SPACEPHOTOS

(10/07/1999) -- At KSC's Shuttle Landing Facility, NASA's Super Guppy opens to reveal its cargo, the International Space Station's (ISS) S1 truss. Manufactured by the Boeing Co. in Huntington Beach, Calif., this component of the ISS is the first starboard (right-side) truss segment, whose main job is providing structural support for the orbiting research facility's radiator panels that cool the Space Station's complex power system. The S1 truss segment also will house communications systems, external experiment positions and other subsystems. Primarily constructed of aluminum, the truss segment is 45 feet long, 15 feet wide and 6 feet tall. When fully outfitted, it will weigh 31,137 pounds. The truss is slated for flight in 2001. The Super Guppy, with its 25-foot diameter fuselage designed to handle oversized loads, is well prepared to transport the truss and other ISS segments. Loading the Guppy is easy because of the unique 'fold-away' nose of the aircraft that opens 110 degrees for cargo loading. A system of rails in the cargo compartment, used with either Guppy pallets or fixtures designed for specific cargo, makes cargo loading simple and efficient. Rollers mounted in the rails allow pallets or fixtures to be moved by an electric winch mounted beneath the cargo floor. Automatic hydraulic lock pins in each rail secure the pallet for flight. The truss is to be transferred to the Operations and Checkout Building