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TheColumbus External Payload Facility (Columbus-EPF) is a component of the EuropeanColumbus module on theInternational Space Station (ISS). It consists of two identical L-shaped consoles attached to the starboard cone ofColumbus in the zenith (top) and nadir (bottom) positions, each supporting two platforms for external payloads or payload facilities. Four external payloads (payload facilities) can be operated at the same time. An additional external payload platform calledBartolomeo was installed on Columbus in 2020.
Columbus-EPF was transported to the International Space Station (ISS) with theColumbus module onSTS-122/1E in February 2008. Columbus-EPF payloads and payload facilities are transported to and from orbit using a carrier supplied by the ISS Program. The payloads and payload facilities are manoeuvred by the robotic manipulators of the ISS to their final operational locations on the Columbus-EPF. Each payload or payload facility has an open view to ram and to starboard, as well as one to either zenith or nadir. The view in the wake direction is reduced by ISS structures. At the end of its operational phase, a payload is transported to the carrier by robotic means and returned to ground for post-mission inspection and analysis and, possibly, refurbishment.[1]
The first Columbus-EPF payload facilities were theEuropean Technology Exposure Facility (EuTEF) andSun Monitoring on the External Payload Facility of Columbus (Solar), which were installed during anextravehicular activity (EVA) by crew members of theSTS 122 mission .
In addition to structural support,Columbus can supply power and data (command) to the Columbus-EPF payloads and can poll the payloads for housekeeping (health and status) and user data. The power and data interfaces available to the Columbus-EPF payloads are directly connected to theColumbus internal distribution systems. Columbus-EPF payloads and payload facilities are controlled and commanded viaColumbus using the same data links andground segment infrastructure used for internal payloads. Each payload has a facility-responsible centre that can transmit commands and receive telemetry via the Columbus Control Centre.Columbus provides a maximum of 1.25 kW per Columbus-EPF location. Each Columbus-EPF location is connected to two 120-Vdc power feeders, each of which has a maximum allocation of 1.25 kW. Switching between the power feeders is done via the payload power switch box inColumbus and requires the power feeders to be powered down.
The maximum on-orbit mass of an external Columbus-EPF payload, including the adapter plate, is 290 kg. The dimensions of a payload should not exceed 864 x 1168 x 1245 mm without the adapter plate.[1]
TheBartolomeo platform, developed and operated byAirbus, is an additional external payload hosting platform that was connected toColumbus in 2020.[2][3]
Airbus spent about €40 million to develop theBartolomeo platform, according to DLR, the German space agency. DLR says accommodations onBartolomeo would be priced from €300,000 to €3.5 million per year. Data from attached experiments would be routed to the ground through the space station's telemetry system, then go into cloud storage, where scientists can access the information with a smartphone. Payload owners can also send commands to their experiments through a smartphone. Airbus is also partnering with theUnited Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs (UNOOSA) to solicit ideas forBartolomeo payloads from around the world. Developing countries in particular are encouraged to participate.[4] ESA is emphasizing the platform's usefulness for commercial entities, academic institutions, and other lower-budget customers.[5][6][7]
TheBartolomeo platform[8] was robotically removed fromSpaceX CRS-20's trunk and installed on the external forward side ofColumbus module in April 2020,[9] attached to the trunnions that held Columbus in the payload bay ofSpace ShuttleAtlantis on its 2008 launch. AnEVA by ISS astronauts to connect power and communications cables and to install a newKa-band antenna was carried out on January 27, 2021.[10] Due to issues with the installation ofBartolomeo, only four out of the six cables could be installed. The platform was "partially operational and in a safe configuration" according toNASA.[11] The final two cables were installed during a March 2022 spacewalk by ESA astronautMatthias Maurer.[12]
In January 2025, a London-based company called Sen unveiled a high-resolution livestream from space via a camera hosted on the Bartolomeo platform.[13] The livestream is available 20 hours per day on YouTube.[14]
Payloads are installed ontoColumbus usingFlight Releasable Attachment Mechanisms or FRAMs for short. There are four FRAMs on Columbus.
Source:[15]
Bartolomeo is partially operational and in a safe configuration following the connection of four of six cables to the science platform, and the final two cables that could not be connected will be attended to on a future spacewalk.
This article incorporatespublic domain material fromColumbus – External Payload Facility (Columbus-EPF).NASA.
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