essay on international space station

Astroanuts take a spacewalk outside the International Space Station, which has been continuously occupied by rotating crews since November 2000.

What the International Space Station teaches us about our future in space

A collaboration among international space agencies, this laboratory offers a glimpse into the origins of the cosmos and the possibilities of future spaceflight.

Flying some 240 miles above Earth's surface at 17,500 miles an hour, the International Space Station (ISS) is a science laboratory dedicated to helping humans learn how to live in space. Crucially, that means figuring out how the space environment affects biology–and human bodies, especially. Other onboard experiments are aimed at better understanding how the cosmos works, from the highest-energy particles that streak through our solar system to the faraway, extremely dense corpses of former stars.

Continuously occupied by rotating crews since November 2000, the space station is the work of five space agencies : NASA, Russia’s Roscosmos, the European Space Agency, the Japanese Aerospace Exploration Agency, and the Canadian Space Agency. Hundreds of spacefarers have visited the ISS—primarily professional space travelers, although a handful of space tourists have also made the journey. Here’s how the ISS came to be and what scientists hope to learn from experiments conducted there.

What is the ISS?

In the mid-1980s, President Ronald Reagan directed NASA to build an international space station within a decade, declaring that it would “permit quantum leaps” in science research. First, the U.S. partnered with Europe and Japan; it then invited Russia into the enterprise in 1993 because that nation had the most extensive experience operating orbital space stations . By 1998, all five space agencies were on board with the project.

The ISS was conceived as a series of linked, cylindrical modules that are solar powered and cooled by loops that radiate heat . These are divided among the station’s two larger segments: the Russian Orbital Segment , operated by Russia, and the U.S. segment, which includes contributions from many countries.

Construction began in November 1998, when the first piece of the eventual ISS structure—the Russian Zarya Control Module —was autonomously delivered to orbit by a Proton rocket . Named using the Russian word for “sunrise,” the Zarya module originally provided power, communications, and altitude control functions and is now primarily used for storage and propulsion. Two weeks later, astronauts aboard the space shuttle Endeavour delivered one of the major U.S. components, Unity , a module that now connects the Russian and U.S. segments of the station. The first crew to inhabit the station arrived on November 2, 2000, and included cosmonauts Yuri Gidzenko and Sergei Krikalev, and NASA astronaut Bill Shepherd.

The station today spans the area of a U.S. football field and is typically occupied by at least three astronauts, or as many as six . Construction is still ongoing, with Russia getting ready to send a new science module to the station.

Both the U.S. and Russian segments of the ISS generate power and host laboratories, living spaces, and docking ports. Astronauts can move between the segments , which are connected to a larger structural truss that holds the station’s solar arrays and thermal radiators. Also attached to that truss is Canadarm2 —a Canadian-built apparatus that functions as a large, remote-controlled space crane used to do a range of tasks, from moving equipment to capturing inbound spacecraft.

For Hungry Minds

On the U.S. side, the single largest module is Kibo , a Japanese science laboratory space with an external “porch” that is used for experiments in the vacuum of space. The nearby Node 3 , or Tranquility module, houses the European-built cupola that affords astronauts unforgettable views of planet Earth. In 2016, NASA attached an inflatable habitat—the Bigelow Expandable Activity Module —to the space station for the first time, perhaps paving the way for future inflatable space hotels and tourist destinations.

Why the ISS matters

Everything on Earth evolved to thrive in its home environment and not the alien surroundings of space, which can challenge lifeforms in surprising ways . The space station is by far the best place to practice living and working in these unfamiliar conditions, and to better understand how space affects our complex biology.

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Most importantly, surviving in space means dealing with microgravity (the near-absence of gravity) and increased radiation exposure — two conditions that can dramatically impact biological functions. Life in orbit also means tolerating a small, closed environment, limited human contact, and high-pressure situations that might require rapid teamwork to survive.

Crews must adapt to an existence in which the sun rises and sets as many as 16 times a day. Getting a good night’s sleep requires securing themselves to a non-floating object. Intense daily exercise is crucial for maintaining healthy bones and combatting microgravity-induced muscular atrophy. And astronauts have to contend with a variety of conditions that arise when there’s literally no up or down—problems with balance and orientation, changes in blood circulation and fluid distribution, and a strange and mostly unexplained deterioration in eyesight .

Increased radiation exposure means a higher risk of developing various cancers. Teams on the ground are currently designing spacesuits to shield long-duration space travelers from potentially destructive cosmic particles.

The crew is also occupied with a full suite of scientific experiments designed to help humans figure out how to live in space permanently. These include growing plants and human tissues in microgravity, seeing how microbes respond to the space environment , studying how space affects DNA and gene expression , and learning whether normal reproduction is even possible (the jury is still out).

Although the bulk of research done on the station is focused on learning more about surviving in space, experiments outside of the space station are peering into the cosmos and attempting to learn more about the environment in which spacefaring humans might live. One of these instruments, called NICER , is studying neutron stars, stellar corpses that are the densest objects in the known universe. Another, the Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer , is a particle physics experiment that is attempting to snare and analyze cosmic rays, the most fundamental components of the cosmos, to better understand the origins of the universe.

In recent years, U.S. astronauts have typically spent between three and six months on board the ISS , but the longest continual stay lasted nearly one year —a milestone achieved in 2016 by NASA astronaut Scott Kelly and his Russian colleague, cosmonaut Mikhail Kornienko . Back on Earth, teams are simulating these environments and studying the psychological challenges associated with isolation, in an attempt to better understand who might be best suited for space flights of even longer duration.

Modern journeys to the ISS

Until 2011, astronauts were ferried to the station by the U.S. space shuttles and the Russian Soyuz spacecraft. After the U.S. retired the space shuttle program, Soyuz became the only ride into orbit—until private company SpaceX successfully flew a crewed mission to the station in May 2020 .

Piloted by NASA astronauts Doug Hurley and Bob Behnken, this crucial test flight departed the station in early August, ending in a safe and successful splashdown off the western coast of Florida. Now, astronauts can once again launch into orbit from U.S. shores; and NASA’s new reliance on private companies could, in theory, foster competition that might drive down prices and open up travel to the ISS to a broader swath of humanity.

For now, plans include operating the space station through at least 2024 , although that timeline could be extended.

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International Space Station essay

The human race sure has its means to uncover the mysteries, not just of the earth, but also of the universe. It has come up with different ways to find the pieces of information so we could add it up to a bank called ‘knowledge’. We have searched under the sea, through our vast lands, and now, a part of the endless horizon of the universe. Since the beginning of time, we have been very impulsive in discovering and unearthing every piece of the puzzle. The International Space Station is one living proof of the humans’ diligence, patience, intelligence, and passion.

The International Space Station or ISS project began in 1980; the project was then called Space Station Freedom and it was in response to the other space stations launched by other nations such as the Salyut and Mir space stations. The project was later put on hold after the Soviet Union and Cold War had ended; but it didn’t end there. In the first half of the 1990’s, the United States of America began negotiating with other nations or countries like Europe, Russia, Japan, and Canada for international partnership.

In 1993, the new and improved project was proclaimed and named it Space Station Alpha; it was a collaboration of the different powerful agencies from around the globe: The Space Station Freedom of NASA, Mir-2 of Russia, and the Columbus of ESA. The other nations or agencies that have shown their support and interest are as follows: The Brazilian Space Agency, The Italian Space Agency, and China. The assembly commenced in 1998 and almost everything was done on orbit.

The International Space Station, with an altitude of roughly 350 km above the earth’s surface and with a speed of 27,700 km per hour, is a haven for scientists who want to develop and improve on the humans’ way of life. It weighs 1, 040,000 lbs, measures 256 across and 290 feet long and has the capacity to contain 6 laboratories for on-orbit experimentations. Its main power supply comes from the sun; through the solar panels, the light the sun emits is converted to electricity. The target completion date is 2010 and so ISS has become, if not the only, one of the most complex and most expensive objects / stations here on earth.

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The presence of a human entity can be traced back on November 2, 2000 and ISS has been inhabited since then. The International Space Station: The Purpose of Existence Research and Experimentation have become the main reasons of the existence of the ISS. Since the ISS works on space, it provides the scientist a variation and a different condition for their studies and experiments. The six state-of-the-art laboratories will be used to work on the different fields such as Biology, Physics, Astronomy, and Meteorology. ISS will be home to numerous discoveries and new studies like the study on Protein Crystals.

It is believed that protein crystals can be grown abundantly in space than on Earth. This study of protein crystals can open our eyes to viruses and it also goes without saying that it can also lead us to a better understanding of the matter and of course, to new and more effective drugs or medications. This study could also be the answer to Cancer, Diabetes, and other Immune-System Disorders. The Tissue Culture will also be given enough time to improve on. Because of the absence gravity, the living cells can be developed in there protected from distortion.

This study can also be the key to the cancer treatment that will not put the patients in danger. ISS can also be a means to ‘gravitational experimentations’. There is still no answer to what might happen to a person or to an object that is exposed to reduced gravity over a long period of time. This research can help us better understand the human framework and the functions of the different systems of our body like muscle atrophy, bone loss, and fluid shifts. This study can also act as a ‘test-drive’ if humans can withstand to long exposure to reduced gravity for future uses like space explorations.

Elements can also be experimented on in ISS. We will witness the progress of Combustion Science and Materials Science. Here, we will see improvements on elements such as fire, fluids, and metals. Physics is one are NASA will be studying on since liquids on microgravity haven’t given enough emphasis ever since and scientists would like to work on an accurately model fluid. ISS can also help the humans watch over the Earth directly from space. This can help us gain a better understanding of the Forests, Oceans, Mountains, Volcanic Eruptions, Meteorite Impacts, Hurricanes, and the other forces from nature.

The humans can also be observed from the ISS’ standpoint. This can help us diminish air and water pollution, do something about deforestation and other global issues. For these researches, studies, and experimentations to be possible, different ISS modules were set up. The Destiny Laboratory Module is the main research facility and will act as the facility for general experiments; it was launched in February 2001. The Columbus Module was designed to facilitate scientific experiments and was launched 7 years later. The Japanese Module or Kibo will be launched in January 2009 and it will work on astronomical data and observations.

The ExPress Logistics Carrier of the NASA will be launched in September 2009 and will take care of the experiments that will be conducted in the vacuum of space and other necessary and relevant data. The Multipurpose Laboratory Module by Russia will be the lab for the general microgravity experiments and will be launched in the last quarter of 2009. International Space Station: On-Space Assembly The complexity of the ISS project can be observed from the way it has been built. The construction workers patching up the different areas of ISS are none other than the astronauts 250 miles above the surface of the Earth.

It is an everyday construction work and they used new generation of space robots to act as cranes. 100 components of 45 space flights with three different types of rockets being used in order to make space construction possible. They have scheduled 34 Space Shuttle Missions for the assemblage. A decade of flight tests and mock space walks were conducted. For the actual assemblage, the astronauts had to use enhanced spacesuits, the Shuttle Spacesuit or the Extravehicular Mobility Unit (EMU). The EMU can be used for 25 spacewalks and after that, it has to be sent back to Earth fixed or restored.

Unlike in other space constructions, the assembly work must be done in a much lower temperature. Enhancements in the EMU include, easily replaceable internal parts, reusable carbon dioxide removal cartridges, metal rings that allows in-flight suit adjustments, new gloves with dexterity, new radio that will allow 5 people to talk at once, fingertip heaters, cooling system shut off, new helmet-mounted flood and spotlights, and Safer, a lifejacket that save the life of the astronaut and will automatically bring him back to the station in case of mishaps.

New generation robotics was used. The acting cranes for this project were the Space Shuttle’s Mechanical Arm and a New Space Station Arm; these arms maneuvered the huge modules, components, and the astronauts. The mechanical arm built in Canada has a Space Vision System (SVS) that helped the see clearly every object and location; it has a video image processing that could give the astronauts graphical laptop display that helped the arms of the cranes work in precision

Space Station Remote Manipulator System (SSRMS) is a 55-ft arm built in Canada that could move around and attach/ detach itself for Power and Data Grapple Fixtures (PDGF). A Mobile Servicing System is being done so the SSRMS could ride over it to serve as a platform that will move in the station. Another navigator is called the Special Purpose Dexterous Manipulator (SPDM) that has 2 arms that can direct more complicated tasks. A European Robotic Arm of the European Space Agency is used for the maintenance of the Russian part of the station.

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"What if we built a bridge, between and above all nations, to jointly discover the galaxy's great unknowns?"

Media Credit: Video courtesy of NASA

Just as the oceans opened up a new world for clipper ships and Yankee traders, space holds enormous potential for commerce today. The International Space Station (ISS) took 10 years and more than 30 missions to assemble. It is the result of unprecedented scientific and engineering collaboration among five space agencies representing 15 countries. The space station is approximately the size of a football field: a 460-ton, permanently crewed platform orbiting 250 miles above Earth. It is about four times as large as the Russian space station Mir and five times as large as the U.S. Skylab.

The idea of a space station was once science fiction, existing only in the imagination until it became clear in the 1940s that construction of such a structure might be attainable by our nation. As the Space Age began in the 1950s, designs of “space planes” and stations dominated popular media. The first rudimentary station was created in 1969 by the linking of two Russian Soyuz vehicles in space, followed by other stations and developments in space technology until construction began on the ISS in 1998, aided by the first reusable spacecraft ever developed: the American shuttles.

Until recently, U.S. research space onboard the ISS had been reserved for mostly government initiatives, but new opportunities for commercial and academic use of the ISS are now available, facilitated by the ISS National Lab.

ISS Historical Timeline

Reagan directs nasa to build the iss january 25, 1984.

"Just as the oceans opened up a new world for clipper ships and Yankee traders, space holds enormous potential for commerce today". President Ronald Reagan's State of the Union Address directs NASA to build an international space station within the next 10 years.

First ISS Segment Launches November 20, 1998

The first segment of the ISS launches: The Zarya Control Module launched aboard a Russian Proton rocket from Baikonur Cosmodrome, Kazakhstan. Zarya (translates to "sunrise") supplied fuel storage, battery power and rendezvous and docking capability for Soyuz and Progress space vehicles.

First U.S.-built component launches December 4, 1998

Unity  Node 1 module—the first U.S.-built component of the International Space Station— launches into orbit two weeks later during the STS-88 mission. Joining Unity with the Zarya module was the first step in the assembly of the orbiting laboratory.

First Crew to Reside on Station November 2, 2000

NASA Astronaut Bill Shepherd and cosmonauts Yuri Gidzenko and Sergei Krikalev become the first crew to reside onboard the station. Expedition 1 spent four months onboard completing tasks necessary to bring the ISS "to  life" and began what is now more than 20 years of continuous human presence in space.

U.S. Lab Module Added February 7, 2001

Destiny, the U.S. Laboratory module, becomes part of the station. The lab—that increased onboard  living space by 41%—continues to be the primary research laboratory for U.S. payloads.

U.S. Lab Module Recognized as Newest U.S. National Laboratory December 30, 2005

Congress designates the U.S. portion of the ISS as the nation's newest national laboratory to maximize its use for other U.S. government agencies and for academic and private institutions.

European Lab Joins the ISS February 7, 2008

The European Space Agency’s Columbus Laboratory becomes part of the station.

Japanese Lab Joins the ISS March 11, 2008

The first Japanese Kibo laboratory module becomes part of the station.

ISS 10-Year Anniversary November 2, 2010

The ISS celebrates its 10-year anniversary of continuous human occupation. Since Expedition 1 in the fall of 2000, 202 people had visited the station.

NASA Issues Cooperative Agreement February 2011

NASA issues a cooperative agreement notice for a management partner.

NASA Selects the ISS National Lab July 2011

NASA selects the Center for the Advancement of Science in Space to manage the ISS National Lab.

The First ISS National Lab Research Flight September 30, 2013

Proteins can be grown as crystals in space with nearly perfect three-dimensional structures useful for the development of new drugs. The ISS National Lab's protein crystal growth (PCG) series of flights began in 2013, allowing researchers to utilize the unique environment of the ISS.

ISS National Lab Missions Flown

From the 1st launch back in 2013 to the most recent one, take a look back at all the science that launched to the ISS National Lab!

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International Space Station: Origin, Purpose, Structure, Power Supply Essay

Introduction, the purpose of the international space station, assembly and structure, power supply.

A space station can be defined as a man-made structure built for humans so that they can live in outer space. The concept of the space station was brought about in 1869 by Edward Everett when he described the Brick moon a satellite used to navigate ships in the ocean. Today only the low earth orbit also known as orbital stations have been built. Unlike vehicles, space stations are built to live in the orbit as per the period assigned (Waber, 1998).

On the other hand, the international space station is the world’s largest and most complex research facility being assembled in low earth orbit. It is located at 360 km altitude on an orbit that goes around the Earth and goes around the Earth in one and half hours. It is considered to be the biggest satellite in the whole universe. Its construction began in 1998 and is targeted to end by the year 2011 with an extension of four years to completely end in 2015.

The international space station program is a joint venture between the National Aeronautics and space administration (NASA) of the United States of America, Russia Federal Space Agency (RKA) of Russia, Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) of Japan, Canadian Space Agency (CSA) of Canada and European Space Agency ( ESP) of the European Nations (Launus, 1998). Since the first expedition, the international space station has had staff continuously, thus providing a permanent human presence in the station. In the beginning, only the Russian and the American crew members boarded the space station, they were later joined by Thomas Reiter from Germany in the year 2006. Today the station has been visited by many astronauts from different nations.

International Space Station originated during the cold war. During this time NASA was planning to launch an exemplary space station called Freedom as a copy to the Soviet Slyut and Mir space station. On the other hand, the Soviet was planning to build another space station called Mir2. However, due to financial and design obstacles, space station freedom did not go past the mock-ups and component tests.

After the cold war, the United Nations nearly canceled Space station freedom and due to the soviet economic crisis, Mir2 space station was canceled (Launius, 1998). These problems and other obstacles to space station construction were being experienced by other nations that tried to build the space station. This triggered the beginning of negotiations between these nations which included; Russia, Europe, Japan, America, and Canada, to collaborate in a multi-national space station project.

In 1992 the then US president George W. Bush and the Russian president Boris signed an agreement that called for a short joint venture between the two nations. In 1993 the then US Vice president Al Gore and the then Russian Prime Minister Viktor Chemomyrdin came up with plans for building a new space station which eventually became the International Space Station. The international space station’s aim was to combine all the proposed space stations of all other nations with a mission of enabling long-term space exploration thus providing benefits to the people of the earth. The station will also provide a permanent orbiting station for long-term research on the material and life forms in space. To add to this, due to its unique conditions it will facilitate major research in technology and engineering (Neeson, 2000).

One of the reasons why the international space station was constructed was to provide a conducive environment for conducting experiments that require unusual conditions that can only be found in space, for instance, microgravity conditions. The station offers an advantage over other space crafts as it provides long-term conditions in the space environment thus allowing studies to be performed. With the main research being biology, physics, astronomy, and meteorology the United Nations designate their segment in the international space station as a national laboratory. This allowed for the utilization of the international space station by other nations and the private sector (Bond, 2002).

The international space station also provides a favorable testing place for efficiency and reliability for spacecraft that will have a long mission to the Moon and Mars. This is because it allows for the evaluation of equipment in a safe low Earth Orbit location. This gives an experience in maintaining, repairing, and replacing systems that will be required in driving the spacecraft from the Earth. This reduces mission failure risk and enhances the capability of the spacecraft to complete the mission successfully.

In addition, the international space station allows for the study of human muscles, bones, and fluid change in human bodies due to the long exposure of human beings in space. This will help in space living and allow for lengthy space travel.

In addition, the international space station provides the best place to study the effects of near-weightless on other objects besides human beings. The study is focused on plants and other animals so as to establish an outer space environment that will support the development and growth of these subjects (Waber, 1998).

Last but not least international space station provides opportunities for educational tours and international joint venture. The crew aboard the international space station provides educational opportunities to students on Earth, this is done by allowing students to participate in the classroom of international space station experiments, educational demonstrations, among others. Due to the fact that the crew aboard the international space station comes from different nations the important lessons learned are forwarded to their nations and to future multi-national missions (Launius, 1998).

The assembly of the international spaceship started in 1998 and by early2009 it was considered 81 percent complete. In 1998 the first segment of the international space station, Zarya was launched, this was followed by the first three node modules, unity. The station was stagnant for the next one and half years and it was only in 2000 when the Russian model Zvezda was added. This allowed for at least three crew members to board the station. Later in the year 2000, two segment of the station’s Integrated Truss Structure (Z1 & P6) arrived. This enabled communication, guidance, electrical and power sharing via two solar array wings. In 2003, however, a space ship named Columbia hand an accident and this brought the work on the international space station to a stop.

The work on the international space station however, commenced again in 2005 when another space ship name discovery was launched. This was followed by second set of solar arrays and the third set. With these solar arrays more pressurized modules were required and this lead to the addition of harmony node and Columbia node (Bond, 2002). In 2009 more solar arrays were brought in and this marked the last pair of solar arrays. To date work on the international space station still goes on with more and more pieces of it expected to come in and be joined. The final stage of the international space station is expected to end in the year 2011 but the astronauts are still adding more equipments or segment to the station thus furthering the completion date to the year 2015.

The international space station utilizes the sun as its main source of power. The sun energy is transformed to electric energy by the solar arrays that have been installed in the international space station. In international space station, power is very important as it help pumping clean air and water in to the station. The electricity power is also very important as it illuminates the station and providing energy for pumping the oil need in the station.

In the beginning the only source of energy for the station was the solar panel fixed on the first modules (Zarya &Zvezda). The total power that is converted by the solar arrays is about 130 to 180 volts. This power is used by the whole station. In power transportation only small power lines are used so as to reduce weight in the station. Recently the Russian Science power Platform has been installed and this has enabled power sharing in the station (Neeson, 2000).

In trapping the solar energy, the arrays move as the earth moves by rotating so that they always face the sun, this is aided by the alpha gimbals while the beta gimbals held in getting the right angle for the sun rays. This ensures that there is constant energy flow in the international space station (Waber, 1998).

Bond, P. the Continuing Story of International Space Station. (2002). New York.

Waber, M. E. International Space Station Countdown to Launch. (1998). Alexandria.

Launius, R. Space Stations. The Origin of International Partnership in International Space Station. (1998). Washington.

Neeson, L. Inside the Space Station. A Fantastic First Step to Life off Earth. (2000). Santa Monica. Web.

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IvyPanda. (2021, November 5). International Space Station: Origin, Purpose, Structure, Power Supply. https://ivypanda.com/essays/international-space-station-origin-purpose-structure-power-supply/

"International Space Station: Origin, Purpose, Structure, Power Supply." IvyPanda , 5 Nov. 2021, ivypanda.com/essays/international-space-station-origin-purpose-structure-power-supply/.

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IvyPanda . 2021. "International Space Station: Origin, Purpose, Structure, Power Supply." November 5, 2021. https://ivypanda.com/essays/international-space-station-origin-purpose-structure-power-supply/.

1. IvyPanda . "International Space Station: Origin, Purpose, Structure, Power Supply." November 5, 2021. https://ivypanda.com/essays/international-space-station-origin-purpose-structure-power-supply/.

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Lesson 1: What is the International Space Station?

The International Space Station (ISS) is a big science laboratory floating in space and currently going round the Earth at a height of 400 kilometres at a speed of 28000 kilometres per hour. Five minutes after it has flown over Madrid in Spain you can see it in Berlin, Germany, 2300 kilometres away!

Europe, Japan, Russia, the United States and Canada are working together on the project. They started building it in 1998 and are still building it today it takes a long time!

When completed, the ISS will be 100 metres long and 80 metres wide: just as much as a football pitch.

The ISS opens up a new and fascinating world: living and working in space! Astronauts live on board the ISS throughout the year and perform scientific experiments free of the effects of gravity. They also look after the station’s systems and assemble its different parts sent from Earth. And all the time they get the wonderful view of our beautiful blue planet seen from space…

The research done on board the ISS is done for the benefit of the people on Earth. For the European Space Agency (ESA), projects with possible applications in the fields of health, clean energy and protection of the environment are important.

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Highlights From This Collection:

November 2000: Move-in day, but in orbit .

October 2007: Many firsts for women in a very male orbit .

November 2008: The need for caffeine was the mother of invention .

February 2010: A new window that forever changed our view of Earth .

May 2013: Chris Hadfield’s spirited song in space was no “oddity.”

July 2013: A watery near miss during a spacewalk .

October 2018: A perilous flight that reinforced Russia’s rocketry skills .

May 2020: Bob and Doug’s excellent journey .

Nov. 2, 2000

Move-in day, but in orbit.

The first space station crew — William Shepherd of NASA and Yuri Gidzenko and Sergei Krikalev of Russia — launched from Kazakhstan on a Russian Soyuz rocket on Oct. 31, 2000. “It was very foggy,” Mr. Shepherd recalled. “It was a day that NASA would not have launched to space.”

The Soyuz docked at the space station two days later. “Our main job that first day was to assemble a cable, a camera, lights and some other components to do a live television downlink,” Mr. Shepherd said. He said the three went around “with our hair on fire for about three hours trying to get this set up, because none of the components were in places where we expected to find them.”

Everything was put together, and the broadcast went as planned.

In the early days, the crew often received one set of instructions from NASA’s mission control in Houston and then later the Russian controllers in Moscow would change the plans. And vice versa.

Finally, Mr. Shepherd, the commander, made his annoyance known. He said he told the people at mission control, “We’re not doing that. We are the International Space Station. We’re a program for Houston and another one for Moscow. And we’re not going to work a plan until you get one plan for one station. So you guys get your act together.”

That, Mr. Shepherd said, “was my happiest day in space.”

— Kenneth Chang

April 28, 2001

The era of space tourism begins.

Until 2001, everyone who went to orbit was a government-employed professional astronaut. Then Dennis Tito, an American businessman, became the world’s first space tourist, buying a ticket for a seat on a Russian Soyuz to the International Space Station. Mr. Tito had originally bought a trip to the Russian Mir space station, but those plans fell through when Russia decided to deorbit Mir and focus on the I.S.S. Mr. Tito then arranged for his trip to the I.S.S., which reportedly cost $20 million. NASA objected, but Mr. Tito got his weeklong visit .

Over the next seven years, six more wealthy space tourists visited the space station. Anousheh Ansari was the only woman to buy a ticket; Charles Simonyi made two trips.

No space tourists have flown to orbit since the retirement of NASA’s space shuttles in 2011. NASA then had to buy seats on Soyuz rockets for its astronauts, and the price that Russia charges has steadily increased to $90 million, for a seat for NASA astronaut Kate Rubins on a Soyuz that launched to the space station in October.

NASA has since changed its mind about space tourists. A private company, Axiom Space, is arranging a trip that may launch as soon as next year.

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Feb. 1, 2003

A dark day on the space station, and on Earth.

The space shuttle Columbia disintegrated as it returned to Earth from orbit, killing the seven astronauts aboard. Columbia had not gone to the space station; it was instead on a free-flying science mission. But the loss reverberated through the space station program.

Donald Pettit, one of two NASA astronauts on the space station at the time, was scheduled to be picked up by another shuttle that month, but his stay was extended to May and he returned on a Soyuz instead.

“We didn’t have time to go through a grieving process like everybody on the ground, and I had three classmates on Columbia,” Dr. Pettit said. “I knew all seven of them really well.”

Construction on the space station paused for two and a half years when the remaining three space shuttles were grounded. The size of the space station crew was reduced from three to two. The only transportation available were Russian spacecraft: the Soyuz capsule for astronauts, the Progress vessel for cargo.

Oct. 19, 2007

Many firsts for women in a very male orbit.

In 2007, Peggy Whitson set off on her second trip to the space station and soon became its first woman commander. At the time, she was one of only three women to have lived on the I.S.S. Sunita Williams later commanded it in 2012, and Dr. Whitson had command again in 2017. They are the only women ever to take command of the station.

Both women are amazing, but why did it take so long to have a woman commander. And why have there been just two?

Partly it’s statistics: Only 66 women have been into space, compared to just over 500 men. When approximately 90 percent of space travelers are men, it’s easy for years to pass in which the space station is populated by all-male crews.

The record for the number of women in space simultaneously is four; that was set when the Space Shuttle Discovery visited the I.S.S. in 2010. At the time, there were nine men and four women in space. That year also was the first time that two women served on the space station simultaneously — but it took another five years for the feat to be repeated.

In 2019, Anne McClain and Christina Koch were scheduled to conduct the first all-woman spacewalk — until NASA discovered that there weren’t two spacesuits that fit both astronauts . Spacesuits are generally too large for many of the women astronauts, who are then unable to participate in all aspects of a mission .

That limitation, in turn, reduces the number of appropriate slots for women on missions, so fewer women fly, which leads to fewer commanders. Even so, Ms. McClain accomplished a first on that mission: She became the first woman to serve in two different crews with other women.

Pause for a moment to unpack that. Until last year, with only two exceptions, every woman who has lived on the I.S.S. did so with an otherwise all-male crew.

Months later, in October 2019, that all-woman spacewalk finally happened . But while Jessica Meir and Ms. Koch were the only people outside the space station, they were still outnumbered inside by men.

NASA has been working to achieve gender parity in its astronaut classes. But even if it balances out the American astronaut corps, an all-female I.S.S. crew remains a distant dream, because our international partners fly almost exclusively men.

Now the retirement of the station is on the horizon. Will a third woman ever command it?

An earlier version of this article misstated a period of time that passed before there was a repeat of two women serving on the International Space Station simultaneously. It took nearly five years, not a decade. The article also misstated the number of times more than one woman lived on the station with an all-male crew. It was twice, not once. 

How we handle corrections

— Mary Robinette Kowal

November 2008

The need for caffeine was the mother of invention.

The first patented invention made in space was a coffee cup.

In November 2008, Donald Pettit wanted to drink his tea and coffee from an open vessel. While aboard the I.S.S., he tore out a plastic divider from his Flight Data File and used the magic of fluid dynamics to create an open cup. Until then, astronauts drank everything out of a plastic bag with a straw.

We interact with coffee through aroma as much as through taste. In a bag, half of the experience was gone; Dr. Pettit said that he wanted to add “back the dimension of what it’s like to be a human being.”

When Samantha Cristoforetti, the first Italian woman in space, went to the I.S.S., the Italian Space Agency in collaboration with Lavazza and Argotec , built a zero-g espresso machine, the ISSpresso. To save her from drinking espresso in a bag, Mark Weislogel, an engineer at Portland State university, designed a true ‘zero-g cup’ based on Dr. Pettit’s invention.

In 2015, as Dr. Kjell Lindgren was preparing to launch for NASA, he had concerns about coffee.

“I love coffee and I was worried that our standard freeze-dried brew wasn’t going to cut it,” he said.

So he worked with Dr. Weislogel and Drew Wollman on a further iteration to study fluid dynamics on the station. Together, they created a brewing system that would combine some of the charm of an open cup with the essential chemistry of a good Earth-based pour-over.

This isn’t just about cups of coffee. It highlights how astronauts adapt to life in space away from Earth’s comforts. Going from a plastic binder to a pour-over demonstrates how human ingenuity will find solutions to future problems. And they also managed to drink some good cups of coffee. For science.

“Fresh brewed or freeze-dried, it was all terrific,” Dr. Lindgren said. “I still think about the coffee I drank on the I.S.S .”

March 12, 2009

Holding their breath and dodging space junk.

Earth’s orbital environment is littered with debris, from forgotten rocket boosters to scraps from broken satellites or perhaps even a camera an astronaut lost his grip on . This detritus can move at speeds of more than 20,000 miles per hour, and can collide and cause serious damage to anything that crosses its path, including the space station.

Usually, when NASA gets a warning that something might come too close — which has happened as recently as this September — it has several days to move the station out of the way. But on this day, an old satellite motor was expected to pass within about three miles of the space station, without enough warning time to maneuver the space station.

The three astronauts aboard the station took shelter in a docked Soyuz capsule for about 10 minutes as the motor zipped by. Had the debris hit the station, the astronauts would have quickly undocked and returned to Earth.

With ever more satellites being launched, space is getting more cluttered , and the dangers to astronauts in orbit will increase.

July 17, 2009

13 astronauts in a crowded house.

With the docking of the space shuttle Endeavour, 13 astronauts — the seven on the shuttle plus the space station crew of six — roamed the space station for the first time. That is the most that have ever been on the station at once.

There is plenty of space in the space station, which is as voluminous as a large passenger jet. But too many people onboard for too long would overwhelm systems like the scrubbers that prevent carbon dioxide in the air from rising to poisonous levels, highlighting the challenges that must be overcome before humanity can accomplish visions of whole societies thriving in orbit and beyond.

It was perfect timing for one of the two toilets on the space station to break and flood. Mission control told the astronauts to put an “out of service” note on it. But the astronauts were able to fix it and it was back in working order the next day.

February 2010

A new window that forever changed our view of Earth.

On Feb. 25, 2010, Terry Virts was in the cupola. The NASA astronaut and two other crewmates had finished installing this seven-windowed dome on the space station an hour earlier.

He had opened the covers to give everyone on board their first view of “the intensely beautiful light from our planet,” he wrote in his autobiography. “ All of a sudden the entire module was bathed in a pink-red glow. ”

The station had passed over Australia for the first time, and the iron-red soil of the continent reflected up into space.

When the I.S.S. was conceived, the cupola was intended to provide the crew with a view of the exterior of the space station, to make it easier to maneuver its robotic arm. But it also provided astronauts with “ an umbilical cord connecting the crew on the station to Mother Earth ,” as described by Doriana Buffa, the cupola project manager for Alenia Spazio, the European company that built it.

When off-duty, many astronauts float in the cupola watching the vistas scroll below.

“Until the cupola module was added, our only way to see the Earth was through single, portal-like windows,” said Cady Coleman, a NASA astronaut who traveled to the station in 2010. “Your favorite places on Earth would flash by the tiny window so quickly, you couldn’t take them in. But from the middle of this dome, you can watch Earth come and go and feel like a person in your own little spacecraft, with the best window imaginable for looking at our world.”

Especially beautiful were the nighttime views of Earth with the aurora borealis. In the early years, those views were reserved for astronauts, because the rate at which Earth spun past meant that night photos were blurred. But Donald Pettit, a NASA astronaut on the station in 2012, rigged “a barn-door tracker” to be able to send the first crisp photos of our nighttime planet back from the I.S.S.

Those views do not show national borders. Astronauts report feeling a cognitive shift as they watch the fragility of our planet below them, something Ron Garan, a NASA astronaut, calls the “orbital perspective.” It shapes them even after they return to Earth.

A decade after he helped install it, Mr. Virts said, “The cupola is the place where astronauts can connect with our planet and the universe; you realize that you are ‘up here’ and Earth is ‘over there.’ It’s a profound realization, which shapes your perspective on nearly everything.”

May 16, 2011

The second-to-last space shuttle mission essentially marked completion of construction of the space station.

“That was a very momentous moment for us all,” said Michael T. Suffredini, then the space station program manager at NASA. “Because it went from that part where we saw renderings to where we could take a picture of the whole space station.”

Seeing less clearly with squashed eyes.

One of the driving goals of the space station program is to understand the long-term health effects of living in an environment where everything, including everything inside the astronauts’ bodies, floats.

Some effects, such as the weakening of bones, have long been known. (That particular problem is thought to be largely counteracted through drugs and daily exercise.)

But in 2012, scientists were surprised to discover that some astronauts were experiencing changes with their vision , and had flattening of their eyeballs or swelling of their optic nerves.

The issue is not fully understood, much less solved. Recent research suggests that fluid pressure in the cranium is not much higher in a zero-g environment, but on Earth, brains get a break when we lie down to sleep. It could be a major concern on distant missions to Mars.

May 25, 2012

SpaceX makes its first special delivery to low earth orbit.

SpaceX is now a dominant player in the business of launching things to orbit . But back when it won a NASA contract to develop a robotic cargo ship to the space station, the company had yet to launch its Falcon 9 rocket.

During its first trip, glitches in navigation sensors on the Dragon capsule delayed its arrival by a couple of hours.

But since that trip, SpaceX now does regular cargo runs to and from the space station, and NASA’s investment enabled SpaceX to build a thriving business launching commercial satellites.

Chris Hadfield’s spirited song in space was no “oddity.”

Although Chris Hadfield’s performance of David Bowie’s “Space Oddity” ranks among the International Space Station’s most iconic moments, the Canadian astronaut insists he is not a “backwards looking guy.” He prefers to anticipate the next set of challenges in space.

“It seems surreal that we could be settling the moon,” Mr. Hadfield said. “But playing ‘Space Oddity’ from the space station? For a Canadian kid who was born before the very first astronaut even flew in space, that’s pretty surreal. And yet that happened so far just in my lifetime.”

Released in May 2013, Mr. Hadfield’s rendition really made the grade. David Bowie himself praised it as “possibly the most poignant version of the song ever created.”

The video hinted at the station’s potential as a stage and film set. Recent talks between NASA and Tom Cruise suggest that the actor might shoot a movie there, a reflection of the agency’s push to open the I.S.S. to more commercial activities. But if Mr. Cruise makes the trip, it won’t be easy.

“You have limited power, extremely limited circumstances, and he’s not going to be able to bring any production crew up there,” Mr. Hadfield said.

The astronaut had to record the vocal and guitar parts in rare pockets of spare time, although he credits an international ensemble of musicians and contributors with the smashing success of the final version with full instrumentation.

“The wider point of the video, as far as I could see it, was highlighting the multinational contribution of the I.S.S.,” said Elizabeth Howell, an expert on Canada’s space program .

“Hadfield gives us a subtle tour of the I.S.S., highlighting the contributions of many nations,” she added. “And the views of Earth you see in the video are of Earth as a globe, not Earth highlighted in a single region.”

The contributions of international partners have gone beyond sending crew to orbit. Canada’s robotic arm was key to assembling the station; Japan’s Kibo module is an essential orbital science lab, and the European cupola has provided an unparalleled view of Earth.

It’s fitting that Mr. Hadfield, the first Canadian to walk in space and the first Canadian commander of the I.S.S., created such a resonant expression of the station’s most enduring legacy — the awesome power of human collaboration.

“That song isn’t really done justice by just one voice and a guitar,” he said. “It’s a lovely, big, powerful orchestral song.”

— Becky Ferreira

July 16, 2013

A watery near miss during a spacewalk.

Through 20 years of astronauts on the International Space Station, there have been no major accidents or injuries. The closest brush with disaster occurred during a spacewalk by Luca Parmitano, an Italian astronaut.

About 45 minutes into the spacewalk, which aimed to prepare the station for a new Russian laboratory module, Mr. Parmitano reported feeling wetness at the back of his neck and head. Because of a clogged filter, water had started filling up in Mr. Parmitano’s helmet. By the time he was able to get back into the space station, there was one-quarter to one-third of a gallon in his helmet, and water filled his eyes, ears, nose and part of his mouth, and he was having trouble breathing.

Video showed his crewmates fervidly working to free him from the suit after he had finally returned inside the station.

“Karen unfastens my helmet and carefully lifts it over my head,” he wrote after the incident . “Fyodor and Pavel immediately pass me a towel and I thank them without hearing their words because my ears and nose will still be full of water for a few minutes more.”

Astronauts have conducted more than 200 spacewalks — extravehicular activities, or E.V.A.s in NASA talk — from the International Space Station. That dwarfs the number that had been conducted up until then.

“We had so many E.V.A.s as part of construction,” said Michael T. Suffredini, the NASA space station manager from 2005 to 2015. “We’ve done so few up until that point. That was one of our big concerns.”

March 2, 2016

(Almost) a year in space.

Scott Kelly of NASA and Mikhail Kornienko of the Russian space agency landed in Kazakhstan after 340 days on the International Space Station. That did not set a record for consecutive days in space; a Russian astronaut, Valery Polyakov, holds that distinction with 437 days on the Mir space station in 1994 and 1995.

But this time there was more careful tracking of the health of the two astronauts to determine the long-term effects of living in space. Scott Kelly also had a convenient comparison on Earth: his twin brother Mark, a retired astronaut who is running to be Arizona’s next senator .

Genetic comparisons between Scott and Mark Kelly revealed some changes in terms of which genes were turned on and off as result of weightlessness and other stresses of spaceflight. In an interview, Mr. Kelly said he has not experienced any noticeable changes as a result of his long stay in space. But scientists still pore over the data, hoping to find clues to what might happen during journeys to Mars or long stays on the moon.

Inflating the station with a soft-walled expansion.

If you think of space as Earth’s backyard, imagine the Bigelow Expandable Activity Module as the bouncy castle you put up for a birthday party.

In 2016, two astronauts attached the new compartment to the rest of the space station, just off the Tranquility node that hosts environmental systems. Made with inflating textile walls, it is seen by some as a design for future space station construction.

Aleksei Ovchinin, who helped install the space station’s first inflatable room, said he felt “a little concerned” when he floated in and felt the cloth walls, soft to the touch, the only thing separating him from the void of space.

“It’s still there, and it still works,” he said, although it is used as storage shed, with the hatch usually closed, lest it spring a leak.

But he imagines something like it “could be used for a lunar station ” in the future, highlighting the space station’s utility as a test bed for technologies that could help future human colonists of the moon and other worlds beyond our own.

— Andrew E. Kramer

Oct. 11, 2018

A perilous flight that reinforced Russia’s rocketry skills.

A routine trip to send new crew members to the space station became one of the most dramatic moments in the recent history of Russia’s space program .

Two astronauts, Aleksey N. Ovchinin, a Russian, and Nick Hague, an American, were blasting off from Russia’s Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. They were traveling in a variant of Soyuz, Russia’s workhorse capsule that has been lofting humans to space since 1967. After the space shuttle retired in 2011, and until SpaceX launched its crewed spacecraft this year, the Soyuz had become astronauts’ only ride to the I.S.S.

Suddenly, one of the capsule’s old-school, analog lights lit up red, indicating the rocket had failed. Video from inside the capsule showed the moment when the spacecraft jolted in distress.

The emergency escape system separated the ship from the exploding rocket about 31 miles above Earth’s surface. Mr. Ovchinin then flew manually for a few moments to align the capsule and plunged back down, experiencing seven times the normal pull of gravity.

“It was like having a cement block on your chest weighing seven times your weight,” he said.

Both he and Mr. Hague were unharmed and later got back on the bronco that had bucked them off, making the trip to the space station in 2019. The incident was the only time the Soyuz’s emergency escape system has been used during dozens of flight to the station.

While it was the most serious close call for the Russians in the 20 years of the space station’s operation, it also showed the reliability of their approach, which involves flying rockets and capsules that are modernized only incrementally. SpaceX’s 21st-century ride to orbit has impressed astronauts with its capabilities , but Soyuz will continue carrying crews with the engineering and ingenuity that has kept it useful for more than five decades.

May 30, 2020

Bob and Doug’s excellent journey.

Two NASA astronauts, Robert L. Behnken and Douglas G. Hurley , lifted off from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida. It was the first time that people headed to orbit in an American rocket launching from the United States since the previous space shuttle mission, in 2011.

More remarkable was the rocket and the capsule , which was designed and operated not by NASA but by a private company: Elon Musk’s SpaceX. Mr. Behnken and Mr. Hurley named the capsule Endeavour, a tip of the hat to the former space shuttle the astronauts first traveled to space aboard.

The next day, the Dragon capsule docked at the space station.

“As you are performing your inventory, please collect all your food and water bottle trash,” Anna Menon, a SpaceX mission controller in Hawthorne, Calif., reminded the two men before they exited their spacecraft.

Mr. Hurley and Mr. Behnken returned to Earth in August, and four more astronauts are scheduled to head to orbit this month in the next Crew Dragon flight.

By choosing a commercial provider, NASA hopes to save money and spur development of new space businesses , as SpaceX can also sell seats on its Dragon capsule to non-NASA customers . (NASA has also selected another private company, Boeing, whose capsule’s first flight with passengers has been delayed, likely until next year ).

”This is really just the beginning,” Gwynne Shotwell, SpaceX’s president, said after the successful splashdown. “We are starting the journey of bringing people regularly to and from low Earth orbit and onto the moon and then ultimately onto Mars.”

Be informed. Be challenged. Be inspired.

Essay: The International Space Station at 20 offers hope and a template for future cooperation

• WENDY WHITMAN COBB David Adams
• November 6, 2020
• No Comments

WENDY WHITMAN COBB, a professor at the US Air Force School of Advanced Air and Space Studies, looks at the achievements of the International Space Station – both actual and symbolic…

On 2nd November, the International Space Station celebrated its 20th anniversary of continuous human occupation. With astronauts and cosmonauts from around the world working together, the ISS has demonstrated humankind’s ability to not only live and work in space but cooperate with one another. This remarkable achievement is significant as countries and companies around the world look to expand space exploration beyond Earth orbit.

The path to this anniversary was not easy; like most things done in space, the cost and the difficulty were high. Supported by the Reagan administration as part of the Cold War competition with the Soviet Union, the ISS began its life in the 1980s . Following the Challenger disaster in 1986, planning fell by the wayside as costs increased. Facing delays and cost overruns, the space station – then known as Freedom – was nearly cancelled by the House of Representatives in the early 1990s. While already bringing international partners aboard to lower costs, the Clinton administration invited Russia to participate, leveraging the station as a tool of foreign policy between former adversaries.

A STS-134 crew member on the space shuttle Endeavour took this photo of the ISS after the station and shuttle began their separation. PICTURE:  NASA

What began as competition has turned into fruitful cooperation not just between Russia and the United States but Canada, Japan, Italy, the European Space Agency and over 100 other countries . As a space policy expert, I argue that the achievements of the ISS to date are indeed significant, but they also point the way ahead for cooperation and commercialisation in space.

Accomplishments and significance By the numbers , the International Space Station is indeed impressive. At 357 feet in length, it is just one yard shy of an American football field. More than 241 individuals from 19 countries have visited, and at least 3,000 research projects have taken place on the ISS. The ISS is the third brightest object in the night sky and can often be spotted worldwide. Even Lego has immortalised the station with its own building set.

“The ISS has proven that humans can live and work in space. These experiences are key as countries look to longer term exploration. The ISS has led to advances in understanding how the human body reacts to sustained microgravity and increased exposure to radiation. Other experiments have allowed researchers to study materials and chemicals in a microgravity environment. Astronauts have also learned how to grow food on the station, leading to insights on how plants grow on Earth.”

The ISS has proven that humans can live and work in space. These experiences are key as countries look to longer term exploration. The ISS has led to advances in understanding how the human body reacts to sustained microgravity and increased exposure to radiation. Other experiments have allowed researchers to study materials and chemicals in a microgravity environment. Astronauts have also learned how to grow food on the station, leading to insights on how plants grow on Earth .

These accomplishments have not come without criticism. It cost more than $US100 billion to construct; some have questioned the amount and value of the science that has been conducted. More recently, limits on the the number of crew residing on the station have reduced the amount of time available for scientific experiments.

However, perhaps one of the most significant legacies of the ISS is the long-term cooperation that has enabled it. While the US and Russia are the countries most closely identified with the program, Canada, Japan and the European Space Agency also take part. While not always easy , sustained cooperation in a place where operations are difficult and costly is impressive.

The official portrait of the Expedition 1 crew (from left to right, Sergei K Krikalev, William M Shepherd and Yuri Pavlovich), the first humans to live aboard the International Space Station. Arriving on station on 2nd November, 2000, they were the first of 64 crews to live and work aboard the orbital laboratory. PICTURE:  NASA/JHUAPL/SwRI

For the US and Russia in particular, this achievement is unique. While there was some cooperation between the two during the Cold War, the ISS is the first major space program in which the two have worked together. Even as relations between Russia and the US have deteriorated over the past several years, the partnership on the ISS has continued. While scientific and space cooperation does not solve all terrestrial issues, it can strengthen other diplomatic relationships .

A D V E R T I S E M E N T

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The future of the ISS Though turning 20 may not seem like a milestone, for a complicated piece of machinery operating in the dangerous environment of space, the ISS is approaching old age. In recent years, it has suffered several problems, most recently an air leak in the Russian module , Zvezda. However, recent assessments support continued operation of the ISS for at least another 10 years.

“Though turning 20 may not seem like a milestone, for a complicated piece of machinery operating in the dangerous environment of space, the ISS is approaching old age. In recent years, it has suffered several problems, most recently an air leak in the Russian module, Zvezda. However, recent assessments support continued operation of the ISS for at least another 10 years.”

In that time, the ISS will likely see an increase in commercial activity. Recently, cosmetics company Estee Lauder launched one of its products to the station to be featured in a commercial filmed there. SpaceX is looking to make the ISS a tourist destination following NASA’s 2019 decision making it easier for space tourists to visit. Another space company, Axiom, recently received a contract to build a commercial module to be added to the ISS in 2024. The module would give additional living and working space to astronauts aboard the station as well as serve as the starting point for a future commercial space station.

Wendy Whitman Cobb  is professor of strategy and security studies at the  US Air Force School of Advanced Air and Space Studies . This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article .

• International Space Station , ISS , NASA , space , space exploration

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The architectural relevance of the International Space Station

28 October 2016 By Rachel Armstrong Books

To develop new design tactics, we must elevate the International Space Station’s significance beyond the performance of machines

Representing seven years of careful research by David Nixon , International Space Station: Architecture Beyond Earth is clearly a labour of love. Elegantly composed, it achieves its stated aims to provide a readable, historical and jargon-free technical account of this epic project, while wonderful images bring us close to a structure that cannot – like most great engineering works on Earth – be visited.

Yet it is hard not to respond critically to this undisputedly excellent work, owing to the polite neutrality maintained throughout, especially when it comes to the role of design and human experience in the celebration of such an iconic project, ‘a supreme engineering achievement but … also a great architectural one’. [p32] Indeed, following a diligent history of the station, at about a third of the way through, the fascinating – if rather saccharine – first-hand account of being on the station offered by NASA astronaut Nicole Stott is neglected for the technical, political and economic triumph of the work. ‘Based on my time there, I can tell you that the Station is awesome, and living and working there is incredible. All expectations I had before flying were exceeded once I got there. Everything from spacewalking to routine maintenance is part of the amazing adventure in space.’ [p18]

International Space Sation: Architecture Beyond Earth

Source: Nasa

It’s all so ‘awesome … incredible … amazing …’ – language which may be expected from a wide-eyed teenager on a first visit, but from a highly trained, professional astronaut, a more nuanced and insightful response might be hoped for. Of course, this is evidently an endorsed account, a corporate articulation of the ‘most ambitious habitat contrived by mankind to support its existence beyond earth’. [p39]

Nonetheless, Nixon does not fail to deliver a compelling narrative. We learn that the original vision for the station can be traced back to a short science-fiction story, The Brick Moon written by Edward Everett Hale in 1870 and conceived as a ‘space lighthouse’ that would be visible to all ships at sea. The project was approved by Ronald Reagan in 1984 as a multi-functional space with ambitions to provide a research laboratory, a transport node, a servicing facility, an assembly platform, a manufacturing plant, a storage depot, an experimental space for studying human off-world habitation and a staging base [p31] – a hard sell on convincing investors and taxpayers of its ultimate worth. In 2000, against all the odds, the ISS became the first space habitat that has been continually occupied by, on average, six people.

‘The original vision for the station can be traced back to a short science-fiction story’

The role of ‘design’ in space architecture and the actual human experience, however, is not taken up, being supposedly of lesser value than the engineering feat of making an iconic object in orbit, which scrapes lightly over a lurking wraith – the need for human spaceflight at all. When design is mentioned, it’s either as a symbol of modernity, or as a neutralising factor that mops up the oddities of human encounters within an extraordinary space. Lacking any critical engagement with the project, and untroubled by any poetic lyricism, descriptions sometimes read as brochure captions, or awe-filled museum voice-overs: ‘The International Space Station is a very stylish design … the way it sparkles in the sunlight from a distance … [as] … an enormous jewel. Up close, its intricate composition of precisely fabricated metal parts in a wide array of shapes and sizes takes the Machine Aesthetic of the Modern Movement in architecture to new heights. If we could visit it and touch it, we would be awed and transfixed. The International Space Station exhibits all the characteristics of firmitas, utilitas and venustas .’ [p39]

Built by aerospace engineers and strung together by political grit, the ISS is a very different kind of construction to the iconic buildings that shape our contemporary city skylines. Indeed, the ISS is ‘space architecture’ according to a semiotic technicality – simply because it is built in ‘space’. This is an opportunity for lively debate, particularly with respect to the role of architects in space colonisation, the human experience within the environments and the value of sending people into extraterrestrial realms for increasingly lengthy periods, with a longer-term aim of space settlement.

Today, the ISS fulfils only one of the functions it was intended to perform – a space laboratory. This is where the Colgate smile that is maintained throughout the account begins to wear thin, and betrays much messier and more interesting insights into what kind of structure the ISS ‘really’ is. In fact, the human experience screams loudest and Stott concedes a critical role for design that goes way beyond Nixon’s argument for triumphalist iconography: ‘I give huge thanks to the designers who convinced NASA to include windows’ [p21], a feature that was initially resisted, because of the implicit technical challenges. Without portals to observe the incredible reality of traveling at 17,500mph around the Earth, orbiting 16 times a day, glimpsing incredible views of the planetary surface and experiencing a sunrise and sunset every 45 minutes, the ISS would be a much diminished facility. Specifically, there would be no ISS planetary observation, which is the most celebrated purpose of the station, and much less of an ‘awe’ inspiring experience for its inhabitants.

‘Without windows to observe the incredible reality of traveling at 17,500mph around the Earth, the ISS would be a much diminished facility’

Nixon’s assertion that the ISS fulfils all the cardinal principles of good architecture, which were established over 2,000 years ago in the reign of the Roman Emperor Caesar Augustus, is telling. Given Stott’s first-hand revelations of the difficulties of living in weightlessness, the inappropriateness of assessing third millennial architectures according to these ancient values is spotlighted.

Source: David Nixon

Stott unconsciously reveals the attitude of the space industry towards design through appropriating its aims with interiority: ‘… there is a difference in the interior design and “feel” of the US-built and Russian-built modules … the US modules are somewhat sterile, with a lot of white panels and exposed cables and equipment, while the Russian modules are what I would describe as “cosy”, with a plush tan fabric covering the major surfaces. The smell of the modules is distinctive too – neither smells bad, just different.’ [p20]

‘The US modules are somewhat sterile while the Russian modules are what I would describe as “cosy”’

So, the ISS is smelly. Even space itself is, ‘sweet … similar to that of an overheating car radiator’ [p20] and I am sure inhabitants acclimatise to such peculiarities. And as an aside, personal care is one of the most frequent questions that astronauts are asked, yet ‘toilet’, ‘bathroom’, ‘menstruation’ and ‘personal hygiene’, do not appear in the index (Here is a list of FAQs by the Canadian Space Agency http://www.asc-csa.gc.ca/eng/astronauts/faq.asp , and here, British astronaut Tim Peake answers ‘the big question’ about how astronauts pee https://uk.news.yahoo.com/space-toilets-astronaut-tim-peake-114547301.html ).

Stott asserts that weightlessness is ‘liberating’ right before observing, ‘organization is key in zero-g. Hence the prolific use of Velcro and bungees’. [p18] In other words, if you let your personal items go, you might not find them again for months, not even down the back of a sofa. Not particularly ‘liberating’ – at the very least highly inconvenient when you’re used to Earth’s gravity.

Although it is not explicitly stated, being in orbit is an extremely challenging place to live. Beyond the obvious health-threatening onset of muscle weakness and osteoporosis, other strange bodily adaptations occur – such as the need for prehensile use of feet to grip surfaces with [p20] which results in callouses – let alone the troubling sound of metal creaking like an old ship as external temperatures swing wildly.

‘Space is not a faceless frontier, but a screen onto which we project our current modes of living’

These issues of living, life, inhabitation and design are critical to our times. Space is not a faceless frontier, but a screen onto which we project our current modes of living and ‘being in the world’. Nixon’s documentation provides a pressing opportunity to think about our modes of habitation and assumptions for how we might flourish, not just away from Earth’s surface, but also upon the Earth right here and now.

The future of the ISS is murky after 2024, where space missions to Mars will be on NASA’s agenda. There are plans afoot to make better and fuller use of it as a staging station, and with privatisation and funding issues looming, who knows what the ISS will become – perhaps a studio for reality TV.

Architecture Beyond Earth is an unapologetically modern view of the development of space, with industrial ambitions. Its ‘values’ gesture towards new economies, markets and opportunities in resource plundering. Moreover, space junk becomes a real thing. In other words, all those issues that we are trying to ameliorate here on Earth with unfettered global-scale industrialisation are being ignored as we occupy extreme spaces. Perhaps projects like the ISS will become iconic of the kinds of projects that we do not wish to perpetuate.

‘All those issues that we are trying to ameliorate here on Earth with unfettered global-scale industrialisation are being ignored as we occupy extreme spaces’

This book does everything that it claims it sets out to do. Yet, given the scholarly diligence that has been invested in recording the construction of our very own ‘space house’, I hope that designers, artists, architects, cultural historians and all kinds of teratogenic opinion-makers, chew on its contents and elevate its significance beyond the performance of machines and the spoils of the enterprise, and continue to read into the peculiarities that leak out of the spandrels between its highly presentable spaces. It is time to use these opportunities to consider how we can construct different kinds of habitats, with biospheres and ‘worlding’ as the primary apparatuses for living. Such life-promoting architectures may not only help us to develop design tactics and material programmes for living in extreme environments like space, but also help us to better dwell upon our boiling, drowning, polluted world, so that we may turn the paradigm for inhabiting our spaces around – where there are people, there is life. Much have we accomplished – and we should celebrate our achievements. But there is still a long way to go.

International Space Station: Architecture Beyond Earth

Author: David Nixon

Publisher: Circa Press

October 2016

Since 1896, The Architectural Review has scoured the globe for architecture that challenges and inspires. Buildings old and new are chosen as prisms through which arguments and broader narratives are constructed. In their fearless storytelling, independent critical voices explore the forces that shape the homes, cities and places we inhabit.

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Astronomy: International Space Station

History of iss, use of the international space station, what it is like to be on the international space station.

The space station operating at an international level, known as ISS, is a partnership operation comprised of several countries with a common objective of conducting space explorations that take place within the Station. ISS mainly focuses on laboratory research which is regarded as among the challenging political as well as technological tasks that has ever been undertaken by humankind.

ISS’s engagements generally assist humanity to have an outward focus which is directed to the heavens. Despite the fact that ISS has achieved a lot in its explorations, its operations have been faced by a wide range of negative critics particularly those regarding the amount of money invested in it.

For instance, countries in US have invested so much money with ISS which some people argue that it is misplaced and could have been invested in more sensible and productive areas.

These critics are accused by ISS supporters for not considering the fact that the more than fifty billion dollars used in space station construction has greatly contributed to upgrading of economic status of countries that took part in its construction. The large sums of money also supported job creation for workers who are highly skilled, particularly US-based engineers. (Branley, 2000)

The ideas concerning space station construction has their history dated back in Civil War era. In nineteen sixty nine, Edward Hale wrote an article called “Brisk Moon: in which he described a satellite that aided navigation in the sea.

This design paved way for NASA, where space station construction would later be conducted. The technology of rocketry experienced great advancements at the peak of Second World War and this was emphasized in nineteen ninety five when Wernher Von, a rocket engineer, moved from Germany to US to assist US army in making of rockets.

It is during rocket construction that he formulated a plan for space station which he described as point from which planet earth can be observed and from which researchers can also conduct laboratory tests. Soviets implemented this idea by launching Sputnik 1, which triggered space competition during Cold War where US was competing with Soviet Union.

This competition is presently replaced by a situation where Soviet Union cooperates very well with US in space explorations conducted through ISS. After competing over the party that would come up with the best model for conducting space explorations, US decided to combine efforts with Soviet Union in order to come up with a very effective model which they referred to as Space Shuttle.

The two parties managed to construct a space shuttle from which they realized that they could as well come up with a Space station. This particular task was founded in nineteen eighty-two, including a proposal welcoming the participation of international parties in construction as well as the development of the Station. (Branley, 2000)

In nineteen eighty five, several countries including Canada and Japan as well as a European based Space Agency signed a memorandum with US where they were supposed to work towards the Station’s construction. It was in nineteen ninety-six when these partners agreed on respective contributions that each party was to make towards the Station’s hardware-specific particulars.

Canada took the role of building a manipulator system which closely resembled another one that it had made for Space Shuttle. Europe combined with Japan to make contributions related to laboratory modules but the three parties did not make formal agreements until the year nineteen eighty eight.

Contributions made by these partners remain intact in the current structure of ISS. In nineteen eighty-eight, the Station was named “freedom” by Ronald Reagan, and he gave the mandate to undertake modifications on its design such that the cost would be considerably reduced. The situation where the US cooperates very well with Russia was reinforced when it decided to purchase Soyuz vehicles from Russia which were to serve as lifeboats.

Those lifeboats still exist within ISS and they are known as Soyuz vehicles for transferring crew members. US government realized that the cost for Space Station construction was still very high and President Clinton ordered for another redesigning. This was to allow for more cost reduction as well as inclusion of more international parties in the stations’ development.

A new design known as Alpha was chosen by NASA in order motivate the teams’ innovation efforts. The newly acquired form of Space Station comprised of hardware designs that were originally designed for “Freedom”, taking a representation of seventy five percent.

Thereafter, Russians supplied major hardware parts with the largest portion being the one that had been designed for another program called Mir 2. This was when the Station was given another name to mark its new structures and design and was called ISS.

ISS has its main use as facilitation of research as it enables researchers to explore various issues in space and also conduct tests while still in space. A number of fields have been researched upon including physics, biology, and medicine, leading to extensive advances in particular areas.

Researches conducted within ISS create new financial opportunities, including the development of advanced and energy-saving consumer products. Future research practices within ISS promises to deliver more advanced consumer products, including the development of drugs that are more powerful, less toxic, and purer as well.

These drugs are aimed at providing treatment to chronic diseases like cancer, diabetes, and disorders of the immune system. Research practices conducted within ISS comprise three different research types, including astronomical research, where scientific experiments are conducted.

The creation of crystals as well as pharmaceuticals is among the variety of scientific experiments conducted in ISS, where better kinds are manufactured compared to those manufactured on planet earth. In the creation of crystals, researchers make use of a Bioprocessing Apparatus called CGBA, which serves the purpose of a refrigerator.

This Apparatus stabilizes the temperatures of biological samples enabling researchers to use them for experiments within ISS when they are still fresh. Another special apparatus known as PCG-SITES provides cool temperatures for growing crystals that are selected from microgravity proteins in order to use them for analysis, later conducted on earth.

When protein crystals are preserved in controlled temperatures, they form plants like soybeans, which are normally of a higher quality than other protein plants grown on earth. Research studies conducted on the quality of proteins produced from crystals reveal that the resultant crystals grown onboard have a better structure compared to that of similar crystals grown on earth.

This analysis contributes to a better understanding of proteins, viruses as well as enzymes in their different occurrences that later contribute to the development of drugs as well as a clear understanding of life fundamentals. (Meachen, 2005)

Another research type conducted within ISS is biological research, which mainly deals with the human body and effects that exposure to gravity has on it. When human beings are exposed to low gravity for quite a long period of time, their body muscles tend to weaken, and they develop a situation referred to as atrophy.

The heart system is equally affected where the amount of work conducted by the heart reduces considerably to the point that veins, as well as arteries, are unable to hold and pump enough blood to other body parts. This dysfunction is normally referred to as; reduced functioning of cardiovascular. Bone density of the human body is also affected when bones of human beings are exposed to reduced levels of gravity for long periods.

Bone density reduces to the point that human beings find it hard to support their body weight leading to overall body weakness. Studies on these effects that exposure to low gravity has on human bodies greatly contribute to a clear understanding of the manner in which human systems function as well as ailments that affect human bodies.

ISS also contributes to gravitational biological research by providing a facility that is able to imitate the gravity of the earth. This allows a comparison of different effects taking place on the human body to what could result if the human body was exposed to higher gravity levels. (Clement, 2006)

Research relating to physics is also conducted within ISS, where the manner in which fluids behave when exposed to different gravity levels is studied. When fluids are exposed to low levels of gravity, they experience difficulties changing from a liquid to solid since available temperatures are not favorable for sedimentation. Microgravity also makes it difficult for fluids to flow smoothly, like it is the case on earth.

This behavior by fluids allows researchers to carry out a study on specific forces of gravity that hinder fluids from flowing as usual and also from undergoing sedimentation. This particular kind of research field is called fluid physics, and it is getting a lot of contributions from gravitational studies in relation to fluid behavior.

The manner in which fluids burn is equally affected by exposure to low gravity since convection currents that support burning are reduced by gravity. These are normally the currents necessitating the rise of warm fluids in the form of vapor and sinking of cool fluids on earth. When the currents are reduced, it becomes difficult for fluids to heat since the cycle is not supported.

Physics research studies the relationship between gravity levels and burning, which is also affected by a reduction of convectional currents. The shape of the flame is altered since warm air cannot rise while cool air sinks in order to allow combustion to take place. This gives way for combustion experiments where gravity forces involved in combustion processes are studied, which could not have been possible on earth.

The research field in which these combustion tests are conducted is referred to as combustion science, where a study on molten metals is conducted more thoroughly than it is the case on earth. Researchers conducting physics-related experiments in ISS plan to come up with better structures of metal alloys as well as other control materials like computer chips.

Therefore, a wide range of researches is conducted within ISS, and they have a great contribution to advancements in various scientific fields, including physics, biology as well as medicine. The group of researchers carrying out these researches in ISS are normally referred to as crew members, which is the name given to those people carried by space station at a particular time. (Harvey, 2006)

People boarding ISS are normally referred to as crew members, and the current model of ISS has the potential of holding at least three members at a time. In the year two thousand and four, it was predicted that within the period of one decade, partners involved in the construction of ISS would have managed to expand ISS such that it will be able to hold more members.

Among the ISS expansion plans was the deal where space agencies would have come up with an ISS model that would be in a position to hold about six members by the year two thousand and nine. The number of members held by ISS is determined by space available in ISS in order to hold more Soyuz Vehicles.

ISS’s size by the year two thousand and four could only hold three Soyuz vehicles meaning that only three members would be accommodated. The need to include more members in ISS came with extra adjustments, including installation of logistics allowing for more supplies such as water and food to cater to the increased crew. The systems needed to be well fixed to handle more people, which would avoid accidents due to system overloading.

The expeditions taken through ISS take about six months, and they are controlled by various expedition commanders. About twenty expeditions have been taken since ISS began its operations, and up to the sixteenth expedition, the space station was able to accommodate a maximum of three members.

However, there has been a possibility of having six members on board, such as in the sixteenth expedition. The twentieth expedition, which took place in the month of May, the year two thousand and nine, was the first official expedition in which six members were allowed in ISS. (Rycroft, 2000)

ISS makes use of the GMT time zone, which provides it with different time references where time zones have a difference of one hour between each other. This is essential to crew members since they fly to different locations with varying time zones, which are well catered for by GMT.

Crew members ensure that they cover space station’s windows during the night in order to experience darkness like the one experienced on earth during the night. These adjustments are fixed since ISS encounters an extraordinary situation of sixteen sunsets and the same number of sunrises within the twenty-four hours. Crew members begin their day at six o’clock in the morning, where they undertake inspections followed by breakfast at eight o’clock.

The day’s activities pick from there and stop at one in the afternoon for lunch. The day’s activities are ended at seven-thirty in the evening where dinner is taken, followed by an evening conference, after which the crew goes to sleep. (Engelhardt, 1998)

It is clear that; ISS development has taken quite some time in order to acquire its current form. Combined efforts by international partners have greatly contributed to each development. The main purpose of ISS is to allow research activities to be carried out where a number of scientific fields are advanced, including biology, physics as well as medicine.

The model that had been in use for the past years since ISS began its operations had the capability of holding a maximum of three members with the exception of the sixteenth expedition when it carried six members.

Contributions that have led to its expansion have allowed it to carry at least six people from the month of May the year two thousand and nine. More researches, as well as developments, continue to be undertaken in ISS, which greatly contribute to overall scientific knowledge and technological advancements worldwide. (Branley, 2000)

Branley F. (2000): The International Space Station, New York: HarperCollins Publishers pp 14-17

Clement G. (2006): Fundamentals of Space Biology; Research on Cells, Animals, and Plants in Space, Oregon: Springer pp 49-54

Engelhardt W. (1998): The International Space Station: A Journey into Space: Michigan, Tessloff Pub USA Inc pp 37-42

Harvey B. (2006): Space Exploration, Oregon: Springer pp 29-35

Meachen D. (2005): The International Space Station, Minneapolis: Compass Point Books pp 50-54

Rycroft M. (2000): International space station; the next space marketplace, Oregon: Springer pp 20-26

Space Station Costs Come under Fire, retrieved 24 august 2001, from NASA;

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General Studies

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International Space Station

Quest for upsc cse panels.

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GS-III: Science & Technology

Prelims: General Science

Mains: Science and Technology- Awareness in the fields of IT, Space, Computers, Robotics, Nano-technology and Biotechnology.

The International Space Station is a large spacecraft in orbit around Earth. It serves as a home where crews of astronauts and cosmonauts live. The space station is also a unique science laboratory. It is a unique international collaboration among five space agencies: NASA, Roscosmos, JAXA, ESA, and CSA. The International Space Station is made up of many different modules, each of which has a specific purpose.

The first module of the ISS Zarya control module was launched in 1998, and the station was fully assembled in 2011. The International Space Station has been continuously occupied by astronauts ever since and is expected to remain in orbit until 2030.

About the International Space Station

The International Space Station (ISS) is the largest man-made object in space launched on November 20, 1998 . It serves as a habitat for astronauts in space. Since 2011, the ISS has been continuously inhabited.

• Participating States: ISS is a collaborative project of the United States ( NASA ), Russia's ( Roscosmos ), Europe's ( ESA ), Japan's ( JAXA ), and Canada's ( CSA ) space agencies.
• Orbit: The International Space Station is in orbit about 400 kilometres above Earth.
• Speed: It travels around Earth at a speed of about 28,000 kilometres per hour. This means that it orbits Earth about every 90 minutes.
• Objectives: To expand our knowledge about space and microgravity and promote new scientific research. It also serves as an example of international cooperation.

Significance of the International Space Station

The International Space Station stood as one of the world's most successful examples of international diplomacy, peace, and collaboration.

• It serves as a testbed for long-duration spaceflight and helps in studying the effects of extended space missions on the human body, which is invaluable for crewed missions to Mars and the Moon.
• Space Medicine Research: The space environment provided insights into treatment for age-related impairments like Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease and cance r in the immune system due to the mimicking of microgravity conditions present in cells.
• Human Spaceflight Expertise: The International Space Station has served as a training ground for astronauts preparing for future space missions to Mars and the Moon.

International Space Station - Important Discoveries

Apart from Drug development, the development of new water purification systems and strategies to reduce muscle and bone atrophy are some of the key discoveries of the International Space Station. Other discoveries are as follows:

• Fundamental disease research
• Discovery of steadily burning cool flames
• Methods to combat muscle atrophy and bone loss
• Exploring the fifth state of matter
• Understanding how our bodies change in microgravity
• Testing tissue chips in space
• Stimulating the low-Earth orbit economy
• Growing food in microgravity
• Deployment of CubeSats from the station
• Monitoring our planet from a unique perspective
• Collecting data on more than 100 billion cosmic particles
• A better understanding of pulsars and black holes
• Capability to identify unknown microbes in space
• Opening up the field of colloid research
• The evolution of fluid physics research
• 3D printing in microgravity

Current Status of the International Space Station

Plans for the future operation of the International Space Station were thrown into uncertainty post-Ukraine War 2022 as the European Space Agency withdrew future collaborations with Russia.

• Russia announced leaving the ISS to build its space station.
• The US and Europe have announced that they will remain committed to the International Space Station till 2030.
• ESA is working towards a new space station, which it is calling Starlab.

Other Space Station Initiatives

Japan, China, India, the United Arab Emirates, and others are also planning to establish their space stations.

• Tiangong is China's self-built space station and has been fully operational since late 2022, accommodating a maximum of three astronauts at an orbital altitude of up to 450 km (280 miles).
• It will be fixed in a 400-kilometre orbit above the Earth, weighing up to 20 tonnes, where astronauts might stay for up to 15-20 days .

FAQs on the International Space Station

What is the international space station.

The International Space Station (ISS) is the largest man-made object in space launched on November 20, 1988. It serves as a habitat for astronauts in space and as a space laboratory.

Where is the International Space Station located?

The International Space Station is a multi-nation space laboratory located in orbit about 250 miles (400 kilometres) above Earth.

What are the participating states of the International Space Station?

It is a unique international collaboration among five space agencies: NASA (USA), Roscosmos (Russia), JAXA (Japan), ESA (Europe), and CSA (Canada).

When was the International Space Station launched?

The first module of the International Space Station was launched in 1998, and the station was fully assembled in 2011. The ISS has been continuously occupied by astronauts ever since and is expected to remain in orbit until 2030.

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