WIKIARCHIVES.SPACE

Overall view of the Shuttle Flight Control Room in the Johnson Space Center's Mission Control Center during the final deployment of some small satellites from Space Shuttle Discovery's cargo bay. On a screen in the front of the control room, a Department of Defense pico-satellite known as Atmospheric Neutral Density Experiment (ANDE) is released from the shuttle's payload bay by STS-116 crewmembers and viewed via live television on the ground. Santa Claus and one of his reindeer, who are also associated traditionally with low Earth orbit at this time of year, adorn the top of a console in the control room.