The management of the two entities work very closely together, share resources and operate facilities on each other's property. Located on the east coast of Florida, KSC is adjacent to Cape Canaveral Space Force Station (CCSFS). Launch operations for the Apollo, Skylab and Space Shuttle programs were carried out from Kennedy Space Center Launch Complex 39 and managed by KSC. Since December 1968, KSC has been NASA's primary launch center of human spaceflight. Kennedy Space Center ( KSC, originally known as the NASA Launch Operations Center), located on Merritt Island, Florida, is one of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration's (NASA) ten field centers. ^ "Reliable Shuttle Orbiters Need Special Care".^ a b "From Landing to Launch Orbiter Processing".References This article incorporates public domain material from websites or documents of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration. Endeavour is currently stored in the VAB. OPF-1 is assigned to Discovery, OPF-2 to Atlantis. The last step before rollover to the VAB was weighing the orbiter to determine its center of gravity. Remaining payloads, fuels and fluids were installed on the pad closer to launch day. Prior to rollout to the Vehicle Assembly Building, several weeks before scheduled launch, the orbiter was prepared for the next mission by installing mission flight kits, payloads, consumable fluids and gases where possible. After all its flights, the orbiter went through "Down Mission Processing.".any modifications to the orbiter were completed in the OPF. the Orbital Maneuvering System and Reaction Control System pods were possibly removed and transferred to the Hypergol Maintenance Facility for troubleshooting, repair or other services.any needed repairs on the orbiter's thermal protection system including the thermal blankets and thousands of tiles were completed.main engines were removed and transferred to the Main Engine Processing Facility for checkout and service.scaffolding was installed around the orbiters aft to allow technicians to access the main engines.main engines were locked in place and covers installed.heat shields were removed from the engines and aft access were opened.refuse and other waste products including draining of the potable water system were offloaded.high pressure gases were vented from the environmental control and life support systems.The oxygen system was rendered inert with gaseous nitrogen and the hydrogen system with gaseous helium. fuel cells tanks were drained of remaining cryogenic reactants.payload bay doors were opened and any hazardous payloads were processed for safety.The orbiter's main engines were purged to remove the moisture that was a by-product of liquid oxygen and liquid hydrogen combustion.Any remaining payloads from the previous mission were removed and the vehicle was fully inspected, tested, and refurbished. Discovery inside OPF-3 following the completion of mission STS-114 When a shuttle mission was completed, the orbiter was towed from the Shuttle Landing Facility to its assigned OPF where it spent several months (typically less than 100 days) being prepared for the next mission. OPF-3 was previously called the Orbiter Maintenance & Refurbishment Facility (OMRF), but was upgraded to a fully functioning OPF. OPF-1 and OPF-2 were connected with a low bay between them, while OPF-3 is across the street. They were located west of the Vehicle Assembly Building, where the orbiter was mated with its External Tank and Solid Rocket Boosters before transport to the launch pad. All three such facilities, OPF-1, OPF-2 and OPF-3, were located at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida at Launch Complex 39. space shuttle orbiters underwent maintenance between flights. Orbiter Processing Facility This page uses Creative Commons Licensed content from Wikipedia ( view authors).Īn Orbiter Processing Facility ( OPF) was one of three hangars where U.S.
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