N-238 IHF (Interactive heating Facility) re-build

Crater Deformation

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - Workers in the Multi-Purpose Processing Facility move the rotating work stand away from NASA's Solar Radiation and Climate Experiment (SORCE) after mating with the Pegasus XL Expendable Launch Vehicle. SORCE will study and measure solar irradiance as a source of energy in the Earth's atmosphere. The launch of SORCE is scheduled for Jan. 25 at 3:14 p.m. from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Fla.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - After dawn, the Space Infrared Telescope Facility (SIRTF) is lifted up the mobile service tower on Launch Pad 17-B, Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. SIRTF will be attached to the Delta II rocket and encapsulated in its fairing before launch. Consisting of three cryogenically cooled science instruments and an 0.85-meter telescope, SIRTF is one of NASA’s largest infrared telescopes to be launched. It is the fourth and final element in NASA’s family of orbiting “Great Observatories.” SIRTF will obtain images and spectra by detecting the infrared energy, or heat, radiated by objects in space. Most of this infrared radiation is blocked by the Earth's atmosphere and cannot be observed from the ground.

ISS007-E-07006 (11 June 2003) --- Cosmonaut Yuri I. Malenchenko (background), Expedition 7 mission commander, and astronaut Edward T. Lu, NASA ISS science officer and flight engineer, work in the Zvezda Service Module on the International Space Station (ISS). Malenchenko represents Rosaviakosmos.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - On Launch Pad 17-B, Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, the Mars Exploration Rover 1 (MER-B) is ready to be lifted up the tower for mating with the Delta rocket. The second of twin rovers being sent to Mars, it is equipped with a robotic arm, a drilling tool, three spectrometers, and four pairs of cameras that allow it to have a human-like, 3D view of the terrain. Each rover could travel as far as 100 meters in one day to act as Mars scientists' eyes and hands, exploring an environment where humans can't yet go. MER-B is scheduled to launch June 26 at one of two available times, 12:27:31 a.m. EDT or 1:08:45 a.m. EDT.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - Daniel LeBlanc, chief operating officer of Delaware North Companies Parks and Resorts at KSC, makes the opening remarks to hundreds of guests and media representatives attending a ribbon cutting ceremony officially opening the U.S. Astronaut Hall of Fame as part of the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex. The ceremony was held in conjunction with the induction of four Space Shuttle astronauts into the Hall of Fame including Daniel Brandenstein, Robert "Hoot" Gibson, Story Musgrave, and Sally Ride. Conceived by six of the Mercury Program astronauts, the U.S. Astronaut Hall of Fame opened in 1990 to provide a place where space travelers could be remembered for their participation and accomplishments in the U.S. space program. The four new inductees join 48 previously honored astronauts from the ranks of the Gemini, Apollo, Skylab, Apollo-Soyuz, and Space Shuttle programs.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - Solid rocket boosters are positioned around the base of a Delta II rocket for the Mars Exploration Rover 1 (MER-1) launch on June 25 at Launch Complex 17-B, Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. NASA’s twin Mars Exploration Rovers are designed to study the history of water on Mars. These robotic geologists are equipped with a robotic arm, a drilling tool, three spectrometers, and four pairs of cameras that allow them to have a human-like, 3D view of the terrain. Each rover could travel as far as 100 meters in one day to act as Mars scientists' eyes and hands, exploring an environment where humans can’t yet go. MER-2 (MER-A) will launch June 5.

ISS006-E-20835 (22 January 2003) --- Astronaut Donald R. Pettit, Expedition 6 NASA ISS science officer, holds a Grab Sample Container (GSC) in the functional cargo block (FGB), or Zarya, on the International Space Station (ISS). GSC is used for collecting air samples as part of ISS environmental monitoring.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - On Launch Pad 17-A, Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, the Mars Exploration Rover 2 (MER-2), inside the transport canister, is lifted up the launch tower where it will be mated to the Delta II rocket for launch. MER-2 is one of NASA's twin Mars Exploration Rovers designed to study the history of water on Mars. These robotic geologists are equipped with a robotic arm, a drilling tool, three spectrometers, and four pairs of cameras that allow them to have a human-like, 3D view of the terrain. Each rover could travel as far as 100 meters in one day to act as Mars scientists' eyes and hands, exploring an environment where humans can't yet go. MER-2 is scheduled to launch no earlier than June 8 as MER-A.

European Space Agency astronaut Pedro Duque of Spain listens to a briefing on mission activities from a Russian trainer at his crew quarters in Baikonur, Kazakhstan, Wednesday, Oct. 15, 2003 as he prepares for his launch to the International Space Station Oct. 18 in a Soyuz TMA-3 vehicle. Photo Credit (NASA/Bill Ingalls)

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- Seconds after launch, Space Shuttle Columbia appears as a flaming tip of the smoke column it trails. Following a flawless and uneventful countdown, liftoff occurred on-time at 10:39 a.m. EST. The 16-day research mission will include FREESTAR (Fast Reaction Experiments Enabling Science, Technology, Applications and Research) and the SHI Research Double Module (SHI/RDM), known as SPACEHAB. Experiments on the module range from material sciences to life sciences. Landing is scheduled at about 8:53 a.m. EST on Saturday, Feb. 1. This mission is the first Shuttle mission of 2003. Mission STS-107 is the 28th flight of the orbiter Columbia and the 113th flight overall in NASA's Space Shuttle program.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - In the Orbiter Processing Facility, KSC employee Joel Smith prepares an area on the orbiter Discovery for blanket installation. The blankets are part of the Orbiter Thermal Protection System, thermal shields to protect against temperatures as high as 3,000° Fahrenheit, which are produced during descent for landing. Discovery is scheduled to fly on mission STS-121 to the International Space Station.

Dunes on Ice

Summer in Mars North Polar Region

ISS006-E-40537 (March 2003) --- The Coma Cluster, a collection of stars which are visible to the naked eye in the constellation Coma Berenices, is visible in this view photographed by astronaut Donald R. Pettit, Expedition Six NASA ISS science officer, on board the International Space Station (ISS). The Coma Cluster is visible as a faint fuzzy patch between the constellations Leo and Virgo. The naked eye cannot resolve the individual stars, but collectively, they merge into a fuzzy flow in this part of the sky.

ISS007-E-16249 (4 October 2003) --- Earth’s horizon against the blackness of space is featured in this image photographed by an Expedition 7 crewmember onboard the International Space Station (ISS).

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - With a glimpse of the Atlantic Ocean over the horizon, the Delta II rocket with its Mars Exploration Rover (MER-A) payload leaps off the launch pad into the blue sky to begin its journey to Mars. Liftoff occurred on time at 1:58 p.m. EDT from Launch Complex 17-A, Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. MER-A, known as "Spirit," is the first of two rovers being launched to Mars. When the two rovers arrive at the red planet in 2004, they will bounce to airbag-cushioned landings at sites offering a balance of favorable conditions for safe landings and interesting science. The rovers see sharper images, can explore farther and examine rocks better than anything that has ever landed on Mars. The designated site for the MER-A mission is Gusev Crater, which appears to have been a crater lake. The second rover, MER-B, is scheduled to launch June 25.

ISS007-E-13327 (24 August 2003) --- This view featuring Java’s Merapi volcano was photographed by one of the Expedition 7 crewmembers onboard the International Space Station (ISS). At 2,911 meters, the summit of Merapi and its vigorous steam plume rises above a bank of stratus clouds. One of Indonesia’s most active volcanoes, it has been almost continuously active for nearly ten years, including periodic pyroclastic flows and avalanches. The volcano is located less than 25 miles north of the city of Yogykarta in central Java.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - Technicians lift the Galaxy Evolution Explorer (GALEX) spacecraft into a vertical position after it is demated from its Pegasus launch vehicle in the Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility. A borescope inspection will be conducted to locate a small fastener and associated clip missing from a demated connector identified during preflight testing. GALEX is an orbiting space telescope that will observe galaxies in ultraviolet light across 10 billion years of cosmic history. During its 29-month mission, GALEX will produce the first comprehensive map of a Universe of galaxies under construction, bringing more understanding to how galaxies like the Milky Way were formed. The GALEX launch date in late April is currently under review.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - An aerial view of the control tower at the KSC Shuttle Landing Facility.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - An overview of the Columbia debris hangar shows the orbiter outline on the floor with some of the 78,760 pieces identified to date, as well as tables on the left that hold tiles. More than 82,500 pieces of shuttle debris have been rcovered.

May 4, 2003. Expedition Six Commander Ken Bowersox (L), NASA ISS Science Officer Don Pettit (C) and Flight Engineer Nikolai Budarin (R) celebrate their mission onboard an aircraft flight from Kazakhstan to Moscow. Photo Credit: "NASA/Bill Ingalls"

ISS006-E-45812 (14 April 2003) --- Attired in their Russian Sokol suits, the Expedition Six crewmembers pose for a crew photo in the Zvezda Service Module on the International Space Station (ISS). From the left are astronaut Donald R. Pettit, NASA ISS science officer; cosmonaut Nikolai M. Budarin, flight engineer; and astronaut Kenneth D. Bowersox, mission commander. The crewmembers are making preparations for their return flight home scheduled for May 3, 2003. Budarin represents Rosaviakosmos.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - At Launch Complex 17-B, Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, a final view of the Mars Exploration Rover-1 (MER-B) is captured before it is encapsulated into its spacecraft fairing for launch. The second of twin rovers being sent to Mars, it is equipped with a robotic arm, a drilling tool, three spectrometers, and four pairs of cameras that allow it to have a human-like, 3D view of the terrain. Each rover could travel as far as 100 meters in one day to act as Mars scientists' eyes and hands, exploring an environment where humans are not yet able to go. MER-B is scheduled to launch no earlier than June 28 at one of two available times, 11:56:16 p.m. EDT or 12:37:59 a.m. EDT.

JSC2003-E-40266 (30 May 2003) --- The International Space Station U.S. Node 2 module is hoisted into an Airbus Beluga heavy-lift aircraft. The aircraft departed May 30 from Turin, Italy and arrived at the Kennedy Space Center June 1 with Node 2. Under contract of the Italian Space Agency (ASI), Alenia Spazio led a consortium of European sub-contractors to build Node 2. The module was built for NASA under a barter agreement with the European Space Agency (ESA) in exchange for the launch of the European Columbus Laboratory by the space shuttle to the International Space Station. Node 2 will provide a passageway between four International Space Station science experiment modules: the U.S. Destiny Laboratory, the Kibo Japanese Experiment Module, the European Columbus Laboratory and the Centrifuge Accommodation Module. The addition of Node 2 to the station will signify the U.S. Core Complete stage of assembly, at which time the station can support the addition of international laboratories from Europe and Japan. Photo Credit: Italian Space Agency (ASI)

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - In the Orbiter Processing Facility, STS-114 crew members look at the reinforced carbon-carbon panels on the wing of Atlantis. From top to bottom are Commander Eileen Collins and Mission Specialists Charles Camarda and Andrew Thomas. The STS-114 crew is at KSC to take part in crew equipment and orbiter familiarization.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - The second stage of a Delta II rocket is raised to a vertical position and prepared for its lift up the launch tower on Pad 17-B, Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. It will be mated to the Delta first stage already at the pad in preparation for the launch of the Mars Exploration Rover-1 (MER-B) on June 25. NASA’s twin Mars Exploration Rovers are designed to study the history of water on Mars. These robotic geologists are equipped with a robotic arm, a drilling tool, three spectrometers, and four pairs of cameras that allow them to have a human-like, 3D view of the terrain. Each rover could travel as far as 100 meters in one day to act as Mars scientists' eyes and hands, exploring an environment where humans are not yet able to go. The launch of MER-2 (MER-A) is tentatively set for June 8.

NASA's Space Infrared Telescope Facility (SIRTF) lifts off from Launch Pad 17-B, Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, on Aug. 25 at 1:35:39 a.m. EDT. SIRTF will obtain images and spectra by detecting the infrared energy, or heat, radiated by objects in space. Consisting of a 0.85-meter telescope and three cryogenically cooled science instruments, SIRTF will be the largest infrared telescope ever launched into space. It is the fourth and final element in NASA’s family of orbiting “Great Observatories.” Its highly sensitive instruments will give a unique view of the Universe and peer into regions of space that are hidden from optical telescopes.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- The L-1011 aircraft waits on Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Fla., with its cargo, the Pegasus XL and Solar Radiation and Climate Experiment (SORCE), attached underneath. . The L-1011 will carry the Pegasus to the launch altitude of 39,000 feet over the Atlantic Ocean approximately 100 miles east-southeast of Cape Canaveral. SORCE, built by Orbital Sciences Corporation, will study and measure solar irradiance as a source of energy in the Earth's atmosphere. The launch of SORCE is scheduled for Jan. 25 at 3:14 p.m. from CCAFS.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - At a luncheon celebrating Native American Heritage Month held at the Patrick Air Force Base NCO Club, astronaut John Herrington speaks to invited guests. Herrington is a tribally enrolled Chickasaw and the world’s first Native American astronaut, who last flew on mission STS-113 in 2002.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - STS-114 Commander Eileen Collins looks over the windshield in Atlantis. She and other crew members are at KSC to take part in Crew Equipment Interface Test activities, which include checking out the payload and orbiter. STS-114 is a utilization and logistics flight (ULF-1) that will carry Multi-Purpose Logistics Module Raffaello and the External Stowage Platform (ESP-2), as well as the Expedition 7 crew, to the International Space Station. Launch is targeted for March 1, 2003.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - Astronaut Soichi Noguchi, with the National Space Development Agency of Japan (NASDA), is inside the Japanese Experiment Module (JEM), undergoing a Multi-Element Integrated Test (MEIT) in the Space Station Processing Facility. Noguchi is assigned to mission STS-114 as a mission specialist. Node 2 attaches to the end of the U.S. Lab on the ISS and provides attach locations for the Japanese laboratory, European laboratory, the Centrifuge Accommodation Module and, eventually, Multipurpose Logistics Modules. It will provide the primary docking location for the Shuttle when a pressurized mating adapter is attached to Node 2. Installation of the module will complete the U.S. Core of the ISS. The JEM, developed by NASDA, is Japan's primary contribution to the Station. It will enhance the unique research capabilities of the orbiting complex by providing an additional environment for astronauts to conduct science experiments.

Expedition 8 Commander and NASA Science Officer Michael Foale, left, is briefed by a technician inside the Soyuz TMA-3 vehicle in a processing facility at the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan on Monday, Oct. 13, 2003 during an inspection of the spacecraft. Photo Credit (NASA/Bill Ingalls)

Layered Yardangs in Henry Crater

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - Inside the hangar at Vandenberg Air Force Base, Calif., workers wait for the Pegasus launch vehicle to be moved inside. The Pegasus will carry the SciSat-1 spacecraft in a 400-mile-high polar orbit to investigate processes that control the distribution of ozone in the upper atmosphere. The scientific mission of SciSat-1 is to measure and understand the chemical processes that control the distribution of ozone in the Earth’s atmosphere, particularly at high altitudes. The data from the satellite will provide Canadian and international scientists with improved measurements relating to global ozone processes and help policymakers assess existing environmental policy and develop protective measures for improving the health of our atmosphere, preventing further ozone depletion. The mission is designed to last two years.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - The container with the Japanese Experiment Module (JEM)’s pressurized module is inside the Space Station Processing Facility. The National Space Development Agency of Japan (NASDA) developed the laboratory at the Tsukuba Space Center near Tokyo. The Pressurized Module is the first element of the JEM, named "Kibo" (Hope), to be delivered to KSC. The JEM is Japan's primary contribution to the Station. It will enhance the unique research capabilities of the orbiting complex by providing an additional environment for astronauts to conduct science experiments. The JEM also includes an exposed facility (platform) for space environment experiments, a robotic manipulator system, and two logistics modules. The various JEM components will be assembled in space over the course of three Shuttle missions.

This gamma ray spectrometer map of the mid-latitude region of Mars is based on gamma-rays from the element silicon. Silicon is one of the most abundant elements on the surface of both Mars and Earth (second only to oxygen). The most extensive region of highest silicon content, shown in red, is located in the high latitudes north of Tharsis (centered near 45 degrees latitude, -120 degrees longitude). The area of lowest silicon content, shown in blue, lies just to the east of the Hellas Basin (-45 degrees latitude, 90 degrees longitude). Contours of constant surface elevation are also shown. The long continuous contour line running from east to west marks the approximate separation of the younger lowlands in the north from the older highlands in the south. http://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA04256

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - The Mars Exploration Rover 1 (MER-B) is moved out of the Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility for transfer to Launch Pad 17-B, Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. The second of twin rovers being sent to Mars, it is equipped with a robotic arm, a drilling tool, three spectrometers, and four pairs of cameras that allow it to have a human-like, 3D view of the terrain. Each rover could travel as far as 100 meters in one day to act as Mars scientists' eyes and hands, exploring an environment where humans can't yet go. MER-B is scheduled to launch June 26 at one of two available times, 12:27:31 a.m. EDT or 1:08:45 a.m. EDT.

May 4, 2003, Astana, Kazakhstan. Expedition Six Commander Ken Bowersox (C), Flight Engineer Nikolai Budarin (L) and NASA ISS Science Officer Don Pettit (not pictured) are welcomed to Kazakhstan by Cosmonaut Talgat Musabayev. The Expedition Six Soyuz capsule landed in Kazakhstan. Photo Credit: "NASA/Bill Ingalls"

VANDENBERG AIR FORCE BASE, CALIF. - The L-1011 carrier aircraft is in flight with its cargo of the Pegasus launch vehicle and SciSat-1 spacecraft underneath. The SciSat-1 weighs approximately 330 pounds and after launch will be placed in a 400-mile-high polar orbit to investigate processes that control the distribution of ozone in the upper atmosphere. The data from the satellite will provide Canadian and international scientists with improved measurements relating to global ozone processes and help policymakers assess existing environmental policy and develop protective measures for improving the health of our atmosphere, preventing further ozone depletion. The mission is designed to last two years.

JSC2003-E-40245 (28 May 2003) --- The International Space Station Node 2 module is lowered into an environmentally controlled container in preparation for its transportation to the United States. An Airbus Beluga heavy-lift aircraft carrying Node 2 departed May 30 from Turin, Italy where the Italian Space Agency's (ASI) contractor, Alenia Spazio, leading a consortium of European companies, built it. The module was built for NASA under a barter agreement with the European Space Agency (ESA) in exchange for the launch of the European Columbus Laboratory by the space shuttle to the International Space Station. Node 2 will provide a passageway between four International Space Station science experiment modules: the U.S. Destiny Laboratory, the Kibo Japanese Experiment Module, the European Columbus Laboratory and the Centrifuge Accommodation Module. The addition of Node 2 to the station will signify the U.S. Core Complete stage of assembly, at which time the station can support the addition of international laboratories from Europe and Japan. Photo Credit: NASA

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - STS-118 Commander Scott Kelly holds a camera during training in the Space Station Processing Facility. He and other crew members are at KSC to become familiar with equipment for their mission. The mission will be delivering the third starboard truss segment, the ITS S5, to the International Space Station, and a SPACEHAB Single Cargo Module with supplies and equipment. Launch date is under review.

VANDENBERG AIR FORCE BASE, CALIF. - The SciSat-1 payload and Pegasus launch vehicle are lifted and mated to the L-1011 carrier aircraft. The SciSat-1 weighs approximately 330 pounds and after launch will be placed in a 400-mile-high polar orbit to investigate processes that control the distribution of ozone in the upper atmosphere. The data from the satellite will provide Canadian and international scientists with improved measurements relating to global ozone processes and help policymakers assess existing environmental policy and develop protective measures for improving the health of our atmosphere, preventing further ozone depletion. The mission is designed to last two years.

ISS007-E-10960 (27 July 2003) --- Alexandria, Egypt, is featured in this image photographed by an Expedition 7 crewmember on the International Space Station (ISS). Founded by Alexander the Great in 331 BC on the Mediterranean coast of Egypt, Alexandria became a center of trade and learning in the ancient world. Alexander built the causeway between the Eastern and Western Harbors, joining Pharos Island to the mainland. Alexandria’s cultural status was symbolized by the lighthouse on Pharos, one of the “Seven Wonders of the World.” The causeway is still known as the old part of the modern city. Since the year 2000, underwater archeologists have located the sunken palace, ceremonial buildings and port facilities of ancient Alexandria, located along most of the curved southern shoreline of the Eastern Harbor. This detailed image provides a view of the modern port facilities in the Western Harbor, where wharves and many moored ships can be detected.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - The transporter rolls out of Port Canaveral with the Pressurized Module of the Japanese Experiment Module (JEM) aboard. The National Space Development Agency of Japan (NASDA) developed the laboratory at the Tsukuba Space Center near Tokyo. The Pressurized Module is the first element of the JEM, named "Kibo" (Hope), to be delivered to KSC, and will be transferred to KSC’s Space Station Processing Facility. The JEM is Japan's primary contribution to the Station. It will enhance the unique research capabilities of the orbiting complex by providing an additional environment for astronauts to conduct science experiments. The JEM also includes an exposed facility (platform) for space environment experiments, a robotic manipulator system, and two logistics modules. The various JEM components will be assembled in space over the course of three Shuttle missions.

NASA Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter dips into the thin martian atmosphere to adjust its orbit in this artist concept illustration.

Hubble measured the size, shape and rotational period of the Rosetta mission backup target, comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko 67P/C-G.

Gullied Crater Wall

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - Workers in NASA Spacecraft Hangar AE check the placement of the Space Infrared Telescope Facility (SIRTF), which has been returned to the hangar from the launch pad for further processing. SIRTF will remain in the clean room until it returns to the pad in early August. One of NASA's largest infrared telescopes to be launched, SIRTF will obtain images and spectra by detecting the infrared energy, or heat, radiated by objects in space.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- This view inside the RLV Hangar at KSC shows the placement on the floor of some of the debris from Columbia. Workers are attempting to reconstruct the orbiter inside the hangar as part of the ongoing investigation into the tragic accident that claimed Columbia and her crew of seven returning from mission STS-107.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - This view from the mobile service tower on Launch Complex 17-B, Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, shows two solid rocket boosters (SRBs) already suspended in the tower while another is being lifted. They are three of nine 46-inch-diameter, stretched SRBs that are being attached to the Delta II Heavy rocket that will launch the Space Infrared Telescope Facility (SIRTF). Consisting of three cryogenically cooled science instruments and an 0.85-meter telescope, SIRTF is one of NASA's largest infrared telescopes to be launched. SIRTF will obtain images and spectra by detecting the infrared energy, or heat, radiated by objects in space. Most of this infrared radiation is blocked by the Earth's atmosphere and cannot be observed from the ground.

In the Destiny laboratory aboard the International Space Station (ISS), European Space Agency (ESA) astronaut Pedro Duque of Spain is seen working at the Microgravity Science Glovebox (MSG). He is working with the PROMISS experiment, which will investigate the growth processes of proteins during weightless conditions. The PROMISS is one of the Cervantes program of tests (consisting of 20 commercial experiments). The MSG is managed by NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC).

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- Columbia Reconstruction Project Team members move debris from the Space Shuttle Columbia into a designated sector of the RLV Hangar. The debris is being shipped to KSC from the collection point at Barksdale Air Force Base, Shreveport, La. As part of the ongoing investigation into the tragic accident that claimed Columbia and her crew of seven, workers will attempt to reconstruct the orbiter inside the hangar.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - At Vandenberg Air Force Base, Calif., the Pegasus launch vehicle is moved toward its hangar. The Pegasus will carry the SciSat-1 spacecraft in a 400-mile-high polar orbit to investigate processes that control the distribution of ozone in the upper atmosphere. The scientific mission of SciSat-1 is to measure and understand the chemical processes that control the distribution of ozone in the Earth’s atmosphere, particularly at high altitudes. The data from the satellite will provide Canadian and international scientists with improved measurements relating to global ozone processes and help policymakers assess existing environmental policy and develop protective measures for improving the health of our atmosphere, preventing further ozone depletion. The mission is designed to last two years.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - Workers on Launch Pad 17-B, Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, complete mating of the Mars Exploration Rover 1 (MER-B), above, to the Delta rocket below. The second of twin rovers being sent to Mars, it is equipped with a robotic arm, a drilling tool, three spectrometers, and four pairs of cameras that allow it to have a human-like, 3D view of the terrain. Each rover could travel as far as 100 meters in one day to act as Mars scientists' eyes and hands, exploring an environment where humans can't yet go. MER-B is scheduled to launch June 26 at one of two available times, 12:27:31 a.m. EDT or 1:08:45 a.m. EDT.

On Earth when scientists melt metals, bubbles that form in the molten material can rise to the surface, pop and disappear. In microgravity -- the near-weightless environment created as the International Space Station orbits Earth -- the lighter bubbles do not rise and disappear. Prior space experiments have shown that bubbles often become trapped in the final metal or crystal sample -similar to the bubbles trapped in this sample. In the solid, these bubbles, or porosity, are defects that diminish both the material's strength and usefulness. The Pore Formation and Mobility Investigation will melt samples of a transparent modeling material, succinonitrile and succinonitrile water mixtures, shown here in an ampoule being examined by Dr. Richard Grugel, the principal investigator for the experiment at NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala. As the samples are processed in space, Grugel will be able to observe how bubbles form in the samples and study their movements and interactions.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- A twisting column of smoke points the way to Space Shuttle Columbia at its tip as the Shuttle hurtles toward space on mission STS-107. Following a flawless and uneventful countdown, liftoff occurred on-time at 10:39 a.m. EST. The 16-day research mission will include FREESTAR (Fast Reaction Experiments Enabling Science, Technology, Applications and Research) and the SHI Research Double Module (SHI/RDM), known as SPACEHAB. Experiments on the module range from material sciences to life sciences. Landing is scheduled at about 8:53 a.m. EST on Saturday, Feb. 1. This mission is the first Shuttle mission of 2003. Mission STS-107 is the 28th flight of the orbiter Columbia and the 113th flight overall in NASA's Space Shuttle program.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - Workers in Building AE prepare the Space Infrared Telescope Facility (SIRTF), in the background, for buildup of the payload canister. SIRTF will be mated with the Delta II launch vehicle via the payload attach fitting at the bottom. SIRTF is currently scheduled for transportation to Launch Complex 17-B, Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, and hoisting atop the Delta II on or about April 4.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - Workers in the Orbiter Processing Facility insert the liquid oxygen feedline for the 17-inch disconnect in the orbiter Discovery. The 17-inch liquid oxygen and liquid hydrogen disconnects provide the propellant feed interface from the external tank to the orbiter main propulsion system and the three Shuttle main engines.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - STS-115 Mission Specialist Joseph Tanner checks out a camera for the Japanese Experiment Module (JEM) in the Space Station Processing Facility. Known as Kibo, the JEM consists of six components: two research facilities -- the Pressurized Module and the Exposed Facility; a Logistics Module attached to each of them; a Remote Manipulator System; and an Inter-Orbit Communication System unit. Kibo also has a scientific airlock through which experiments are transferred and exposed to the external environment of space. The various components of JEM will be assembled in space over the course of three Space Shuttle missions. Equipment familiarization is a routine part of astronaut training and launch preparations.

In the spacecraft processing facility on North Vandenberg Air Force Base, workers conduct battery charge/discharge cycles as part of the battery conditioning process on Gravity Probe B. The Gravity Probe B will launch a payload of four gyroscopes into low-Earth polar orbit to test two extraordinary predictions of Albert Einstein’s general theory of relativity: the geodetic effect (how space and time are warped by the presence of the Earth) and frame dragging (how Earth’s rotation drags space and time around with it). Once in orbit, for 18 months each gyroscope’s spin axis will be monitored as it travels through local spacetime, observing and measuring these effects. The experiment was developed by Stanford University, Lockheed Martin and NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center.

Hematite Outlier and Sand Dunes

JSC2003-E-37463 (21 May 2003) --- General Jefferson D. Howell, Jr. (second left), Johnson Space Center (JSC) Director, and the Expedition 6 crewmembers pose for a photo following the crew arrival at Ellington Field, near JSC. The crewmembers are, from the left, astronauts Kenneth D. Bowersox, mission commander; Donald R. Pettit, NASA ISS science officer; and cosmonaut Nikolai M. Budarin, flight engineer representing Rosaviakosmos.

ISS007-E-08251 (25 June 2003) --- This photo featuring the San Francisco Bay area in California was photographed from the International Space Station (ISS) by astronaut Edward T. Lu, Expedition 7 NASA ISS science officer and flight engineer. The San Francisco Bay Bridge, Alcatraz Island, Golden Gate Bridge, and Golden Gate Park are visible at upper right. Stanford University and red salt ponds on the bay near Fremont at lower left.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- Workers look at a piece of the Columbia debris ready to be moved into the RLV Hangar near the Shuttle Landing Facility. Truckloads of the debris arrived from the collection point at Barksdale Air Force Base, Shreveport, La. The workers will attempt to reconstruct the orbiter as part of the ongoing investigation of the accident that destroyed the Columbia and claimed the lives of seven astronauts as they returned to Earth after a 16-day research mission, STS-107.

ISS007-E-05741 (19 May 2003) --- Yuri Malenchenko, Expedition Seven commander, prepares to use a window on the Zvezda service module for Earth observation purposes. Malenchenko represents Rosaviakosmos.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - The NASA/Kennedy Space Center-sponsored student team (in pink wigs) is congratulated by the judges of the 2003 Southeastern Regional FIRST Robotic Competition. The competition is being held at the University of Central Florida (UCF) in Orlando, March 20-23. The team won awards for Regional Finalist 2, GM Industrial Design and the Imagery Award. Forty student teams from around the country are participating in the event that pits team-built gladiator robots against each other in an athletic-style competition. The teams are sponsored by NASA/Kennedy Space Center, The Boeing Company/Brevard Community College, and Lockheed Martin Space Operations/Mission Systems for the nonprofit organization For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology, known as FIRST. The vision of FIRST is to inspire in the youth of our nation an appreciation of science and technology and an understanding that mastering these disciplines can enrich the lives of all mankind.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - Mike Leinbach talks to the Columbia Reconstruction Project team before arrival of the final shipment of Columbia debris. The recovery efforts have been concluded in East Texas. Prior to this final shipment, the total number of items at KSC is 82,567, weighing 84,800 pounds or 38 percent of the total dry weight of Columbia. Of those items, 78,760 have been identified, with 753 placed on the left wing grid in the RLV Hangar.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - With smoke and steam billowing beneath, the Delta II rocket with its Mars Exploration Rover (MER-A) payload leaps off the launch pad into the blue sky to begin its journey to Mars. Liftoff occurred on time at 1:58 p.m. EDT from Launch Complex 17-A, Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. MER-A, known as "Spirit," is the first of two rovers being launched to Mars. When the two rovers arrive at the red planet in 2004, they will bounce to airbag-cushioned landings at sites offering a balance of favorable conditions for safe landings and interesting science. The rovers see sharper images, can explore farther and examine rocks better than anything that has ever landed on Mars. The designated site for the MER-A mission is Gusev Crater, which appears to have been a crater lake. The second rover, MER-B, is scheduled to launch June 25.

Defrosting Scene

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - The camera installed on the aft skirt of a solid rocket booster is seen here, framed by the railing. The installation is in preparation for a vibration test of the Mobile Launcher Platform with SRBs and external tank mounted. The MLP will roll from one bay to another in the Vehicle Assembly Building.

A booster rocket arrives at Launch Complex 17-B, Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. It is one of nine solid rocket boosters being erected and mated to the Delta II rocket for launch of the Space Infrared Telescope Facility. The second stage will later be hoisted atop the first stage. SIRTF will obtain images and spectra by detecting the infrared energy, or heat, radiated by objects in space. Most of this infrared radiation is blocked by the Earth's atmosphere and cannot be observed from the ground. Consisting of an 0.85-meter telescope and three cryogenically cooled science instruments, SIRTF is one of NASA's largest infrared telescopes to be launched. SIRTF is scheduled for launch April 15 at 4:34:07 a.m. EDT.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - Workers in the Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility release the overhead crane used to lower the Mars Exploration Rover 2 (MER-2) onto the base petal of the lander. Set to launch in Spring 2003, the MER Mission consists of two identical rovers. Landing at different regions of Mars, they are designed to cover roughly 110 yards each Martian day over various terrain. Each rover will carry five scientific instruments that will allow it to search for evidence of liquid water that may have been present in the planet's past. The first rover has a launch window opening May 30, and the second rover a window opening June 25.

JSC2003-E-31752 (31 Jan. 2003) --- Astronaut Christer Fuglesang, mission specialist representing the European Space Agency (ESA)

In the Multi-Payload Processing Facility, the Pegasus XL launch vehicle is in position for mating of the Galaxy Evolution Explorer (GALEX) satellite. The GALEX, set to launch April 2 from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, will carry into space an orbiting telescope that will observe a million galaxies across 10 billion years of cosmic history to help astronomers determine when the stars and elements we see today had their origins. The spacecraft will sweep the skies for 28 months using state-of-the-art ultraviolet detectors to single out galaxies dominated by young, hot, short-lived stars that give off a great deal of energy at that wavelength. These galaxies are actively creating stars, and therefore provide a window into the history and causes of star formation in galaxies.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- Members of the Columbia Accident Investigation Board are in the Orbiter Processing Facility to look over Space Shuttle Endeavour. In the center (gesturing) is the chairman, Retired Navy Adm. Harold Gehman Jr. The board is visiting sites at KSC to become familiar with the Shuttle launch process and elements. The independent board is charged with determining what caused the destruction of the Space Shuttle Columbia and the loss of its seven-member crew on Feb. 1 during reentry.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - In the Space Station Processing Facility, STS-117 Mission Specialist James Reilly (left) and STS-115 Mission Specialist Joseph Tanner (right) look over the Japanese Experiment Module (JEM). Equipment familiarization is a routine part of astronaut training and launch preparations.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - A view of the Space Station Processing Facility shows workstands and ISS elements. The most recent additions are the Japanese Experiment Module (JEM)’s pressurized module and the Italian-built Node 2. The pressurized module is the first element of the JEM, Japan’s primary contribution to the Space Station, to be delivered to KSC. It will enhance the unique research capabilities of the orbiting complex by providing an additional shirt-sleeve environment for astronauts to conduct science experiments. Node 2 will be installed on the end of the U.S. Lab and provides attach locations for the Japanese laboratory, European laboratory, the Centrifuge Accommodation Module and, later, Multipurpose Logistics Modules. It will provide the primary docking location for the Shuttle when a pressurized mating adapter is attached to Node 2. Installation of the module will complete the U.S. Core of the ISS.

Freedom crater, located in Acidalia Planitia, exhibits a concentric ring pattern in its interior as seen in this image from NASA Mars Odyssey spacecraft, suggesting that there has been some movement of these materials towards the center of the crater.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - At Launch Complex 17-A, Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, the Mars Exploration Rover 2 (MER-2) is ready for installation of the fairing that will enclose it for launch. It is seen here already mated to the second stage of the Delta II rocket. MER-2 is one of NASA's twin Mars Exploration Rovers designed to study the history of water on Mars. These robotic geologists are equipped with a robotic arm, a drilling tool, three spectrometers, and four pairs of cameras that allow them to have a human-like, 3D view of the terrain. Each rover could travel as far as 100 meters in one day to act as Mars scientists' eyes and hands, exploring an environment where humans can't yet go. MER-2 is scheduled to launch no earlier than June 8 as MER-A, with two launch opportunities each day during the launch period that closes on June 19.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - A roseate spoonbill flies across the water near KSC. Spoonbills prefer to inhabit mangroves, ranging from the coasts of southern Florida, Louisiana and Texas, to the West Indies, Mexico, Central and South America. They feed on shrimps and fish in shallow waters. Spoonbills are one of 310 species of birds that inhabit the National Merritt Island Wildlife Refuge, which shares a boundary with KSC. The marshes and open water of the refuge also provide wintering areas for 23 species of migratory waterfowl, as well as a year-round home for great blue herons, great egrets, wood storks, cormorants, brown pelicans and other species of marsh and shore birds.

This photo (a frontal view) is of one of many segments of the Eastman-Kodak mirror assembly being tested for the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) project at the X-Ray Calibration Facility at Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC). MSFC is supporting Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC) in developing the JWST by taking numerous measurements to predict its future performance. The tests are conducted in a vacuum chamber cooled to approximate the super cold temperatures found in space. During its 27 years of operation, the facility has performed testing in support of a wide array of projects, including the Hubble Space Telescope (HST), Solar A, Chandra technology development, Chandra High Resolution Mirror Assembly and science instruments, Constellation X-Ray Mission, and Solar X-Ray Imager, currently operating on a Geostationary Operational Environment Satellite. The JWST is NASA's next generation space telescope, a successor to the Hubble Space Telescope, named in honor of NASA's second administrator, James E. Webb. It is scheduled for launch in 2010 aboard an expendable launch vehicle. It will take about 3 months for the spacecraft to reach its destination, an orbit of 940,000 miles in space.

VANDENBERG AFB, CALIF. - The interstage of the Delta II launch vehicle for the Gravity Probe B experiment is prepared for lifting up the mobile service tower on Space Launch Complex 2, Vandenberg Air Force Base, Calif. It will enclose the second stage. The Gravity Probe B will launch a payload of four gyroscopes into low-Earth polar orbit to test two extraordinary predictions of Albert Einstein’s general theory of relativity: the geodetic effect (how space and time are warped by the presence of the Earth) and frame dragging (how Earth’s rotation drags space and time around with it). Once in orbit, for 18 months each gyroscope’s spin axis will be monitored as it travels through local spacetime, observing and measuring these effects. The experiment was developed by Stanford University, Lockheed Martin and NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center. The targeted launch date is Dec. 6, 2003.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - STS-118 Mission Specialists Dafydd Williams (left) and Scott Parazynski (center) look at equipment during training in the Space Station Processing Facility. They and other crew members are at KSC to become familiar with equipment for their mission. The mission will be delivering the third starboard truss segment, the ITS S5, to the International Space Station, and a SPACEHAB Single Cargo Module with supplies and equipment. Launch date is under review.

Expedition 8 Commander and NASA Science Officer Michael Foale, seated left, looks at Expedition 8 Soyuz Commander Alexander Kaleri as he makes an adjustment while suiting up, Saturday, Oct. 18, 2003, at the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan prior to their departure for the launch pad with European Space Agency astronaut Pedro Duque. The trio were launched on a Soyuz TMA-3 vehicle to the International Space Station, arriving on Oct. 20. Photo Credit (NASA/Bill Ingalls)

Victor Grin, a member of the Russian State Commission, left, greets Expedition 8 Commander Michael Foale, far right, Expedition 8 Soyuz Commander and Flight Engineer Alexander Kaleri and European Space Agency astronaut Pedro Duque of Spain, right, Sunday, Oct. 12, 2003, upon their arrival in Baikonur, Kazakhstan for the Oct. 18 launch of a Soyuz rocket to the International Space Station. Photo Credit (NASA/Bill Ingalls)

Erosion of the interior layered deposits of Melas Chasma, part of the huge Valles Marineris canyon system, has produced cliffs with examples of spur and gulley morphology and exposures of finely layered sediments, as seen in this NASA Mars Odyssey image.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, Fla. - Mars Exploration Rover-1 is ready for prelaunch testing including deployment of the lander petals, the rover's solar arrays, camera mast and camera. While at KSC, each of the rovers, their aeroshells and landers will undergo a full mission simulation. After spin balance testing, each spacecraft will be mated to a solid propellant upper stage booster that will propel the spacecraft out of Earth orbit. Approximately 10 days before launch they will be transported to the launch pad for mating with their respective Boeing Delta II rockets. The rovers will serve as robotic geologists to seek answers about the evolution of Mars, particularly for a history of water. The rovers are identical to each other, and will land at different regions of Mars. Launch of the MER-1 is scheduled for May 30. MER-2 will follow June 25.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - (From left) Brian Duffy, Lockheed Martin vice president/associate program manager, Mildred Carter and Col. (Ret.) Herbert E. Carter, one of the Tuskegee Airmen, attend a dinner sponsored by the KSC Spaceflight and Life Sciences Office. Col. Carter was a guest speaker at the dinner.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - In the Columbia Debris Hangar, Shuttle Launch Director Mike Leinbach points to some of the debris as he explains to the media about activities that have taken place since the Columbia accident on Feb. 1, 2003. STS-107 debris recovery and reconstruction operations are winding down. To date, nearly 84,000 pieces of debris have been recovered and sent to KSC. That represents about 38 percent of the dry weight of Columbia, equaling almost 85,000 pounds.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, Fla. - The Galaxy Evolution Explorer (GALEX) spacecraft is lowered toward a work stand. Foreign object debris shields will be installed before its launch. The GALEX is an orbiting space telescope that will observe galaxies in ultraviolet light across 10 billion years of cosmic history. During its 29-month mission GALEX will produce the first comprehensive map of a Universe of galaxies under construction, bringing more understanding how galaxies like the Milky Way were formed. The GALEX launch date is under review.

JSC2001-E-25123 (16 August 2001) --- Astronauts Joseph R. Tanner (left) and Steve MacLean, both STS-105 spacecraft communicators (CAPCOM), discuss the progress of the extravehicular activity at their consoles in the shuttle flight control room (WFCR) in Houston’s Mission Control Center (MCC). At the time this photo was taken, mission specialists Daniel T. Barry and Patrick G. Forrester were performing the first of two scheduled space walks during Discovery’s voyage to the International Space Station (ISS). MacLean represents the Canadian Space Agency.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- In the Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility, the lander petals and attached airbags of the Mars Exploration Rover 2 (MER-2) are closed around the spacecraft during testing prior to launch. The MER Mission consists of two identical rovers set to launch in Spring 2003. Landing at different regions of Mars, they are designed to cover roughly 110 yards each Martian day over various terrain. Each rover will carry five scientific instruments that will allow it to search for evidence of liquid water that may have been present in the planet's past.

Polar Sand Dunes

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - A convoy accompanies the truck transporting the Pressurized Module of the Japanese Experiment Module (JEM) to KSC’s Space Station Processing Facility. The National Space Development Agency of Japan (NASDA) developed the laboratory at the Tsukuba Space Center near Tokyo. The Pressurized Module is the first element of the JEM, named "Kibo" (Hope), to be delivered to KSC. The JEM is Japan's primary contribution to the Station. It will enhance the unique research capabilities of the orbiting complex by providing an additional environment for astronauts to conduct science experiments. The JEM also includes an exposed facility (platform) for space environment experiments, a robotic manipulator system, and two logistics modules. The various JEM components will be assembled in space over the course of three Shuttle missions.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- In the Vehicle Assembly Building, the Columbia Accident Investigation Board looks at the nose of Space Shuttle Atlantis. The board is visiting sites at KSC to become familiar with the Shuttle launch process and elements. The independent board is charged with determining what caused the destruction of the Space Shuttle Columbia and the loss of its seven-member crew on Feb. 1 during reentry.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - In the Orbiter Processing Facility, KSC employee Chris Moore repairs tile on the forward area of the orbiter Discovery. The vehicle has undergone Orbiter Major Modifications in the past year, which includes tile check and repair. The tiles are part of the Orbiter Thermal Protection System, thermal shields to protect against temperatures as high as 3,000° Fahrenheit, which are produced during descent for landing. Discovery is scheduled to fly on mission STS-121 to the International Space Station.

A new, world-class laboratory for research into future space transportation technologies is under construction at the Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC) in Huntsville, AL. The state-of-the-art Propulsion Research Laboratory will serve as a leading national resource for advanced space propulsion research. Its purpose is to conduct research that will lead to the creation and development of irnovative propulsion technologies for space exploration. The facility will be the epicenter of the effort to move the U.S. space program beyond the confines of conventional chemical propulsion into an era of greatly improved access to space and rapid transit throughout the solar system. The Laboratory is designed to accommodate researchers from across the United States, including scientists and engineers from NASA, the Department of Defense, the Department of Energy, universities, and industry. The facility, with 66,000 square feet of useable laboratory space, will feature a high degree of experimental capability. Its flexibility will allow it to address a broad range of propulsion technologies and concepts, such as plasma, electromagnetic, thermodynamic, and propellantless propulsion. An important area of emphasis will be development and utilization of advanced energy sources, including highly energetic chemical reactions, solar energy, and processes based on fission, fusion, and antimatter. The Propulsion Research Laboratory is vital for developing the advanced propulsion technologies needed to open up the space frontier, and will set the stage of research that could revolutionize space transportation for a broad range of applications. This photo depicts construction workers taking part in a tree topping ceremony as the the final height of the laboratory is framed. The ceremony is an old German custom of paying homage to the trees that gave their lives in preparation of the building site.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - Workers in the Orbiter Processing Facility get ready to lift and install the rear body flap on orbiter Discovery. The body flap, which is temporarily under protective covering, attaches below the main engines.