KSC-2011-7202

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- At NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, payload canister #1, traveling from the Canister Rotation Facility in the center's Industrial Area to the Reutilization, Recycling and Marketing Facility on Ransom Road, is forced to take a circuitous route toward the Vehicle Assembly Building, in the background, to avoid obstacles along the way. The two payload canisters used to transport space shuttle payloads to the launch pad for installation in the shuttles' cargo bays are being decommissioned following the end of the Space Shuttle Program. Each canister weighs 110,000 pounds and is 65 feet long, 22 feet wide, and 18 feet, 7 inches high. The canisters were prescreened through NASA Headquarters as possible artifacts, but their size makes them difficult to transport to locations off the center. Federal and state agencies now will be given the opportunity to screen the canisters for potential use before a final decision is made on their disposition. For more information, visit http:__www.nasa.gov_centers_kennedy_pdf_167403main_CRF-06.pdf. Photo credit: NASA_Jim Grossmann