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.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - The Window Observational Research Facility (WORF), seen in the Space Station Processing Facility, was designed and built by the Boeing Co. at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala. WORF will be delivered to the International Space Station and placed in the rack position in front of the Destiny lab window, providing locations for attaching cameras, multi-spectral scanners and other instruments. WORF will support a variety of scientific and commercial experiments in areas of Earth systems and processes, global ecological changes in Earth’s biosphere, lithosphere, hydrosphere and climate system, Earth resources, natural hazards, and education. After installation, it will become a permanent focal point for Earth Science research aboard the space station.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - Workers in the Space Station Processing Facility check out the Window Observational Research Facility (WORF), designed and built by the Boeing Co. at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala. WORF will be delivered to the International Space Station and placed in the rack position in front of the Destiny lab window, providing locations for attaching cameras, multi-spectral scanners and other instruments. WORF will support a variety of scientific and commercial experiments in areas of Earth systems and processes, global ecological changes in Earth’s biosphere, lithosphere, hydrosphere and climate system, Earth resources, natural hazards, and education. After installation, it will become a permanent focal point for Earth Science research aboard the space station.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - Workers in the Space Station Processing Facility check out the Window Observational Research Facility (WORF), designed and built by the Boeing Co. at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala. WORF will be delivered to the International Space Station and placed in the rack position in front of the Destiny lab window, providing locations for attaching cameras, multi-spectral scanners and other instruments. WORF will support a variety of scientific and commercial experiments in areas of Earth systems and processes, global ecological changes in Earth’s biosphere, lithosphere, hydrosphere and climate system, Earth resources, natural hazards, and education. After installation, it will become a permanent focal point for Earth Science research aboard the space station.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. – In Orbiter Processing Facility 3 at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, STS-128 mission Commander Rick Sturckow checks out the cockpit window of space shuttle Discovery. The crew is at Kennedy for a crew equipment interface test, or CEIT, which provides hands-on training and observation of shuttle and flight hardware. The STS-128 flight will carry science and storage racks to the International Space Station on Discovery. Launch is targeted for Aug. 7. Photo credit: NASA/Jim Grossmann

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. – In Orbiter Processing Facility 3 at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, STS-128 mission Pilot Kevin Ford checks out the cockpit window of space shuttle Discovery. The crew is at Kennedy for a crew equipment interface test, or CEIT, which provides hands-on training and observation of shuttle and flight hardware. The STS-128 flight will carry science and storage racks to the International Space Station on Discovery. Launch is targeted for Aug. 7. Photo credit: NASA/Jim Grossmann

ISS034-E-029975 (15 Jan. 2013) --- Canadian Space Agency astronaut Chris Hadfield, Expedition 34 flight engineer, sets up the ISS SERVIR Environmental Research and Visualization System (ISERV) in the Destiny laboratory of the International Space Station. ISERV is a fully automated image data acquisition system that flies aboard the space station and deploys in the Window Observational Research Facility (WORF) rack within Destiny. The study is expected to provide useful images for use in disaster monitoring and assessment and environmental decision making.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. – In Orbiter Processing Facility 3 at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, STS-128 Pilot Kevin Ford checks out the cockpit windows of space shuttle Discovery. The crew is at Kennedy for a crew equipment interface test, or CEIT, which provides hands-on training and observation of shuttle and flight hardware. The STS-128 flight will carry science and storage racks to the International Space Station on Discovery. Launch is targeted for Aug. 7. Photo credit: NASA/Jim Grossmann

ISS034-E-029914 (15 Jan. 2013) --- Canadian Space Agency astronaut Chris Hadfield, Expedition 34 flight engineer, prepares to set up the ISS SERVIR Environmental Research and Visualization System (ISERV) in the Destiny laboratory of the International Space Station. ISERV is a fully automated image data acquisition system that flies aboard the space station and deploys in the Window Observational Research Facility (WORF) rack within Destiny. The study is expected to provide useful images for use in disaster monitoring and assessment and environmental decision making.

ISS034-E-029954 (15 Jan. 2013) --- Canadian Space Agency astronaut Chris Hadfield, Expedition 34 flight engineer, prepares to set up the ISS SERVIR Environmental Research and Visualization System (ISERV) in the Destiny laboratory of the International Space Station. ISERV is a fully automated image data acquisition system that flies aboard the space station and deploys in the Window Observational Research Facility (WORF) rack within Destiny. The study is expected to provide useful images for use in disaster monitoring and assessment and environmental decision making.

ISS034-E-029961 (15 Jan. 2013) --- Canadian Space Agency astronaut Chris Hadfield, Expedition 34 flight engineer, prepares to set up the ISS SERVIR Environmental Research and Visualization System (ISERV) in the Destiny laboratory of the International Space Station. ISERV is a fully automated image data acquisition system that flies aboard the space station and deploys in the Window Observational Research Facility (WORF) rack within Destiny. The study is expected to provide useful images for use in disaster monitoring and assessment and environmental decision making.

View of Canadian Space Agency (CSA) Chris Hadfield,Expedition 34 Flight Engineer (FE),unpacking ISS SERVIR Environmental Research and Visualization System (ISERV) in the U.S. Laboratory. ISERV is a fully automated image data acquisition system in the Window Observational Research Facility (WORF) rack. Kevin Ford,Expedition 34 Commander is visible on the right of frame. Photo was taken during Expedition 34.

View of Canadian Space Agency (CSA) Chris Hadfield,Expedition 34 Flight Engineer (FE), preparing to setup the ISS SERVIR Environmental Research and Visualization System (ISERV) in the U.S. Laboratory. ISERV is a fully automated image data acquisition system in the Window Observational Research Facility (WORF) rack. Kevin Ford,Expedition 34 Commander is visible on the right of frame. Photo was taken during Expedition 34.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - In Orbiter Processing Facility 3 at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, members of space shuttle Discovery's STS-131 crew participate in training activities during the Crew Equipment Interface Test, or CEIT, for their mission. Here, Commander Alan Poindexter inspects the windows in Discovery's cockpit from inside the crew module. The CEIT provides the crew with hands-on training and observation of shuttle and flight hardware. The seven-member crew will deliver the multi-purpose logistics module Leonardo, filled with resupply stowage platforms and racks to be transferred to locations around the International Space Station. Three spacewalks will include work to attach a spare ammonia tank assembly to the station's exterior and return a European experiment from outside the station's Columbus module. Discovery's launch is targeted for March 18. For information on the STS-131 mission and crew, visit http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/shuttle/shuttlemissions/sts131/index.html. Photo credit: NASA/Kim Shiflett

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - In Orbiter Processing Facility 3 at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, members of space shuttle Discovery's STS-131 crew participate in training activities during the Crew Equipment Interface Test, or CEIT, for their mission. Here, Pilot James P. Dutton Jr. experiences the view through Discovery's windows from a vantage point in the cockpit. The CEIT provides the crew with hands-on training and observation of shuttle and flight hardware. The seven-member crew will deliver the multi-purpose logistics module Leonardo, filled with resupply stowage platforms and racks to be transferred to locations around the International Space Station. Three spacewalks will include work to attach a spare ammonia tank assembly to the station's exterior and return a European experiment from outside the station's Columbus module. Discovery's launch is targeted for March 18. For information on the STS-131 mission and crew, visit http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/shuttle/shuttlemissions/sts131/index.html. Photo credit: NASA/Kim Shiflett

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - In Orbiter Processing Facility 3 at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, members of space shuttle Discovery's STS-131 crew participate in training activities during the Crew Equipment Interface Test, or CEIT, for their mission. Here, Mission Specialists Naoko Yamazaki of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency and Clay Anderson, kneeling, get a close look at the exterior of a window on Discovery's crew module. The CEIT provides the crew with hands-on training and observation of shuttle and flight hardware. The seven-member crew will deliver the multi-purpose logistics module Leonardo, filled with resupply stowage platforms and racks to be transferred to locations around the International Space Station. Three spacewalks will include work to attach a spare ammonia tank assembly to the station's exterior and return a European experiment from outside the station's Columbus module. Discovery's launch is targeted for March 18. For information on the STS-131 mission and crew, visit http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/shuttle/shuttlemissions/sts131/index.html. Photo credit: NASA/Kim Shiflett

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - In Orbiter Processing Facility 3 at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, members of space shuttle Discovery's STS-131 crew participate in training activities during the Crew Equipment Interface Test, or CEIT, for their mission. From left in the blue flight suits, Mission Specialists Stephanie Wilson, Rick Mastracchio, Dorothy Metcalf-Lindenburger, and Naoko Yamazaki of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency; Commander Alan Poindexter; and Pilot James P. Dutton Jr. get a close look at the exterior of the windows on Discovery's crew module. The CEIT provides the crew with hands-on training and observation of shuttle and flight hardware. The seven-member crew will deliver the multi-purpose logistics module Leonardo, filled with resupply stowage platforms and racks to be transferred to locations around the International Space Station. Three spacewalks will include work to attach a spare ammonia tank assembly to the station's exterior and return a European experiment from outside the station's Columbus module. Discovery's launch is targeted for March 18. For information on the STS-131 mission and crew, visit http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/shuttle/shuttlemissions/sts131/index.html. Photo credit: NASA/Kim Shiflett