| Columbus (iss Module) |
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''Columbus'' is a science laboratory designed to be a part of the International Space Station (ISS). It is the biggest single contribution to the ISS made by the European Space Agency (ESA). ''Columbus'' was constructed in Europe and then flown to the Kennedy Space Center (KSC) in Florida on a large cargo plane. Launch is set for December 2007 on Space Shuttle flight STS-122 . ''Columbus'' is designed for ten years of operation. CONSTRUCTION ESA chose EADS Astrium Space Transportation as prime contractor for ''Columbus''. The lab was integrated at its facilities in Bremen , Germany . The Columbus flight structure, the micro-meteorite protection system, the active and passive thermal control, the environmental control, the harness and all the related ground support equipment were built by Alcatel Alenia Space in Turin , Italy as defined by the PICA - Principle . DESCRIPTION The laboratory is a cylindrical module with two end cones. It is approximately 4.5 meters in diameter and almost 7 meters long. Its shape is very similar to that of the Multi-Purpose Logistics Module s, since both were designed to fit in the cargo bay of a Space Shuttle orbiter. The starboard end cone contains most of the laboratory's on-board computers. The port end cone contains the Common Berthing Mechanism . LAUNCH STATUS AND NEXT STEPS ''Columbus'' is currently at the KSC Space Station Processing Facility , Scheduled to launch on ISS assembly flight 1E . As of April 18 2007 , the launch of ''Columbus'' had been delayed, due to a major hail storm that damaged the ''Atlantis'' orbiter's external fuel tank. The launch will now occur no earlier than December 6 , 2007 . |
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