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NADSA, Japan

Payload Launch Site Operations are Underway at SFA
  -- 22 days before a launch --

On Nov. 21, in the Spacecraft and Fairing Assembly Building (SFA), 
three microsatellites, Australian FedSat, Whale Ecology Observation 
Satellite (WEOS) of Chiba Institute of Technology, and µ-LabSat of 
NASDA, were mated with the piggyback launch payload support structure. 
FedSat and WEOS have been under preparation and mating operations in 
the previous days. µ-LabSat is a "hand-made" microsatellite developed 
and manufactured by NASDA.

Payload fairing

Also in SFA, a payload fairing that protects the payloads from 
vibration of liftoff and friction in the atmosphere is also under 
preparation. Since its arrival at the Tanegashima Space Center on Nov. 
8, the fairing went through visual inspection and pyrotechnic circuit 
checking.

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