruments would need. WORF will supply payloads with power, data, cooling, video downlink, and stable, standardized interfaces for mounting imaging instruments. Similar to specialized orbital observatories, the interior of the rack is sealed against light and coated with a special low-reflectant black paint, so payloads will be able to observe low-light-level subjects such as the faint glow of auroras. Cameras and remote sensing instruments in the WORF can be preprogrammed, controlled from the ground, or operated by a Station crewmember by using a flexible shroud designed to cinch tightly around the crewmember's waist. The WORF is scheduled to be launched aboard the STS-114 Space Shuttle mission in the year 2003.

NASA image acquired October 23, 2009. At NASA’s Dryden Research Center in California, a group of engineers, scientists, and aviation technicians have set up camp in a noisy, chilly hangar on Edwards Air Force base. For the past two weeks, they have been working to mount equipment—from HD video cameras to ozone sensors—onto NASA’s Global Hawk, a remote-controlled airplane that can fly for up to 30 hours at altitudes up to 65,000 feet. The team is gearing up for the Global Hawk Pacific campaign, a series of four or five scientific research flights that will take the Global Hawk over the Pacific Ocean and Arctic regions. The 44-foot-long aircraft, with its comically large nose and 116-foot wingspan is pictured in the photograph above, banking for landing over Rogers Dry Lake in California at the end of a test flight on October 23, 2009. The long wings carry the plane’s fuel, and the bulbous nose is one of the payload bays, which house the science instruments. For the Global Hawk Pacific campaign, the robotic aircraft will carry ten science instruments that will sample the chemical composition of air in the troposphere (the atmospheric layer closest to Earth) and the stratosphere (the layer above the troposphere). The mission will also observe clouds and aerosol particles in the troposphere. The primary purpose of the mission is to collect observations that can be used to check the accuracy of simultaneous observations collected by NASA’s Aura satellite. Co-lead scientist Paul Newman from Goddard Space Flight Center is writing about the ground-breaking mission for the Earth Observatory’s Notes from the Field blog. NASA Photograph by Carla Thomas. <b><a href="http://www.nasa.gov/centers/goddard/home/index.html" rel="nofollow">NASA Goddard Space Flight Center</a></b> is home to the nation's largest organization of combined scientists, engineers and technologists that build spacecraft, instruments and new technology to study the Earth, the sun, our solar system, and the universe. To learn more about this image go to: <a href="http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/IOTD/view.php?id=43291" rel="nofollow">earthobservatory.nasa.gov/IOTD/view.php?id=43291</a>