KSC-2009-4354

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. – On Launch Pad 39A at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, the payload canister is lifted up to the Payload Changeout Room in the rotating service structure. Umbilical lines that keep the payload in an environmentally controlled environment are still attached. Inside is the payload for space shuttle Discovery and the STS-128 mission, the Multi-Purpose Logistics Module Leonardo and the Lightweight Multi-Purpose Experiment Support Structure Carrier. Discovery's 13-day flight will deliver a new crew member and 33,000 pounds of equipment to the station. The equipment includes science and storage racks, a freezer to store research samples, a new sleeping compartment and the COLBERT treadmill. Launch of Discovery on its STS-128 mission is targeted for August 25. Photo credit: NASA/Kim Shiflett