KSC-2010-4471

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- Mark Sistilli, AMS Program Manager from NASA Headquarters speaks to the media before the arrival of the Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer, or AMS, to the Shuttle Landing Facility at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, while Trent Martin, AMS Project Manager from NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston looks on. AMS, a state-of-the-art particle physics detector, is designed to operate as an external module on the International Space Station. It will use the unique environment of space to study the universe and its origin by searching for dark matter. The STS-134 crew will fly AMS to the International Space Station aboard space shuttle Endeavour, targeted to launch Feb. 26, 2011. Photo credit: NASA/Kim Shiflett