Twenty years ago, on November 20, 1998, a Russian-made Proton rocket was launched from the Baikonur launch pad in Kazakhstan.

In less than 10 minutes, the Proton put into orbit its payload, a piece of computer equipment 12 tons, 15 meters long and called Zarya. Two weeks later, Space Shuttle Endeavor took off from Kennedy Space Center in Florida with another hardware item called Unity on board. During their eleven-day mission, astronauts aboard Endeavor connected Unity to Zarya, already in orbit.

Thus was born what would become the International Space Station (ISS).

The idea of ​​a permanently occupied space station in orbit had been present for several decades, both in futuristic speculation and in science fiction, perhaps the most famous illustration being the giant windmill-shaped structure. , in rotation in the colors of the Blue Danube, illustrated in the animated image of Stanley Kubrick and Arthur C. Clarke, 1968: "2001: an odyssey of space".

Space stations – smaller and more utilitarian – became a reality in the early 1970s, with the US Skylab station and a series of Salyut space stations launched by the Soviet Union at the time.

Next are the Soviet Mir Space Station, whose first components were launched in 1986 and which revolved around the Earth until 2001. During its 15 years of existence, Mir has visited more than 100 people from 12 different nations. busy for almost 10 years.

The concept of what will eventually become ISS was announced in early 1984 by Americans of the time. President Ronald Reagan. It was originally an American effort, but cost overruns and other problems forced some changes in the following years, and the Soviet Union's demise in the early 1990s was an opportunity a more international commitment.

Although the United States and Russia are the main partners, a total of 15 countries, including Japan, Canada and the various members of the European Space Agency (ESA) consortium, participate in the ISS. .

With the launch of the Zvezda module, designed to provide living quarters and life support systems for the ISS, in July 2000, and its subsequent connection to the Zarya / Unity coupled modules, the ISS has become ready for human occupation.

The first crew, known as Expedition 1 and composed of American astronaut Bill Shepherd and Russian cosmonauts Yuri Gidzenko and Sergei Krikalev, arrived at the ISS on November 2, 2000 and the ISS has been continuously occupied since then.

ISS construction continued apace, with the exception of a two-year break between 2003 and 2005 as a result of the destruction of the Space Shuttle Columbia.

The construction was officially completed with the installation of the last modules in 2011, although additional modules are scheduled for launch and fixation over the next two years.

Meanwhile, during its 18-year occupation, the ISS was visited by 232 people from 18 different nations, including current residents of Expedition 57, including the commander of the Alexander Gerst expedition of Germany, the Russian Sergei Prokopyev and Serena Aunon. The Chancellor of the United States, who has been on board since the beginning of June.

Two people, the Russian cosmonauts Yuri Malenchenko and Fyodor Yurchikhin, made five separate visits to the ISS and six people, including American businessman Dennis Tito in 2001, made trips to the ISS. 39, a week aboard the ISS as paid tourists in the space.

ISS was to a large extent a platform for scientific research. Research programs in the fields of astronomy, meteorology, biology, materials science and space medicine, among others, have been conducted so far during his lifetime. operational.

US astronaut Scott Kelly and Russian cosmonaut Mikhail Korniyenko spent 11 months on space medicine research as part of a program to study the effects of long-duration space flight on the human body. his twin brother, Mark, also an astronaut on numerous spaceflights, plays the role of a control sample "Stay-on-Earth".

Other objectives of the ISS include programs in education and international relations. The latter has been quite remarkable lately, considering that the current relations between the United States and Russia are rather difficult, but the astronauts of the two respective countries were able to live and work harmoniously aboard the ISS.

The United States and Russia are committed to financing and participating in the ISS until at least 2024. The future of ISS beyond is rather bleak, although discussions are ongoing on the continuation of operations until 2028 or even 2030.

The possibility of entrusting the ISS's operations to a private entity, if any, which would have assumed such responsibility, was also discussed.

However, at some point, the ISS will have to be de-orbited and returned to Earth, possibly via a form of controlled return into the atmosphere – but that's an issue that can be resolved at the appropriate time.

For now, ISS can be seen from Earth as it continues to make its 92-minute orbit around our planet. Over the next few days, our part of the world will see passages in the early evening, the best being Sunday, No. 25h, about 5:23 pm as it passes high in the west-southwest over the northeast.

We will see a beautiful example of what we humans can accomplish if we can work together for a common purpose.

Alan Hale is a professional astronomer residing at Cloudcroft. Hale participates in various space-related research and education activities in New Mexico and elsewhere.

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