KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - The Space Infrared Telescope Facility (SIRTF) has been returned to NASA Spacecraft Hangar AE from the launch pad. It 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. - Workers in NASA Spacecraft Hangar AE prepare to remove the canister from around the Space Infrared Telescope Facility (SIRTF), which has been returned to the hangar from the launch pad. 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.

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KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - Standing near Endeavour in the Orbiter Processing Facility are (left to right) Joy Huff, with KSC Space Shuttle Processing; Kathy Laufenberg, with United Space Alliance; Center Director Jim Kennedy; and Bruce Buckingham, assistant to Deputy Director Woodrow Whitlow Jr. Kennedy and Whitlow are touring the OPF, viewing the work being done on Endeavour, which is in its Orbiter Major Modification period.

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KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - In the Orbiter Processing Facility, STS-114 crew members look at the tiles underneath Atlantis. From left (in flight suits) are Mission Specialists Stephen Robinson and Andy Thomas, Commander Eileen Collins and, at right, Mission Specialist Soichi Noguchi, who is with the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, JAXA. Accompanying them is Glenda Laws, EVA Task Leader, with United Space Alliance at Johnson Space Center. The STS-114 crew is at KSC to take part in crew equipment and orbiter familiarization.

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KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - The rising sun and some scattered clouds provide a picturesque backdrop for the Space Shuttle Discovery as it travels along the crawlerway toward Launch Pad 39A in preparation for the STS-82 mission. The Shuttle is on a Mobile Launcher Platform, and the entire assemblage is being carried by a large, tracked vehicle called the crawler transporter. A seven-member crew will perform the second servicing of the orbiting Hubble Space Telescope (HST) during the 10-day STS-82 flight, whcih is targeted for a Feb. 11 liftoff.

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KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - KSC Director James W. Kennedy receives Consul General of Japan Ko Kodaira and his family in his office in Headquarters Building during their visit to Kennedy Space Center (KSC). From left are Kodaira's daughter Reiko, his wife Marie, Kodaira, and Kennedy. Kodaira is touring the facilities at KSC at the invitation of the local office of the National Space Development Agency of Japan (NASDA) to acquaint him with KSC's unique processing capabilities.

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KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - In the Space Station Processing Facility, Japanese astronaut Koichi Wakata looks over the Pressurized Module, or PM, part of the Japanese Experiment Module (JEM). The PM provides a shirt-sleeve environment in which astronauts on the International Space Station can conduct microgravity experiments. There are a total of 23 racks, including 10 experiment racks, inside the PM providing a power supply, communications, air conditioning, hardware cooling, water control and experiment support functions.

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KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - Members of the STS-114 crew look over Shuttle equipment in the Orbiter Processing Facility. In the foreground is Mission Specialist Wendy Lawrence, who is a new addition to the crew. Behind her are (left to right) Commander Eileen Collins and Mission Specialists Andy Thomas and Stephen Robinson. At the rear is Glenda Laws, EVA Task Leader, with United Space Alliance at Johnson Space Center. The STS-114 crew is at KSC to take part in crew equipment and orbiter familiarization.

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KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - Workers in NASA Spacecraft Hangar AE remove a portion of a transportation canister from around the Space Infrared Telescope Facility (SIRTF), which has been returned to the hangar from the launch pad. 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.

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KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - NASA Associate Administrator for Space Flight William F. Readdy participates in a press conference in KSC's Press Site Auditorium. The press conference followed the official announcement of James W. Kennedy as the next director of the NASA Kennedy Space Center (KSC) in Florida. Kennedy has served as KSC's deputy director since November 2002. He will succeed KSC Director Roy D. Bridges, who was appointed on June 13 to lead NASA's Langley Research Center, Hampton, Va.

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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.

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KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - In the Space Station Processing Facility, Japanese astronaut Koichi Wakata (top left) and technicians watch as a tray is extended from inside the Pressurized Module, or PM, part of the Japanese Experiment Module (JEM). The PM provides a shirt-sleeve environment in which astronauts on the International Space Station can conduct microgravity experiments. There are a total of 23 racks, including 10 experiment racks, inside the PM providing a power supply, communications, air conditioning, hardware cooling, water control and experiment support functions.

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KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - Workers in NASA Spacecraft Hangar AE prepare to begin further processing of the Space Infrared Telescope Facility (SIRTF), which has been returned to the hangar from the launch pad. Sections of the transportation canister used in the move are in the foreground. 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.

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KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - On a tour of the Orbiter Processing Facility, Center Director Jim Kennedy (left) listens to Kathy Laufenberg, Orbiter Airframe Engineering ground area manager, with United Space Alliance, about corrosion work being done on the external tank door of orbiter Endeavour. On either side of Laufenberg are Tom Roberts, Airframe Engineering System specialist, also with USA, and Joy Huff, with KSC Space Shuttle Processing. Endeavour is in its Orbiter Major Modification period, which began in December 2003.

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KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - NASA Associate Administrator for Space Flight William F. Readdy addresses a group of KSC employees assembled in the KSC Training Auditorium. The occasion is the announcement of James W. Kennedy as the next director of the NASA Kennedy Space Center (KSC) in Florida. Kennedy has served as KSC's deputy director since November 2002. He will succeed KSC Director Roy D. Bridges, who was appointed on June 13 to lead NASA's Langley Research Center, Hampton, Va.

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KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - Workers in NASA Spacecraft Hangar AE lift the protective cover from around the Space Infrared Telescope Facility (SIRTF), which has been returned to the hangar from the launch pad. 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.

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KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - Workers in NASA Spacecraft Hangar AE remove the protective cover from around the Space Infrared Telescope Facility (SIRTF), which has been returned to the hangar from the launch pad. 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.

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KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - The Japanese Experiment Module (JEM), named Kibo (Hope), is undergoing a Multi-Element Integrated Test (MEIT) in the Space Station Processing Facility. Developed by the National Space Development Agency of Japan (NASDA), 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.

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KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - Workers in KSC's Vertical Processing Facility make final adjustments to the Flight Support System (FSS) for STS-82, the second Hubble Space Telescope servicing mission. The FSS is reusable flight hardware that provides the mechanical, structural and electrical interfaces between HST, the space support equipment and the orbiter for payload retrieval and on-orbit servicing. Liftoff aboard Discovery is targeted Feb. 11 with a crew of seven.

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KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - Workers in NASA Spacecraft Hangar AE erect a ladder to reach the top of the Space Infrared Telescope Facility (SIRTF), which has been returned to the hangar from the launch pad. 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.

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KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - In the Orbiter Processing Facility, STS-114 crew members look at the tiles underneath Atlantis. From center, left to right (in uniform), are Pilot James Kelly, Mission Specialist Soichi Noguchi, Mission Specialists Wendy Lawrence and Stephen Robinson. Accompanying them at left Glenda Laws, EVA Task Leader, with United Space Alliance at Johnson Space Center. Noguchi is with the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, JAXA. The STS-114 crew is at KSC to take part in crew equipment and orbiter familiarization.

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KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - Executive Director of NASDA Koji Yamamoto (left) is welcomed to KSC by Center Director Roy Bridges Jr. (right). On the table between them is the logo of the new Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, a merger of three Japanese aeronautical and space agencies effective Oct.1, 2003. Mr. Yamamoto is at KSC for a welcome ceremony involving the arrival of the newest Space Station module, the Japanese Experiment Module/pressurized module. His visit includes a tour of the Columbia Debris Hangar.

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KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - In the NASA Spacecraft Hangar AE, the Space Infrared Telescope Facility (SIRTF), which has been returned to the hangar from the launch pad, is uncovered by workers following its arrival. 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.

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KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - Workers in NASA Spacecraft Hangar AE begin the next phase of processing of the Space Infrared Telescope Facility (SIRTF), which has been returned to the hangar from the launch pad. 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.

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KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - NASA officials brief the media at KSC about the agency’s human space flight program. At left is moderator Allard Beutel, with NASA Headquarters. Others on the panel (left to right) are NASA Deputy Administrator Fred Gregory, Associate Administrator for Space Flight Bill Readdy and Associate Administrator for Safety and Mission Assurance Bryan O’Connor.

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