KSC-99pc0173

In the Vertical Processing Facility (VPF), workers begin moving the overhead crane carrying the Chandra X-ray Observatory from its protective container to a stand on the floor. While in the VPF, the telescope will undergo final installation of associated electronic components; it will also be tested, fueled and mated with the Inertial Upper Stage booster. A set of integrated tests will follow. Chandra is scheduled for launch July 9 aboard Space Shuttle Columbia, on mission STS-93 . Formerly called the Advanced X-ray Astrophysics Facility, Chandra comprises three major elements: the spacecraft, the science instrument module (SIM), and the world's most powerful X-ray telescope. Chandra will allow scientists from around the world to see previously invisible black holes and high-temperature gas clouds, giving the observatory the potential to rewrite the books on the structure and evolution of our universe