WEBVTT

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Music.

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It's not 1492, but Columbus has once again crossed the ocean blue.

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The European Space Agency's Columbus research lab has arrived at NASA Kennedy Space Center in Florida for a

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future flight to the International Space Station.

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Columbus is the agency's largest contribution to the station and can hold 10 racks of experiments at one time.

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Destined to be anchored to the station's Node 2 Module, the 23-by-15-foot Columbus will dramatically expand

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the outpost's research capability.

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On May 31, the European lab flew to Kennedy from Bremen, Germany, aboard an aptly named "Beluga" jetliner.

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The plane and its scientific cargo touched down at the center's Shuttle Landing Facility.

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The following day, Columbus was transported to Kennedy's Space Station Processing Facility, where it will

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undergo final preparations for flight.

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Once inside, technicians hoisted the gleaming lab onto its awaiting work stand.

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Then on June 2, members of NASA and the European Space Agency celebrated the arrival of Columbus with a

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welcoming ceremony at the processing center.

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Kennedy is thrilled to serve as Columbus' final port of call before the lab departs on another voyage of discovery.

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