European Technology Exposure Facility

The European Technology Exposure Facility (EuTEF) was a payload mounted on the exterior of the European Columbus laboratory, one of the modules of the International Space Station. The facility, mounted onto the exterior of Columbus, provided a platform for multiple types of experiments and materials to be exposed directly to the harsh space environment.

External payloads SOLAR and EuTEF installed on LCC-lite cargo carrier prior to launch on shuttle mission STS-122.

EUTEF art

The EuTEF is a programmable, multifunctional architecture that provides uniform interfaces for instruments. Nine instrument modules are accommodated and operated simultaneously. Each experiment is mounted on the Columbus , which consists of an adapter plate, the and the connectors & harness. The experiments are mounted either directly onto the adapter plate or a support structure that elevates them for optimum exposure to the ram (direction of flight) and zenith directions.^[1]^[2]

In total, the facility has a mass of 350 kilograms (770 lb). The first set of experiments (successfully mounted during STS-122 and removed during STS-128^[3]) mounted to the facility included:

: micrometeoroid and orbital debris detector
: measure EuTEF's thermal environment
: Earth observing camera
Exposure experiment (EXPOSE): An exobiological exposure facility
: atomic oxygen detector
: examine material degradation
: plasma discharge in orbit
: testbed for the tribology (study of friction on moving parts) properties of materials^[1]^[2]