Shuttle payload sealed for flight

NASA and contractor workers closed the hatch to an Italian-built cargo carrier today, marking a major milestone in preparations for the planned July 1 launch of shuttle Discovery on NASA's second post-Columbia test flight.

Now cradled in a work stand inside the Space Station Processing Facility at Kennedy Space Center, the cyndrical moving van will haul more than two tons of supplies and equipment to the International Space Station.

Among the equipment: A new U.S. oxygen generation system that will augment a Russian generator prone to breakdowns. A long-awaited freezer for the U.S. Destiny laboratory also is loaded aboard the Multi-Purpose Logistics Module along with a rack of small science experiments.

Ten racks and platforms inside the module house food, clothing, spare parts and other supplies.

Dubbed Leonardo, the carrier is one of three built for NASA by the Italian Space Agency. The module was named after Leonardo da Vinci, the famed Italian inventor, scientist, engineer, architect, artist, military planner and weapons designer.

A series of pressurization tests will be performed before the 21-foot-long carrier is loaded into payload canister around May 11. The canister will be moved to launch pad 39B on May 16, or three days before a fully assembled shuttle Discovery is scheduled to arrive there.