KSC Release No. 66-00
The Canadian Space Agency’s (CSA) first contribution to the International Space Station, the 56-foot-long Space Station Remote Manipulator System (SSRMS) will be the subject of a media event and photo opportunity on Wednesday, Aug. 16. The SSRMS is the primary means of transferring payloads between the orbiter payload bay and the Station for assembly.
During the media event, the SSRMS will be hoisted from the floor of the Space Station Processing Facility (SSPF) into a test stand where it will be mated to its payload carrier. This pallet will later be installed into the payload bay of Space Shuttle Endeavour for launch on STS-100 in April 2001.
The SSRMS will be seen folded into its three segments. There are two Latching End Effectors for grappling, one effector mounted on each end of the arm. Seven joints are associated with the arm, which allow for highly flexible and precise movement.
When fully extended the arm comprises two booms, each with two 12-foot sections, joined by a hinge. Four video cameras with lights, two of which have a pan/tilt capability, are mounted on each of the booms and on the two end effectors. These cameras will give astronauts maximum visibility for operations and maintenance tasks on the ISS.
Media wishing to attend should be at the KSC News Center at 9 a.m. on Wednesday, Aug. 16, for transportation to the SSPF. Available to answer questions or for interviews will be Frank Foran, CSA manager for systems integration, validation, and verification, and Steve Mozes, manager of the CSA liaison office at KSC.
Note to Editors: Live views of this event will be available on the NASA-KSC Home Page at www.ksc.nasa.gov. Click on "Live Views of Space Station Processing" under the heading of Online Video Coverage. Still photographs will also be available on "Publishers Photo Corner," under the heading of Visit the KSC News Room.
