KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - In the Crawler Transporter (CT) area, a worker places another load of new crawler shoes on the ground. The new shoes were manufactured by ME Global in Duluth, Minn. The CT transports the Mobile Launcher Platform, with the assembled Space Shuttle aboard, between the refurbishment area, the VAB and Launch Complex Pads 39A and 39B. The crawlers have 456 shoes, 57 per belt (8 belts in all). Each shoe weighs 2,200 pounds. The original shoes were manufactured for the Apollo Program. Cracks appeared in the shoes in recent years spurring a need for replacement. The new manufacturer, in Duluth, Minn., has improved the design for Return to Flight and use through the balance of the Space Shuttle Program.
Location Kennedy Space Center, FL
Date October 15, 2004