KSC-2010-4305

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- In the Space Station Processing Facility at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, workers lift the lid off of a crate containing Robonaut R2, a dexterous humanoid astronaut helper. Robonaut R2 will fly to the International Space Station aboard space shuttle Discovery on the STS-133 mission. Although it will initially only participate in operational tests, upgrades could eventually allow the robot to realize its true purpose -- helping spacewalking astronauts with tasks outside the space station. Photo credit: NASA_Kim Shiflett