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Space shuttle Discovery's final delivery (STS-133 Official Flight Kit)

March 9, 2011

— Space shuttle Discovery is set to return from space today carrying its last "home delivery" of cargo from the International Space Station (ISS).

Having launched and added to the orbital complex its final load of space-bound payloads — including the last module for the U.S. side of the station, the Leonardo Permanent Multipurpose Module — Discovery is making its 39th and final return to the ground with a mostly empty payload bay and a well-packed crew cabin.

The world's most flown spacecraft, Discovery has over the course of its total of 365 days in space delivered some of NASA's more notable payloads in its 26 years of service. The oldest of the United States' space shuttles still flying, Discovery deployed the Hubble Telescope, the solar probe Ulysses, and the station's largest laboratory, Japan's Kibo pressurized module.

Discovery has launched and returned from orbit Spacelab and Spacehab modules, multi-purpose logistic modules for the International Space Station, and the first two satellites ever brought back from orbit to be serviced.

On this, it's final mission before being retired and placed in a museum, Discovery's Earth-bound cargo includes 2,599 pounds of equipment and experiment results coming home from the space station.

Returning in Discovery's cargo bay is a lightweight adapter plate that was used to support experiments on the outside of the European Columbus laboratory. It was retrieved and stowed aboard the shuttle during the second spacewalk of this STS-133 mission.

Also in the bay, packaged inside a modified tool storage container, are some 30,000 cloth patches commemorating the 30-year shuttle program. The emblems, which were put aboard before Discovery launched, will be distributed after the mission to NASA and contractor employees who made this flight and the program possible.

The patches are not the only souvenirs aboard Discovery.

As on all of Discovery's missions, not to mention the other orbiters, the shuttle is carrying an Official Flight Kit (OFK). Packed inside the duffle bag-size kit are mission patches, lapel pins, medallions, flags, banners and other mementos for organizations that have supported Discovery's six crew members and the mission.

A complete inventory of the STS-133 OFK, as obtained by collectSPACE, is provided below.

The astronauts are also allowed to bring smaller pouches, called Personal Preference Kits (PPKs), with souvenirs for family members and friends. As their name implies, these kits' contents are personal and not disclosed.

Outside of their OFK and PPK items, the astronauts also have a few additional mementos, which they either brought with them or picked up at the space station. Among them:

  • Flat Stanley Timothy

    : Tim Kopra, who was injured in a bike accident resulting in his being replaced on Discovery's STS-133 crew by Steve Bowen, called his former crew mates early in the mission and told them he was with them "in spirit." In response, they told him he was there "in a little bit more." Although not yet confirmed, photos taken aboard Discovery appear to reveal what they meant. Flying with them is a small cardboard cutout of Kopra dressed in his orange pressure suit.

  • Tracking tag

    : Mission specialist Michael Barratt is a "geocacher," participating in global — and in this case off-globe — GPS-enabled treasure hunts. One such "treasure," or Travel Bug, was left on the ISS by an earlier visitor. As reported by Latitude 47, the official blog of Geocaching.com, Barratt is bringing the well-traveled tracking tag back to Earth after its two years on-orbit.

  • Flying brick(s)

    : The shuttle is sometimes referred to as a "flying brick," because it returns from space as a very heavy glider. On board Discovery are two mini-"flying bricks," made out of toy bricks. To kick off a partnership with LEGO, NASA flew two space shuttles built from 60 of the snap-together bricks.

  • Up hill

    : Connected to the Isle of Man through her husband who serves as its "government's honorary representative to the space community," astronaut Nicole Stott packed a monogrammed cloth for the island's Manx Museum in the OFK. She also has a piece of Tynwald Hill, the ceremonial home of the Isle of Man's parliament, which is composed of soil from each of the isle's 17 parishes representing the entire island.

 


Space shuttle Discovery is returning from space for the last time with a mostly empty payload bay and well-packed cabin. (NASA)

The STS-133 Official Flight Kit Manifest

The following is the STS-133 Official Flight Kit manifest, as provided by NASA. Inventory numbers that are missing indicate items that were removed prior to launch.

No.   Description   Sponsor/Purpose

 

1.

 

  1. 625 STS-133 crew patches

  2. 75 Expedition 26 patches

 

Agency Presentation

2.

 

800 Small United States Flags

 

Agency Presentation

3.

 

5 Sets U.S. States & Territories Flags

 

Agency Presentation

4.

 

5 Sets United Nations Members Flags

 

Agency Presentation

5.

 

  1. 50 Small Texas Flags

  2. 20 Small Flags of Russia

  3. 2 Small NASA Flags

  4. 25 NASA Patches

  5. 1 Large (3") JSC Medallion

  6. 6 Small (2") JSC Medallions

  7. 3 NASA Seal Medallions (2 Bronze, 1 Silver)

  8. 1 Silver Shuttle Pendant

  9. 1 Gold Shuttle Pendant

  10. 3'x5' Flag of Guam

 

Agency Presentation

6.

 

10 Small (4"x6") State Flags:

  1. California

  2. Nebraska

  3. Georgia

  4. Florida

  5. Texas

  6. District of Columbia

  7. New York

  8. Washington

 

Agency Presentation

7.

 

5 Small (4"x6") Flags:

  1. New Zealand

  2. Finland

  3. Canada

  4. United Kingdom

  5. Vatican

 

Agency Presentation

8.

 

Small (4"x6") Military Flags:

  1. 30 U.S. Air Force

  2. 20 U.S. Army

  3. 20 U.S. Coast Guard

  4. 20 U.S. Marine Corps

  5. 20 U.S. Navy

 

Agency Presentation

9.

 

60 NASA Medallions

 

Agency Presentation

 

10.

 

  1. 10 Small United States Flags

  2. 10 Small Alabama State Flags

 

Marshall Space Flight Center Presentation

11.

 

  1. 10 Small Louisiana State Flags

  2. 10 Small Mississippi State Flags

  3. 5 Small NASA Flags

  4. 5 Small United States Flags

 

Stennis Space Center Presentation

12.

 

  1. 5 Small United States Flags

  2. 5 Small Florida State Flags

 

Kennedy Space Center Presentation

13.

 

200 Silver Snoopy Pins

 

Space Flight Awareness Presentation

 

14.

 

25 EVA Patches

 

Agency Presentation

15.

 

  1. 10 STS-133 Crew Patches

  2. 34 Small (4"x6") U.S. flags

  3. 10 Space Development & Test Wing Coins

  4. 10 DoD Space Test Program Patches

  5. 10 Human Spaceflight Support Office Patches

  6. 10 Human Spaceflight Support Office Medallions

  7. 5 USS Hopper (DDG-70) Unit Coins

  8. 1 20th Space Control Squadron Unit Patch

  9. 1 20th Space Control Squadron Unit Scarf

 

DoD Presentation

16.

 

25 COD Patches

 

Center Operations Directorate Presentation

 

17.

 

25 Mission Operations Patches

 

Mission Operation Directorate Presentation

 

18.

 

100 Small Metal Shuttle Tokens

 

Agency Presentation

 

19.

 

Miniature Computer Disc

 

Agency Presentation

 

20.

 

6" CKCC Patch

 

Agency Presentation

 

21.

 

EMS Patch

 

Agency Presentation

 

22.

 

9"x9" Detroit Rotary Club Banner

 

Agency Presentation

 

Items 23 through 70 are manifested at the request of the STS-133 crewmembers.

 

23.

 

Green and Gold Athletic Letter

 

Temple City High School, Temple City, CA

 

24.

 

Green and White Checked Squadron Patch

 

38th Tactical Reconnaissance Squadron, Zweibrucken AB, Germany

 

25.

 

20"x29" White and Blue Pennant

 

Space Camp, Turkey, Ismir, Turkey

 

26.

 

Associate of Graduates Medallion

 

U.S. Air Force Institute of Technology, Wright Patterson, OH

 

27.

 

5"x8" Blue Logo on Black Fabric

 

Amy Blake's Academy of Dance, Houston, TX

 

28.

 

3'x5' White Flag with City Seal

 

City of Temple City, CA

 

29.

 

Round Red and Navy Lapel Pin

 

First United Methodist Church, Temple City, CA

 

30.

 

White Lapel Pin

 

Dean L. Shively School, South El Monte, CA

 

31.

 

Red and Navy Lapel Pin

 

New Temple School, South El Monte, CA

 

32.

 

4'x6' Orange and Gold Banner

 

Redeemer Episcopal Church, Houston, TX

 

33.

 

Gold Naval Test Wing Command Medallion

 

Naval Test Wing Atlantic, Patuxent River, MD

 

34.

 

Silver Commemorative Medallion

 

The Spaatz Association, Washington, DC

 

35.

 

Navy "Cougar" Lapel Pin

 

Henderson Middle School, Atlanta, GA

 

36.

 

Silver, Red and Blue Test Pilot School Medallion

 

U.S. Air Force Test Pilot School, Edwards AFB, CA

 

37.

 

3-3/4" White and Green Plastic Coaster

 

Fernbank Science Center, Atlanta, GA

 

38.

 

Squadron Patch

 

Sandy Springs Cadet Squadron, Atlanta, GA

 

39.

 

6"x14" Navy and White Pennant

 

U.S. Air Force Academy, Colorado Springs, CO

 

40.

 

9"x11" Poster

 

Seabrook Intermediate School, Seabrook, TX

 

41.

 

Gold Medallion

 

School of Contemporary Science, University of Abertay Dundee, Scotland

 

42.

 

22"x22" Red and White Bandana

 

National Association of Women MBAs, University of Houston Chapter, Houston, TX

 

43.

 

Gray T-shirt With Logo

 

Lomax Junior High School, La Porte, TX

 

44.

 

Blue Hawaiian Print Shirt

 

JSC Education Office, Houston, TX

 

45.

 

Gold Lapel Pin

 

Tech Trans International, Houston, TX

 

46.

 

Navy T-Shirt with Logo

 

League City Volunteer Fire Department Station 2, League City, TX

 

47.

 

3'x5' United States Flag

 

Science Application International Corporation, Houston, TX

 

48.

 

Multicolored Medallion

 

Astronaut Candidate Class of 2009, Houston, TX

 

49.

 

Bronze International Space Station Medallion

 

ISS Program Integration & Control, Houston, TX

 

50.

 

Bronze International Space Station Medallion

 

ARES Corporation, Houston, TX

 

51.

 

Oval "Operation Enduring Freedom" Medallion

 

7th Squadron 17th Air Calvary, Fort Knox, KY

 

52.

 

Screaming Eagles Medallion

 

101st Aviation Brigade, Fort Campbell, KY

 

53.

 

6"x6" Pink Marble Tile

 

MD Anderson Center, Houston, TX

 

54.

 

3" Bronze University Medallion

 

University of Texas Health Science Center, Houston, TX

 

55.

 

2-3/4" Shakespeare Plastic Figurine

 

Shakespeare at University of Texas English Department, Austin, TX

 

56.

 

Gold Flight Surgeon Wings

 

JSC Medical Operations Branch, Houston, TX

 

57.

 

7.5"x11" Stuffed Giraffe Mascot

 

University of Texas Hermann Children's Hospital, Houston, TX

 

58.

 

11"x14" School Banner

 

Camas High School, Camas, WA

 

59.

 

Multicolored Baseball Cap

 

American Board of Preventive Medicine, Chicago, IL

 

60.

 

U.S. Army Aeromedical Research Lab Patch

 

Fort Rucker Aeromedical Lab, Fort Rucker, AL

 

61.

 

8.5"x11" Poster

 

Plumb Elementary, Clearwater, FL

 

62.

 

Red & Gray Athletic Letter

 

Clearwater High School, Clearwater, FL

 

63.

 

Multicolored Men's Tie

 

Millfield, Somerset, England

 

64.

 

Gold and Red Chinese Ceremonial Jacket

 

Sheng-Yen Lu Foundation, Houston, TX

 

65.

 

3'x5' White Cloth with Emblem

 

Manx Museum, Isle of Man, UK

 

66.

 

Silver, Navy and White Medallion

 

Jacobs Engineering, Houston, TX

 

67.

 

Gold Astronaut Pin

 

Agency Presentation

 

68.

 

Silver U.S. Air Force Wings

 

Agency Presentation

 

69.

 

Gold Medical Wings

 

Agency Presentation

 

70.

 

Gold Astronaut Pin

 

Agency Presentation

 

Items 71 and 97 are manifested at the request of the STS-133 payload customers.

 

71.

 

500 Small (4"x6") Discovery Flags

 

Kennedy Space Center Presentation

 

72.

 

400 Bookmarks

 

Space Shuttle Program (SSP) Presentation

 

73.

 

100 STS-133 Crew Patches

 

SSP Presentation

 

74.

 

30 Space-X DragonEye Patches

 

SSP Presentation

 

75.

 

8.5"x11" Photograph

 

SSP Presentation

 

76.

 

100 ULF5 Mission Pins

 

International Space Station (ISS) Presentation

 

77.

 

26 Collier Medallions

 

ISS Presentation

 

78.

 

36 ELC Patches

 

ISS Presentation

 

79.

 

2 Remmele Placards

 

ISS Presentation

 

80.

 

6 each 5"x5" Brass Placards

 

ISS Presentation

 

81.

 

50 HRP - UMS Patches

 

ISS Presentation

 

82.

 

30 HRP - MARES Decals

 

ISS Presentation

 

83.

 

100 Robonaut Patches

 

ISS Presentation

 

84.

 

50 United States Flags

 

ISS Presentation

 

85.

 

96 ISS HAM Decals

 

ISS Presentation

 

86.

 

100 SCAN Testbed Decals

 

ISS Presentation

 

87.

 

15 MSG Glovebox Patches

 

ISS Presentation

 

88.

 

20 HRP Integrated Immune Patches

 

ISS Presentation

 

89.

 

30 Apex-Cambium Decals

 

ISS Presentation

 

90.

 

20 Apex-Cambium Photographs

 

ISS Presentation

 

91.

 

20 Bioserve Flags

 

ISS Presentation

 

92.

 

50 POIC Decals

 

ISS Presentation

 

93.

 

30 SCF-MI2 Decals

 

ISS Presentation

 

94.

 

10 SCF-MI2 Patches

 

ISS Presentation

 

95.

 

100 LM Pins

 

ISS Presentation

 

96.

 

100 PMM Patches

 

ISS Presentation

 

97.

 

PMM Banner

 

ISS Presentation

 

98.

 

25 JSC S&MA Patches

 

JSC Presentation

 

Late Addition

 

1.

 

Charm with artifact in gold shadow box frame

 

Mary Queen Catholic Church, Friendswood, TX

 

2.

 

Red and white company brochure (8 1/2"x14")

 

Sweet Spot Audio and More, Webster, TX

 

3.

 

Space Shuttle Program "30 Year" commemorative patch

 

JSC International Travel Office, Houston, TX


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