Handhold, Power Control Unit, Hubble Space Telescope (Flown)

Astronauts used this attachable/detachable handhold in orbit to move and position the large Power Control Units that were exchanged during the 2002 Hubble Space Telescope servicing mission (STS-109). The spacewalking crew attached the handhold to the original refrigerator-size unit mounted inside the telescope to remove and transport it to the Space Shuttle payload bay for return to Earth. Then they attached the handhold to the replacement unit stowed in the payload bay and transported and installed it in the telescope. The panel's handles and knobs are designed for easy gripping and turning by a spacesuited astronaut, and the labels are cues for its proper alignment.NASA transferred this item and others from the same task to the Museum when the fifth and final Hubble Space Telescope servicing mission was completed in 2009.