KSC-2009-4498

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. – At NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, STS-128 crew members get instructions about emergency exit procedures from the fixed service structure on Launch Pad 39A. In front is Commander Rick Sturckow. Seen behind him, at left are Mission Specialists Jose Fernandez (with sunglasses) and Christer Fuglesang, and at right, Mission Specialist Patrick Forrester and Pilot Kevin Ford. Fuglesang represents the European Space Agency. The crew is at Kennedy for a launch dress rehearsal called the terminal countdown demonstration test, or TCDT, which includes emergency exit training and equipment familiarization, as well as a simulated launch countdown. Discovery will deliver 33,000 pounds of equipment to the station, including science and storage racks, a freezer to store research samples, a new sleeping compartment and the COLBERT treadmill. Photo credit: NASA/Kim Shiflett