KSC-07pd3353

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- At Launch Pad 39A, members of the space shuttle Atlantis STS-122 crew get a close look at the Columbus module during terminal countdown demonstration test, or TCDT, activities. Columbus was installed in the orbiter's payload bay on Nov. 11. From left, in clean room attire, are Mission Specialists Stanley Love, Hans Schlegel of the European Space Agency and Rex Walheim. The TCDT provides astronauts and ground crews with equipment familiarization, emergency egress training and a simulated launch countdown. On mission STS-122, Atlantis will deliver the Columbus module to the International Space Station. The European Space Agency's largest single contribution to the station, Columbus is a multifunctional, pressurized laboratory that will be permanently attached to U.S. Node 2, called Harmony. The module is approximately 23 feet long and 15 feet wide, allowing it to hold 10 large racks of experiments. The laboratory will expand the research facilities aboard the station, providing crew members and scientists from around the world the ability to conduct a variety of experiments in the physical, materials and life sciences. Launch is targeted for Dec. 6. Photo credit: NASA/Kim Shiflett