Allard Beutel<br />Headquarters, Washington June 3, 2003<br />(Phone: 202/358-4769)<br /><br /><br />Bruce Buckingham<br />Kennedy Space Center, Fla.<br />(Phone: 321/867-2468)<br /><br /><br />Kylie Moritz<br />Johnson Space Center, Houston <br />(Phone: 281/483-5111)<br /><br /><br />RELEASE: 03-190<br /><br /><br />INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION MODULES ARRIVE AT KENNEDY SPACE <br />CENTER<br /><br /><br /> After traveling thousands of miles, two major components <br />of the International Space Station completed the first leg of <br />a journey that will eventually end 240 miles above the Earth. <br />NASA's Node 2, built for the agency by the European Space <br />Agency (ESA) in Italy, and the Pressurized Module of the <br />Japanese Experiment Module (JEM) arrived in Florida and are <br />being transported to the Kennedy Space Center (KSC) this <br />week.<br /><br /><br />"Delivery of these components, built in Europe and Japan, to <br />KSC for integrated testing prior to flight is yet another <br />indication of the significant global cooperation and <br />proactive planning required for successful operation of the <br />International Space Station program," said Bill Gerstenmaier, <br />NASA's Station Program Manager. "Their arrival in the United <br />States signifies the Space Station international partnership <br />is continuing to move forward with the steps necessary to <br />construct our unique research platform in space," he said.<br /><br /><br />The arrival of Node 2, the next pressurized module to be <br />installed on the Station, sets in motion the final steps <br />toward completing assembly of essential U.S. components. When <br />installed, Node 2 will increase the living and working space <br />inside the Space Station to approximately 18,000 cubic feet. <br />It will also allow the addition of international laboratories <br />from Europe and Japan. <br /><br /><br />The Pressurized Module is the first element of the JEM, named <br />"Kibo" (Hope), to be delivered to KSC. The JEM is Japan's <br />primary contribution to the Station. It will enhance the <br />unique research capabilities of the orbiting complex by <br />providing an additional environment for astronauts to conduct <br />science experiments.<br /><br /><br />-more-<br />-2-<br /><br /><br />The JEM also includes an exposed facility (platform) for <br />space environment experiments, a robotic manipulator system, <br />and two logistics modules. The various JEM components will be <br />assembled in space over the course of three Shuttle missions. <br /><br /><br />An Airbus Beluga heavy-lift aircraft, carrying Node 2, <br />departed May 30 from Turin, Italy, where the Italian Space <br />Agency's (ASI) contractor, Alenia Spazio, built it. Following <br />post-transportation inspections, ASI will formally transfer <br />ownership of Node 2 to ESA, which, in turn, will sign it over <br />to NASA.<br /><br /><br />The container transport ship carrying JEM departed May 2 from <br />Yokohama Harbor in Japan for the voyage to the United States. <br />The National Space Development Agency of Japan (NASDA) <br />developed the laboratory at the Tsukuba Space Center near <br />Tokyo.<br /><br /><br />Later this summer, integrated testing will confirm module <br />compatibility and, ultimately, lead to pre-launch processing <br />at KSC's Space Station Processing Facility.<br /><br /><br />NASA International Space Station program managers will host a <br />welcoming ceremony for the modules and international partner <br />representatives from ESA, ASI and NASDA June 18. An <br />opportunity for media to interview the representatives and <br />take photographs of the modules will follow the ceremony. <br />U.S. media that desire to attend must contact the KSC Press <br />Site by 4 p.m. (EDT) June 16. International media must submit <br />credential requests by 4 p.m. (EDT) June 6. <br /><br /><br />Media who do not possess KSC credentials should submit their <br />request via facsimile to: 321/867-2692 and include the <br />following information:<br /><br /><br />Full legal name <br />Title <br />Organization <br />Address <br />Telephone number<br />Date of birth <br />Place of birth <br />Social Security number or Passport number<br />Country of citizenship<br /><br /><br />For more information, please contact the KSC Press Site at: <br />321/867-2468.<br /><br /><br />For more information about NASA and the International Space <br />Station on the Internet, visit:<br /><br /><br />http://www.nasa.gov