Space shuttle Endeavour's STS-134 crew is on hand for the arrival of the Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer.

At the Shuttle Landing Facility at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, space shuttle Endeavour's STS-134 crew is on hand for the arrival of the Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer, or AMS. From left to right are Mission Specialists Greg Chamitoff, Andrew Feustel, European Space Agency astronaut Roberto Vittori, Mission Specialist Michael Fincke and Pilot Gregory H. Johnson.

AMS, a state-of-the-art particle physics detector, is designed to operate as an external module on the International Space Station. It will use the unique environment of space to study the universe and its origin by searching for dark matter. AMS will fly to the International Space Station aboard space shuttle Endeavour's STS-134 mission targeted to launch Feb. 26, 2011. Photo credit: NASA/Kim Shiflett