The International Space Station at a glance



[ad_1]

Born in 1998 with the launch of the first component, the ISS, as it is called, is currently the only artificial structure in space capable of supporting human residents for long periods of time, orbiting the planet at an altitude of 408 km (253 miles). It is at the same time the third most brilliant object in the night sky

The ISS is the ninth space station to be equipped, after the Russians Salyut, Almaz and Mir and the American Skylab

. people from 18 countries boarded the International Space Station. ISS has been engaged continuously since November 2000, with six international crews taking turns conducting various experiments in space.

The ISS is capable of receiving six spaceships at a time. A spaceship can arrive at the space station as early as six hours after the launch of the Earth. Currently, there are four different cargo spacecraft providing science, cargo, astronauts or supplies: ATX Orbital Cygnus, SpaceX Dragon, JAXA HTV, and Russian Progress.

CONSTRUCTION

The space station is 357 feet end-to-end, including modules, integrated beam structure and solar panels.

For the crew, ISS provides a larger living and working space than a six-bedroom house. The living space is divided into six dormitories, two bathrooms, a gym and a 360 degree bay window.

All interior space of the station – 13 696 cubic feet (388 cubic meters) of volume, pressurized volume of 32,333 cubic feet (916 cubic meters) – was reached by connecting a number of cylinders called modules.

The power of the plant comes from 8 solar panels that provide 75 to 90 kilowatts of power. They are mounted on the backbone of the station called truss, a structure of 357.5 feet (109 meters) in length. The solar panels, of a length of 73 meters (239.4 feet), are the ones that give the station a distinctive appearance when viewed from the Earth.

The ISS includes pressurized modules that serve as a habitat for its crew and provide ports for docking and berthing of visiting vehicles. As an international effort, many of the countries involved in the project have developed their own modules.

The large modules and other parts of the station were delivered on 42 assembly flights, 37 with American space shuttles and five Russian Proton / Soyuz rockets IMPORTANT MODULES
Node 1 Unity is the first element built in the United States that was launched on the ISS. It was developed by Boeing, and is currently used to connect the Russian and American parts of the station.

Node 2 Harmony is the work of Thales Alenia Space Italy and was built in Europe. It provides quarters of crew for 4 members as well as vital functional resources for the functioning of the connected elements: conversion and distribution of electrical energy, heating, cooling and data and video exchange support with the ground and the rest of the ISS.

Node 3 Tranquility was also designed in Europe. It houses equipment for air revitalization, oxygen production, carbon dioxide removal and water recovery systems. The bathroom for the crew and the exercise equipment can also be found here

When the astronauts decided to go out for an outing in space, whether in the American or Russian space suits, they use the module Joint Airlock Quest a unit also developed by Boeing. Since 1998, astronauts and cosmonauts have made more than 205 spacewalks for the construction, maintenance and repair of stations, most spacewalks from here

The work of astronauts to the outside of the station can be monitored. . Built by Thales Alenia Space, it is a small, ideal module for observing robotic activities or the approach of supply vehicles.

The Functional Cargo Block Zarya is a module created by the Russian Space Research and Production Center Khrunichev. It is the first Russian module launched at the ISS and a standalone module offering functions of power, communication and attitude control.

When supplies and astronauts reach the space station in the Soyuz and Progress vehicles, they use the module Docking Compartment Pirs built by Russian SP Korolev Rocket and Space Corporation Energia.

Service Module Zvezda is a Russian contribution offering residential quarters, a survival system, an electrical energy distribution, a data processing system, a control system flight and a propulsion system. SEARCH
be installed outside the station, including ground-based detection equipment, payloads in materials science or particle physics experiments.

Several research facilities are in place aboard the ISS to support scientific research in microgravity. sciences, physical sciences and technological development.

Since its creation, the space station has conducted more than 2,400 research investigations. Researchers from over 103 countries.

On the following link, you will find the NASA Reference Guide to the International Space Station.

[ad_2]
Source link