From Crew Compartments To Software Code, NASA Officially Has
"Keys" To The Station
Boeing has officially turned over
the U.S. on-orbit segment of the International Space Station (ISS)
to NASA with the signing Friday of government form DD-250 at the
conclusion of an Acceptance Review Board meeting in Houston.
Often referred to as "handing over the keys," the DD-250 is
equivalent to a final bill of sale that formally transfers
ownership. Through Friday's review board, NASA and Boeing verified
the delivery, assembly, integration and activation of all hardware
and software required by contract.
"It was 10 years in the making, but NASA's acceptance today
confirms that the U.S.-built portion of the International Space
Station meets its requirements and that its hardware and software
are in excellent shape," said Joy Bryant, Boeing ISS vice president
and program manager. "The vehicle is capable of being fully
utilized as a national laboratory, and we look forward to
sustaining it for many years to come."
The U.S. segment interfaces with
all the ISS international partner elements. It encompasses the
truss segments, including the four solar arrays, and several
pressurized modules, which consist of:
- Unity and Harmony, connecting nodes 1 and 2.
- The Destiny laboratory module.
- The Quest airlock.
- Pressurized mating adapters.
- The Zarya storage module, built in cooperation with the Russian
Federal Space Agency.
- More than 2 million lines of software code to operate all the
components.
Additionally, thousands of components make up the segment's core
systems for thermal control; environmental control; guidance and
navigation; communication and tracking; electrical power
distribution; command and control; structure and mechanisms; and
robotics.
This year, the ISS will mark 10 consecutive years of human
presence on orbit. It was designated a national laboratory by the
U.S. Congress in 2005 and selected for the 2009 Collier Trophy by
the National Aeronautic Association. The station takes advantage of
the microgravity conditions 220 miles above the Earth's surface for
research across a wide variety of fields, including human life
sciences, biological science, human physiology, physical and
materials science, and Earth and space science.
"Research conducted aboard the ISS will benefit the entire world
with unique scientific breakthroughs, and its crews will inspire a
new generation to look toward space," said Bryant.