Multi-Purpose Logistics Module (MPLM)
The Raffaello Multi-Purpose Logistics Module (MPLM) acts as a moving van for the International Space Station (ISS), carrying laboratory racks with science equipment as well as racks and platforms filled with bags of experiments and supplies to and from the orbiting laboratory.
On this mission, Raffaello will be mounted in the space shuttle's payload bay for launch and remain there until after docking. Once the shuttle is docked to the station, the ISS robotic arm will be used to remove Raffaello from the payload bay and berth it to a Boeing-built Common Berthing Mechanism on the nadir side of the station's Unity Module. During its berthed period to the station, individual components will be transferred to the station.
After Raffaello is unloaded, used equipment and trash will be transferred to it from the ISS for return to Earth. The Raffaello logistics module will then be detached from the station and positioned back into the shuttle's cargo bay for the trip home. When in the cargo bay, Raffaello is independent of the shuttle cabin, and there is no passageway for shuttle crewmembers to travel from the shuttle cabin to the module.
Raffaello will carry to orbit one payload rack, seven Resupply Stowage Platforms (RSPs) and four Resupply Stowage Racks (RSRs) on LF-1. The payload rack is the Human Research Facility No. 2 (HRF 2).
The RSRs and RSPs are filled with Cargo Transfer Bags that contain equipment and supplies for the station. The four RSRs and the seven RSPs contain about 3,000 pounds of cargo, not including the weight of the straps and fences that hold the bags in place.
The total weight of Raffaello with the cargo, platforms and racks is just over 18,100 pounds.
The MPLM supports two mission types, active and passive. The terms "active" and "passive" refer to the type of cargo carried, not the resources required during the mission. Both mission types require resources from the orbiter and the ISS. Active MPLM flights carry up to 16 racks, with a maximum of five that are active (e.g., refrigerator/freezer rack). Passive MPLM flights carry up to 16 passive racks or RSRs. Mission LF1 is a passive MPLM mission.
History/Background
Raffaello, built by the Italian Space Agency (ASI), is the second of three such pressurized modules that serve as the station's "moving vans," carrying laboratory racks filled with equipment, experiments and supplies to and from the ISS aboard the space shuttle.
Construction of ASI's Raffaello module was the responsibility of Alenia Aerospazio in Turin, Italy. Raffaello was delivered to Kennedy Space Center from Italy in July 1999 by a special Beluga cargo aircraft. The cylindrical module is about 6.4 meters (21 feet) long and 4.6 meters (15 feet) in diameter. It weighs about 9,000 pounds (almost 4.1 metric tons). It can carry up to 20,000 pounds (9.1 metric tons) of cargo packed into 16 standard space station equipment racks.
Although built in Italy, Raffaello and two additional MPLMs are owned by the U.S. They were provided in exchange for Italian access to U.S. research time on the station.
The unpiloted, reusable logistics module functions as both a cargo carrier and a space station module when it is flown. To function as an attached station module as well as a cargo transport, Raffaello contains components that provide some life support, fire detection and suppression, electrical distribution and computer functions. Eventually, the modules also will carry refrigerator freezers for transporting experiment samples and food to and from the station.
Raffaello first flew to the station aboard Endeavour on STS-100/ISS Assembly Flight 6A in April 2001. It made a second journey into space aboard Endeavour on STS-108/UF-1 in December 2001. Leonardo first flew to the space station aboard Discovery on STS-102/5A.1 in March 2001. It flew again aboard Discovery on STS-105/7A.1 in August 2001 and aboard Endeavour on STS-111/UF2 in June 2002. Donatello, the first active module, is scheduled for flight in 2007.