Tool, Hi-Torque Connector, Power Control Unit Trainer

This high-torque connector tool used for training helped astronauts prepare to remove and replace the Hubble Space Telescope's Power Control Unit (PCU) in orbit. Their task entailed disconnecting and reconnecting 36 cable bundles attached to one side of the refrigerator-size control unit. Because the space between the fasteners and the wall of the electronics bay was narrow and the spacesuit-gloved hand is bulky, the crew used this tool to reach and twist the fasteners. The PCU replacement occurred on Space Shuttle mission STS-109 in 2002.NASA transferred this training equipment to the Museum after the fifth and final Hubble Space Telescope servicing mission was completed in 2009.