SPACEPHOTOS

(05/14/1997) --- The Manipulator Flight Demonstration (MFD) payload is prepared for hoisting and installation into the payload bay of the Space Shuttle Orbiter Discovery in Orbiter Processing Facility 2. The MFD is one of several payloads that will fly on the STS-85 mission. This payload is designed to test the operational capability of the Japanese Experiment Module Remote Manipulator System (JEM RMS) Small Fine Arm (SFA), which can be seen atop its Multi-Purpose Experiment Support Structure (MPESS) carrier that will serve as a platform in the payload bay for the robotic arm experiment. The arm, which will be a part of the JEM element of the International Space Station, will be operated from the orbiter’s aft flight deck during the 11-day mission. Other payloads that will be aboard Discovery on this space flight include the Cryogenic Infrared Spectrometers and Telescopes for the Atmosphere-Shuttle Pallet Satellite-2 (CRISTA-SPAS-2), Technology Applications and Science-1 (TAS-1) and International Extreme Ultraviolet Hitchhiker (IEH-2) experiments