Contents

1 Purpose

o 1.1 Scientific research

o 1.2 Exploration

o 1.3 Education and cultural outreach

2 Origins

o 2.1 Mir-2

o 2.2 Freedom with Kibō

o 2.3 Columbus

3 Station structure

o 3.1 Assembly

o 3.2 Pressurised modules

o 3.3 Unpressurized elements

4 Station systems

o 4.1 Life support

o 4.2 Power and thermal control

o 4.3 Communications and computers

5 Station operations

o 5.1 Expeditions and private flights

o 5.2 Crew activities

o 5.3 Orbit and mission control

o 5.4 Repairs

6 Fleet operations

o 6.1 Currently docked/berthed

o 6.2 Scheduled launches and dockings/berthings

o 6.3 Docking

o 6.4 Launch and docking windows

7 Sightings

o 7.1 Naked eye

o 7.2 Astrophotography

8 Crew health and safety

o 8.1 Radiation

o 8.2 Stress

o 8.3 Medical

o 8.4 Orbital debris

9 Politics

o 9.1 International co-operation

o 9.2 China

o 9.3 End of mission

o 9.4 Program cost in United States dollars

10 Notes

11 References

12 External links

o 12.1 Children's websites

o 12.2 Live viewing

o 12.3 Contact the crew

o 12.4 Video

o 12.5 Image galleries

o 12.6 Research

o 12.7 Travel agency website

International Space Station

The International Space Station, as seen from Space ShuttleEndeavour in May

2011.

ISS insignia

Station statistics

COSPAR ID 1998-067A

Call sign Alpha

Crew

Fully crewed 6

Currently onboard 6

(Expedition 34)

Launch 1998–2020

Launch padBaikonur LC-81/23, LC-1/5

KSC LC-39,

Mass approximately 450,000 kg (990,000 lb)

Length 72.8 m

Width 108.5 m

Height

c. 20 m (c. 66 ft)

nadir–zenith, arrays forward–aft

(27 November 2009)[dated info]

Pressurised volume837 m3 (29,600 cu ft)

(21 March 2011)

Atmospheric pressure 101.3 kPa (29.91 inHg, 1 atm)

Perigee402 km (250 mi) AMSL[1]

(02 November 2012 04:38:51 epoch)

Apogee424 km (263 mi) AMSL[1]

(02 November 2012 04:38:51 epoch)

Orbital inclination 51.6 degrees

Average speed7,706.6 m/s

(27,743.8 km/h, 17,239.2 mph)

Orbital period92 minutes 50 seconds[1]

(02 November 2012 04:38:51 epoch)

Days in orbit5140

(16 December)

Days occupied4427

(16 December)

Number of orbits80680

(16 December)

Orbital decay 2 km/month

Statistics as of 9 March 2011

(unless noted otherwise)

References: [2][3][4][5][6][7]

Configuration

Station elements as of December 2011, but missing Pirs

(exploded view)

The International Space Station (ISS) is a habitable artificial satellite in low Earth orbit. It follows

the Salyut, Almaz, Skylab and Mir stations as the ninth space station to be inhabited. The ISS is a

modular structure whose first component was launched in 1998. Like many artificial satellites, the station

can be seen with the naked eye from Earth without any special equipment.[8][9] The ISS consists of

pressurised modules, external trusses, solar arrays and other components. ISS components have been

launched by American Space Shuttles as well as Russian Proton and Soyuz rockets.[10] Budget

constraints led to the merger of three space station projects with the Japanese Kibō module

and Canadian robotics. In 1993 the partially built Soviet/Russian Mir-2, the proposed American Freedom,

and the proposed European Columbus merged into a single multinational programme.[10] The Russian

Federal Space Agency (RSA/RKA) is using the ISS as a work site to assemble their next space station,

called OPSEK. Modules and components for the new station began arriving on orbit in 2010, and the RSA

plans to commission the new station before the remainder of the ISS is de-orbited.

The ISS serves as a microgravity and space environment research laboratory in which crew members

conduct experiments in biology, human biology, physics, astronomy, meteorology and other fields.[11][12]

[13] The station is suited for the testing of spacecraft systems and equipment required for missions to the

Moon and Mars.[14]

The station has been continuously occupied for 12 years and 44 days, having exceeded the previous

record of almost 10 years (or 3,634 days) held by Mir, in 2010. The station is serviced by

Soyuz spacecraft, Progress spacecraft, the Automated Transfer Vehicle, the H-II Transfer Vehicle,[15] and

formerly the Space Shuttle. It has been visited by astronauts and cosmonauts from 15 different nations.[16] On 25 May 2012, Space Exploration Technologies Corporation (or SpaceX) became the world's first

privately held company to send a cargo load, via the Dragon spacecraft, to the International Space

Station.[17]

The ISS programme is a joint project between five participating space agencies: NASA, the Russian

Federal Space Agency, JAXA, ESA, and CSA.[15][18] The ownership and use of the space station is

established by intergovernmental treaties and agreements.[19] The station is divided into two sections,

the Russian orbital segment (ROS) and the United States orbital segment (USOS), which is shared by

many nations. The ISS is maintained at an orbital altitude of between 330 km (205 mi) and 410 km

(255 mi). It completes 15.7 orbits per day.[20] The ISS is funded until 2020, and may operate until 2028.[21]

[22][23]

Purpose

According to the original Memorandum of Understanding between NASA and RSA, the International

Space Station was intended to be a laboratory, observatory and factory in space. It was also planned to

provide transportation, maintenance, and act as a staging base for possible future missions to the Moon,

Mars and asteroids.[24] In the 2010 United States National Space Policy, the ISS was given additional

roles of serving commercial, diplomatic[25] and educational purposes.[26]

[edit]Scientific research

Main article: Scientific research on the ISS

The ISS provides a platform to conduct scientific research that cannot be performed in any other way.

While small unmanned spacecraft can provide platforms for zero gravity and exposure to space, space

stations offer a long term environment where studies can be performed potentially for decades, combined

with ready access by human researchers over periods that exceed the capabilities of manned spacecraft.[16][27]

The Station simplifies individual experiments by eliminating the need for separate rocket launches and

research staff. The primary fields of research include Astrobiology, astronomy, human

research including space medicine and life sciences, physical sciences, materials science, Space

weather and weather on Earth (meteorology).[11][12][13][28][29] Scientists on Earth have access to the crew's

data and can modify experiments or launch new ones, benefits generally unavailable on unmanned

spacecraft.[27] Crews fly expeditions of several months duration, providing approximately 160 man-hours a

week of labour with a crew of 6.[11][30]

Kibō is intended to accelerate Japan's progress in science and technology, gain new knowledge and

apply it to such fields as industry and medicine.[31]

In order to detect dark matter and answer other fundamental questions about our universe, engineers and

scientists from all over the world built the Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer (AMS), which NASA compares to

the Hubble telescope, and says could not be accommodated on a free flying satellite platform due in part

to its power requirements and data bandwidth needs.[32][33]

The space environment is hostile to life. Unprotected presence in space is characterised by an intense

radiation field (consisting primarily of protons and other subatomic charged particles from the solar wind,

in addition to cosmic rays), high vacuum, extreme temperatures, and microgravity.[34] Some simple forms

of life called extremophiles,[35] including small invertebrates called tardigrades[36] can survive in this

environment in an extremely dry state called desiccation.

Medical research improves knowledge about the effects of long-term space exposure on the human body,

including muscle atrophy, bone loss, and fluid shift. This data will be used to determine whether

lengthy human spaceflight and space colonisation are feasible. As of 2006, data on bone loss and

muscular atrophy suggest that there would be a significant risk of fractures and movement problems if

astronauts landed on a planet after a lengthy interplanetary cruise, such as the six-month interval required

to travel to Mars.[37][38] Medical studies are conducted aboard the ISS on behalf of the National Space

Biomedical Research Institute (NSBRI). Prominent among these is the Advanced Diagnostic Ultrasound

in Microgravity study in which astronauts perform ultrasound scans under the guidance of remote experts.

The study considers the diagnosis and treatment of medical conditions in space. Usually, there is no

physician on board the ISS and diagnosis of medical conditions is a challenge. It is anticipated that

remotely guided ultrasound scans will have application on Earth in emergency and rural care situations

where access to a trained physician is difficult.[39][40][41]

[edit]Microgravity

A comparison between the combustion of a candle on Earth (left) and in a microgravity environment, such as that found on

the ISS (right)

Contrary to popular belief, the earth's gravity is only slightly less at the altitude of the ISS as at the

surface. According to the equivalence principle, gravity only seems absent because, like any orbiting

object, it is in continuous freefall. This state of perceived weightlessness is not perfect however, being

disturbed by five separate effects:[42]

Drag from the residual atmosphere; when the ISS enters the Earth's shadow, the main solar panels

are rotated to minimise this aerodynamic drag, helping reduce orbital decay.

Vibration from movements of mechanical systems and the crew.

Actuation of the on-board altitude control moment gyroscopes.

Thruster firings for altitude or orbital changes.

Gravity-gradient effects, also known as tidal effects. Items not at the exact ISS center of mass would,

if not attached to the station, follow slightly different orbits than that of the ISS as a whole. Those

closer to the earth would tend to follow faster, shorter orbits and move forward along the velocity

vector. Those farther away would have slower, longer orbits and move rearward against the velocity

vector. Those to the left or right of the ISS center of mass would be in different orbital planes. Being

attached to the rigid ISS, however, these items experience small forces that keep them moving along

with the ISS center of mass.

Researchers are investigating the effect of the station's near-weightless environment on the evolution,

development, growth and internal processes of plants and animals. In response to some of this data,

NASA wants to investigate microgravity's effects on the growth of three-dimensional, human-like tissues,

and the unusual protein crystals that can be formed in space.[12]

The investigation of the physics of fluids in microgravity will allow researchers to model the behaviour of

fluids better. Because fluids can be almost completely combined in microgravity, physicists investigate

fluids that do not mix well on Earth. In addition, an examination of reactions that are slowed by low gravity

and temperatures will give scientists a deeper understanding ofsuperconductivity.[12]

The study of materials science is an important ISS research activity, with the objective of reaping

economic benefits through the improvement of techniques used on the ground. [43] Other areas of interest

include the effect of the low gravity environment on combustion, through the study of the efficiency of

burning and control of emissions and pollutants. These findings may improve current knowledge about

energy production, and lead to economic and environmental benefits. Future plans are for the

researchers aboard the ISS to examine aerosols, ozone, water vapour, and oxidesin Earth's atmosphere,

as well as cosmic rays, cosmic dust, antimatter, and dark matter in the universe.[12]

[edit]Exploration

A 3D plan of the MARS-500 complex, used for ground-based experiments which complement ISS-based preparations for

amanned mission to Mars

The ISS provides a location in the relative safety of Low Earth Orbit to test spacecraft systems that will be

required for long-duration missions to the Moon and Mars. This provides experience in operations,

maintenance as well as repair and replacement activities on-orbit, which will be essential skills in

operating spacecraft farther from Earth, mission risks can be reduced and the capabilities of

interplanetary spacecraft advanced.[14] Referring to theMARS-500 experiment, ESA states that "Whereas

the ISS is essential for answering questions concerning the possible impact of weightlessness, radiation

and other space-specific factors, aspects such as the effect of long-term isolation and confinement can be

more appropriately addressed via ground-based simulations".[44] Sergey Krasnov, the head of human

space flight programmes for Russia's space agency, Roscosmos, in 2011 suggested a "shorter version"

of MARS-500 may be carried out on the ISS. [45]

In 2009, noting the value of the partnership framework itself, Sergey Krasnov wrote, "When compared

with partners acting separately, partners developing complementary abilities and resources could give us

much more assurance of the success and safety of space exploration. The ISS is helping further advance

near-Earth space exploration and realisation of prospective programmes of research and exploration of

the Solar system, including the Moon and Mars."[46] A manned mission to Mars, however, may be a

multinational effort involving space agencies and countries outside of the current ISS partnership. In 2010

ESA Director-General Jean-Jacques Dordain stated his agency was ready to propose to the other 4

partners that China, India and South Korea be invited to join the ISS partnership. [47] NASA chief Charlie

Bolden stated in Feb 2011 "Any mission to Mars is likely to be a global effort". [48] Currently, American

legislation prevents NASA co-operation with China on space projects.[49]

[edit]Education and cultural outreach

The ISS crew provide opportunities for students on Earth by running student-developed experiments,

making educational demonstrations, allowing for student participation in classroom versions of ISS

experiments, and directly engaging students using radio, videolink and email.[15][50] ESA offers a wide

range of free teaching materials that can be downloaded for use in classrooms.[51] In one lesson, students

can navigate a 3-D model of the interior and exterior of the ISS, and face spontaneous challenges to

solve in real time.[52]

JAXA aims both to "Stimulate the curiosity of children, cultivating their spirits, and encouraging their

passion to pursue craftsmanship", and to "Heighten the child's awareness of the importance of life and

their responsibilities in society."[53] Through a series of education guides, a deeper understanding of the

past and near-term future of manned space flight, as well as that of Earth and life, will be learned. [54][55] In

the JAXA Seeds in Space experiments, the mutation effects of spaceflight on plant seeds aboard the ISS

is explored. Students grow sunflower seeds which flew on the ISS for about nine months as a start to

‘touch the Universe’. In the first phase of Kibō utilisation from 2008 to mid-2010, researchers from more

than a dozen Japanese universities conducted experiments in diverse fields.[56]

Susan J. Helms, Expedition Two flight engineer,

talks to amateur radio operators on Earth from

the Amateur radio workstation in the Zarya.

A student speaks to crew

using Amateur Radio,

provided free by ARISS.

Cultural activities are another major objective. Tetsuo Tanaka, director of JAXA's Space Environment and

Utilization Center, says "There is something about space that touches even people who are not interested

in science."[31]

Amateur Radio on the ISS (ARISS) is a volunteer programme which encourages students worldwide to

pursue careers in science, technology, engineering and mathematics through amateur

radio communications opportunities with the ISS crew. ARISS is an international working group,

consisting of delegations from 9 countries including several countries in Europe as well as Japan, Russia,

Canada, and the United States. In areas where radio equipment cannot be used, speakerphones connect

students to ground stations which then connect the calls to the station. [57]

First Orbit is a feature-length documentary film about Vostok 1, the first manned space flight around the

Earth. By matching the orbit of the International Space Station to that of Vostok 1 as closely as possible,

in terms of ground path and time of day, documentary filmmaker Christopher Riley and ESA

astronaut Paolo Nespoli were able to film the view that Yuri Gagarin saw on his pioneering orbital space

flight. This new footage was cut together with the original Vostok 1 mission audio recordings sourced from

the Russian State Archive. Nespoli, during Expedition 26/27, filmed the majority of the footage for this

documentary film, and as a result is credited as its director of photography.[58] The film was streamed

through the website www.firstorbit.org in a global YouTube premiere in 2011, under a free license.[59]

[edit]Origins

The International Space Station programme represents a combination of three national space station

projects: the Russian/Soviet Mir-2, NASA's Freedom including the Japanese Kibō laboratory, and the

European Columbus space stations. Canadian robotics supplement these projects.

Mir-2 was originally authorised in the February 1976 resolution setting forth plans for development of third

generation Soviet space systems; the first module, which would have served the same function as Zarya,

was destroyed in a launch mishap.

In the early 1980s, NASA planned to launch a modular space station called Freedom as a counterpart to

the Soviet Salyut and Mir space stations. Freedom was never constructed and the remnants of the project

became part of the ISS. The Japanese Experiment Module (JEM), or Kibō, was announced in 1985, as

part of the Freedom space station in response to a NASA request in 1982.

In Rome in early 1985, science ministers from the European Space Agency (ESA) countries approved

the Columbus program, the most ambitious effort in space undertaken by that organisation at the time.

The plan spearheaded by Germany and Italy included a module which would be attached to Freedom,

and with the capability to evolve into a full-fledged European orbital outpost before the end of the century.

The space station was also going to tie the emerging European and Japanese national space

programmes closer to the U.S.-led project, thereby preventing those nations from becoming major,

independent competitors too.[60]

In September 1993, American Vice-President Al Gore and Russian Prime Minister Viktor

Chernomyrdin announced plans for a new space station, which eventually became the International

Space Station.[61] They also agreed, in preparation for this new project, that the United States would be

involved in the Mir programme, including American Shuttles docking, in the Shuttle-Mir Program.[62]

[edit]Mir-2

Main articles: Mir, Mir-2, Polyus (spacecraft), Buran program, and Energia

The Soviet Buran shuttle would have carried modules up to 30 tons to MIR-2. 80–100 ton modules could have used its

launcher without the shuttle (seen here withAn-225, the heaviest aeroplane).

The Russian Orbital Segment (ROS or RS) is the eleventh Soviet-Russian space station. Mir ("Peace")

and the ISS are successors to the Salyut("Fireworks") and Almaz ("Diamond") stations. The first MIR-2

module was launched in 1986 by an Energia heavy-lift expendable launch system. The launcher worked

properly, however the Polyus payload fired its engines to insert itself into orbit whilst in the wrong position

due to a programming error, and re-entered the atmosphere. The planned station changed several times,

but Zvezda was always the service module, containing the station's critical systems such as life support.

The station would have used the Buran spaceplane and Proton rockets to lift new modules into orbit. The

spaceframe of Zvezda, also called DOS-8 serial number 128, was completed in February 1985 and major

internal equipment was installed by October 1986.[63]

The Polyus module or spacecraft would have served as the FGB, a foundation which provides propulsion

and guidance, but it lacks life support. Polyus was a satellite interceptor/destroyer, carrying a 1 megawatt

carbon dioxide laser. The module had a length of almost 37 m and a diameter of 4.1 m, weighed nearly

80 t, and included 2 principal sections, the smallest, the functional service block (FGB), and the largest,

the aim module.[64]

In 1983, the design was changed and the station would consist of Zvezda, followed by several 90 metric

ton modules and a truss structure similar to the current station. The draft was approved by NPO Energia

Chief Semenov on 14 December 1987 and announced to the press as 'Mir-2' in January 1988. This

station would be visited by the Soviet Buran, but mainly resupplied by Progress-M2 spacecraft. Orbital

assembly of the station was expected to begin in 1993. [63] In 1993 with the collapse of the Soviet Union, a

redesigned smaller Mir-2 was to be built whilst attached to Mir, just as OPSEK is being assembled whilst

attached to the ISS.

[edit]Freedom with Kibō

Main articles: Space Station Freedom, Kibō, and H-II Transfer Vehicle

Artist's conception of the proposed "Power Tower" space station with the Japanese Experiment Module attached

Approved by then-president Ronald Reagan and announced in the 1984 State of the Union Address, "We

can follow our dreams to distant stars, living and working in space for peaceful economic and scientific

gain", the proposed Freedom changed considerably.

NASA's first cost assessment in 1987 revealed the "Dual Keel" Station would cost $14.5 billion. This

caused a political uproar in Congress, and NASA and Reagan Administration officials reached a

compromise in March 1987 which allowed the agency to proceed with a cheaper $12.2-billion Phase One

Station that could be completed after 10 or 11 Shuttle assembly flights. This design initially omitted the

$3.4-billion 'Dual Keel' structure and half of the power generators. The new Space Station configuration

was named Freedom by Reagan in June 1988. Originally, Freedom would have carried two 37.5 kW solar

arrays. However, Congress quickly insisted on adding two more arrays for scientific users. The Space

Station programme was plagued by conflicts during the entire 1984–87 definition phase. In 1987, the

Department of Defense (DoD) briefly demanded to have full access to the Station for military research,

despite strong objections from NASA and the international partners. Besides the expected furore from the

international partners, the DoD position sparked a shouting match between Defense Secretary Caspar

Weinberger and powerful members of Congress that extended right up to the final Fiscal 1988 budget

authorisation in July 1987.[65] Reagan wanted to invite other NATO countries to participate in the U.S-led

project, since the Soviet Union had been launching international crews to their Salyut space stations since

1971. At one point, then-anonymous disgruntled NASA employees calling themselves "Center for

Strategic Space Studies" suggested that instead of building Freedom, NASA should take the back-up

Skylab from display in the National Air and Space Museum in Washington and launch that.[66]

An agreement signed in September 1988 allocated 97% of the US lab resources to NASA while the

Canadian CSA would receive 3% in return for its contribution to the programme. Europe and Japan would

retain 51% of their own laboratory modules. Six Americans and two international astronauts would be

permanently based on Space Station Freedom. Several NASA Space Shuttle missions in the 1980s and

early 1990s included spacewalks to demonstrate and test space station construction techniques.

The Japanese Experiment Module (JEM), christened Kibō ("hope") in 1999, is Japan's first manned

spacecraft. Kibō consists of a pressurised laboratory dedicated to advanced technology experiments,

education and art, a cargo bay, an unpressurised pallet for vacuum experiments in space, a robotic arm,

and interorbital communication system. While the proposed space station was redesigned many times

around Kibō, the only significant change has been the placement of its ballistic shielding. Its final position

at the front of the station increases the risk of damage from debris. The ESA and NASA, by contrast, both

reduced the size of their laboratories over the course of the program. The Japanese National Space

Development Agency (NASDA) formally submitted the JEM proposal to NASA in March 1986, and by

1990 design work began.[60][67][68] Constructed in the Tobishima Plant of Nagoya Aerospace Systems

Works, by Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd., Kibō made its way to the Tsukuba Space Center and in 2003

Kibō was shipped, first by river barge and then by ship, to America. In 2010, Kibō won the Good Design

Award, a 55 year old consumer and industry award which identifies the best of Japanese craftsmanship.[69][70]

A decade before Zarya was launched into orbit, Japan was working on the development of its own space

shuttle, intended to use the H-II launcher. Depending on the configuration of the launcher, it would weigh

between 10 and 20 metric tons and mix crew and cargo together. It would take off vertically on its booster

and at the end of its mission re-enter and land just as the NASA and Soviet shuttles did. The program

was terminated by JAXA in 2003 after scale mockup testing.[71][72]

Columbus

Main articles: Columbus ISS module, Man-Tended Free Flyer, and Hermes spaceplane

The first elements of the Columbus program were expected to fly as early as 1992, to coincide with the

500th anniversary of Columbus' voyage to America. ESA and NASA clashed over the very concept of the

Columbus program in 1986. America objected to ESA's using Columbus as building block of a future

European space station, and were concerned that they would facilitate the creation of a potential

competitor if the manned space outpost fulfilled its promise as supplier of commercially viable products,

such as new materials and pharmaceuticals. Plans were scaled down as a result, and by 1988, Europe

proposed to participate with three elements, the Columbus module, the Man-Tended Free Flyer (MTFF),

and the Polar Platform (PPF),[73] supported by theAriane-5 launcher and the Hermes spaceplane.[74]

The Columbus Man-Tended Free Flyer (MTFF) was an ESA programme to develop a space station that

could be used for a variety of microgravity experiments while serving ESA's needs for an autonomous

manned space platform.[75] The MTFF would be a space station without long term life support, visited by

short term crews to replenish and maintain experiments in a Zero-G environment free of vibrations

caused by a permanent crew. The project was canceled after budget constraints caused by German

reunification. The Hermes spaceplane is comparable in function to the American and Soviet space

shuttles, with a smaller crew of up to 6 (reduced to 3 with ejection seats after the Columbia disaster) and

substantially smaller cargo capacity, 4,550 kg, comparable to ISS unmanned cargo ships.

By 1991 the Columbus and Hermes pre-development activities were good enough to progress into full

development, however profound geopolitical changes prompted examining broader international

cooperation, in particular with the Russian Federation. ESA Member States approved the complete

development of the Attached Pressurised Module (APM) and the Polar Platform (PPF) for Columbus, but

the Man-Tended Free-Flyer (MTFF) was abandoned. The Hermes programme was reoriented into the

Manned Space Transportation Programme (MSTP), and a three-year period extending from 1993 to 1995

was agreed on in order to define a future manned space transportation system in cooperation with

Russia, including joint development and use of Mir-2.[76][77]

The ESA ATV robot spacecraft is a powerful 'space tug' that can be adapted to shuttle supplies into Mars

orbit.[78] Its propulsion is arranged with a central hollow section, to allow the possibility of a docking port at

both ends. It could then form larger assemblies, strung together as a space station or allowing piggyback

docking to Zvezda.[citation needed]

[edit]Station structure

Expedition 18 commander Michael Fincke's

video tour of the habitable part of the ISS

from January 2009

Station layout, photographed from Soyuz TMA-20,

with NASA's Endeavour docked

The ISS follows Salyut and Almaz series, Cosmos 557, Skylab, and Mir as the 11th space station

launched, as the Genesis prototypes were never intended to be manned. The ISS is a third

generation[79] modular space station.[80]

Other examples of modular station projects include the Soviet/Russian Mir, Russian OPSEK,

and Chinese space station. The first space station, Salyut 1, and other one-piece or 'monolithic' first

generation space stations, such as Salyut 2,3,4,5, DOS 2, Kosmos 557, Almaz and

NASA's Skylab stations were not designed for re-supply.[81] Generally, each crew had to depart the station

to free the only docking port for the next crew to arrive, Skylab had more than one docking port but was

not designed for resupply. Salyut 6 and 7 had more than one docking port and were designed to be

resupplied routinely during crewed operation.[82]Modular stations can allow the mission to be changed

over time and new modules can be added or removed from the existing structure, allowing greater

flexibility.

Below is a diagram of major station components. The blue areas are pressurised sections accessible by

the crew without using spacesuits. The station's unpressurised superstructure is indicated in red. Other

unpressurised components are yellow. Note that the Unity node joins directly to the Destiny laboratory.

For clarity, they are shown apart.

Russiandocking port

Solararray

Zvezda DOS-8Service Module

Solararray

Russiandocking port

Poisk(MRM-2)Airlock

PirsAirlock

Russiandocking port

Nauka lab toReplace Pirs

EuropeanRobotic Arm

Solararray

Zarya FGB(first module)

Solararray

Leonardocargo bay

Rassvet(MRM-1)

Russiandocking port

PMA 1

QuestAirlock

UnityNode 1

TranquilityNode 3

PMA 3docking port

ESP-2

Cupola

Solar array

Solar array

HeatRadiator

HeatRadiator

Solar array

Solar array

ELC 2, AMS

Z1 truss

ELC 3

S5/6 Truss S3/S4 Truss S1 Truss S0 Truss P1 Truss P3/P4 Truss P5/6 Truss

ELC 4, ESP 3

ELC 1

Dextre

Canadarm2

Solar array

Solar array

Solar array

Solar array

Externalstowage

DestinyLaboratory

Kibō logisticsCargo Bay

HTV/Dragon berth(docking port)

HTV/Dragon berth(docking port)

Kibō

Robotic Arm

ExternalPayloads

ColumbusLaboratory

Harmony(Node 2)

KibōLaboratory

KibōExternal Platform

PMA 2docking port

[edit]Assembly

Main article: Assembly of the International Space Station

See also: List of ISS spacewalks

Ron Garan during STS-124 uses a computer controlled screwdriver for speed, torque and number of turns.

The assembly of the International Space Station, a major endeavour in space architecture, began in

November 1998.[3] Russian modules launched and docked robotically, with the exception of Rassvet. All

other modules were delivered by the Space Shuttle, which required installation by ISS and shuttle

crewmembers using the SSRMS and EVAs; as of 5 June 2011, they had added 159 components during

more than 1,000 hours of EVA activity. 127 of these spacewalks originated from the station, while the

remaining 32 were launched from the airlocks of docked Space Shuttles.[2] The beta angle of the station

had to be considered at all times during construction, as the station's beta angle is directly related to the

percentage of its orbit that the station (as well as any docked or docking spacecraft) is exposed to the

sun; the Space Shuttle would not perform optimally above a limit called the "beta cutoff". [83] Rassvet was

delivered by NASA's Atlantis Space Shuttle in 2010 in exchange for the Russian Proton delivery of the

United States-funded Russian-built Zarya Module in 1998.[84] Robot arms rather than EVAs were utilised

in its installation (docking).

The first segment of the ISS, Zarya, was launched on 20 November 1998 on an autonomous

Russian Proton rocket. It provided propulsion, orientation control, communications, electrical power, but

lacked long-term life support functions. Two weeks later a passive NASA module Unity was launched

aboard Space Shuttle flight STS-88 and attached to Zarya by astronauts during EVAs. This module has

two Pressurized Mating Adapters (PMAs), one connects permanently to Zarya, the other allows the

Space Shuttle to dock to the space station. At this time, the Russian station Mir was still inhabited. The

ISS remained unmanned for two years, during which time Mir was de-orbited. On 12 July

2000 Zvezda was launched into orbit. Preprogrammed commands on board deployed its solar arrays and

communications antenna. It then became the passive vehicle for a rendezvous with the Zarya and Unity.

As a passive "target" vehicle, the Zvezda maintained a stationkeeping orbit as the Zarya-Unity vehicle

performed the rendezvous and docking via ground control and the Russian automated rendezvous and

docking system. Zarya's computer transferred control of the station to Zvezda's computer soon after

docking. Zvezda added sleeping quarters, a toilet, kitchen, CO2 scrubbers, dehumidifier, oxygen

generators, exercise equipment, plus data, voice and television communications with mission control.

This enabled permanent habitation of the station.[85][86]

The first resident crew, Expedition 1, arrived in November 2000 on Soyuz TM-31, midway between the

flights of STS-92 and STS-97. These two Space Shuttle flights each added segments of the

station's Integrated Truss Structure, which provided the station with Ku-band communication for U.S.

television, additional attitude support needed for the additional weight of the USOS, and substantial solar

arrays supplementing the station's existing 4 solar arrays.[87]

Partially constructed ISS in December 2002

Over the next two years the station continued to expand. A Soyuz-U rocket delivered the Pirs docking

compartment. The Space Shuttles Discovery,Atlantis, and Endeavour delivered

the Destiny laboratory and Quest airlock, in addition to the station's main robot arm, the Canadarm2, and

several more segments of the Integrated Truss Structure.

The expansion schedule was interrupted by the destruction of the Space Shuttle Columbia on STS-107 in

2003, with the resulting hiatus in the Space Shuttle programme halting station assembly until the launch

of Discovery on STS-114 in 2005.[88]

The official resumption of assembly was marked by the arrival of Atlantis, flying STS-115, which delivered

the station's second set of solar arrays. Several more truss segments and a third set of arrays were

delivered on STS-116, STS-117, and STS-118. As a result of the major expansion of the station's power-

generating capabilities, more pressurised modules could be accommodated, and the Harmony node

and Columbus European laboratory were added. These were followed shortly after by the first two

components of Kibō. In March 2009, STS-119 completed the Integrated Truss Structure with the

installation of the fourth and final set of solar arrays. The final section of Kibō was delivered in July 2009

on STS-127, followed by the Russian Poisk module. The third node, Tranquility, was delivered in

February 2010 during STS-130 by the Space Shuttle Endeavour, alongside the Cupola, closely followed

in May 2010 by the penultimate Russian module, Rassvet, delivered by Space Shuttle Atlantis on STS-

132. The last pressurised module of the USOS, Leonardo, was brought to the station by Discovery on her

final flight, STS-133, followed by the Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer on STS-134, delivered by Endeavour.[citation needed]

ISS in orbit docked with the Space Shuttle Endeavour in May 2011

As of June 2011, the station consisted of fifteen pressurised modules and the Integrated Truss Structure.

Still to be launched are the RussianMultipurpose Laboratory Module Nauka and a number of external

components, including the European Robotic Arm. Assembly is expected to be completed by 2012, by

which point the station will have a mass in excess of 400 metric tons (440 short tons).[3][89]

The gross mass of the station is not possible to calculate with precision. The total launch weight of the

modules on orbit is 417,289 kg (919,960 lb) (as of 03/09/2011).[90] The mass of experiments, spare parts,

personal effects, crew, foodstuff, clothing, propellants, water supplies, gas supplies, docked spacecraft,

and other items add to the total mass of the station. Gas (Hydrogen) is constantly vented overboard by

the Oxygen generators.

[edit]Pressurised modules

Main article: Assembly sequence

Unity node (top) and Zarya

(with solar panels deployed)

in 1998

From top to bottom: Unity, Zarya,

Zvezda modules with Progress

M1-3 docked

Zarya (Russian: Заря́V ; lit. dawn), also known as the Functional Cargo Block or FGB(Russian: ФГБ),

was the first module of the station, launched on 20 November 1998 on a Russian Proton rocket from Site

81 in the first and largest spaceport, Baikonur to a 400 km (250 mi) high orbit. After parking in orbit, the

Zarya Module provided orientation control, communications and electrical power for itself, and for the

passive Node 1 (Unity) attached later, while the station awaited launch of the third component, a Russian-

provided crew living quarters and early station core, the service module Zvezda. The Service Module

enhanced or replaced many functions of Zarya. The FGB is a descendant of the TKS spacecraft designed

for the Russian Salyut programme. 6,100 kg of propellant fuel can be stored and transferred automatically

to and from ships docked to the Russian portion of the station – the Russian Orbital Segment (ROS).

Zarya was originally intended as a module for the Russian Mir space station, but was not flown as of the

end of the Mir-1 programme. Development costs for Zarya were paid for by Russia (and the former Soviet

Union), spread across previous space station programmes, and some construction and preparation costs

were paid for by the United States.

Unity, a passive connecting module was the first U.S.-built component of the Station. It is cylindrical in

shape, with six berthing locations facilitating connections to other modules. Unity was carried into orbit as

the primary cargo of STS-88 in 1998.

Zvezda (Russian: Звезда, meaning "star"), DOS-8, also known as the Service

Module or SM (Russian: СМ). It provides all of the station's critical systems, its addition rendered the

station permanently habitable for the first time, adding life support for up to six crew and living quarters for

two. Zvezda's DMS-R computer handles guidance, navigation & control for the entire space station. [91] A

second computer which performs the same functions is installed in the Nauka FGB-2. The rocket used for

Zvezda's launch was one of the first to carry advertising.[92] The space frame was completed in February

1985, major internal equipment was installed by October 1986, and it was launched on 12 July 2000.

Zvezda is at the rear of the station according to its normal direction of travel and orientation, its engines

are used to boost the station's orbit. Alternatively Russian and European spacecraft can dock to Zvezda's

aft (rear) port and use their engines to boost the station.

Destiny is the primary research facility for United States payloads aboard the ISS. In 2011, NASA

solicited proposals for a not-for-profit group to manage all American science on the station which does not

relate to manned exploration. The module houses 24 International Standard Payload Racks, some of

which are used for environmental systems and crew daily living equipment. Destinyalso serves as the

mounting point for the station's Truss Structure.[93]

Blue EVA hatches in the Pirs airlock frame cosmonaut

Maxim Suraev Flight engineer who displays two Orlan

space suits

Thomas Reiter (left), is attired in a liquid cooling and

ventilation garment that complements the EMU style

space suit worn by Jeffrey N. Williams in the Quest

Airlock

Quest is the only USOS airlock, Quest hosts spacewalks with both United States EMU and

RussianOrlan spacesuits. Quest consists of two segments; the equipment lock, that stores spacesuits

and equipment, and the crew lock, from which astronauts can exit into space. This module has a

separately controlled atmosphere. Crew sleep in this module, breathing a low nitrogen mixture the night

before scheduled EVAs, to avoid decompression sickness (known as "the bends") in the low pressure

suits.[94]

Pirs (Russian: Пирс, meaning "pier"), (Russian: Стыковочный отсек), "docking module", SO-1 or DC-1

(docking compartment), and Poisk (Russian: ПоV иск; lit. Search), also known as the Mini-Research

Module 2 (MRM 2), Малый исследовательский модуль 2, or МИМ 2. Pirs and Poisk are Russian

airlock modules. Each of these modules have 2 identical hatches. An outward opening hatch on the MIR

space station failed after it swung open too fast after unlatching, due to a small amount of air pressure

remaining in the airlock.[95] A different entry was used, and the hatch repaired. All EVA hatches on the ISS

open inwards and are pressure sealing. Pirs is used to store, service, and refurbish Russian Orlan suits

and provides contingency entry for crew using the slightly bulkier American suits. The outermost docking

ports on both airlocks allow docking of Soyuz and Progress spacecraft, and the automatic transfer of

propellants to and from storage on the ROS.[96]

Harmony, is the second of the station's node modules and the utility hub of the USOS. The module

contains four racks that provide electrical power, bus electronic data, and acts as a central connecting

point for several other components via its six Common Berthing Mechanisms (CBMs). The European

Columbus and Japanese Kibō laboratories are permanently berthed to two of the radial ports, the other

two can used for the HTV. American Shuttle Orbiters docked with the ISS via PMA-2, attached to the

forward port. Tranquility is the third and last of the station's U.S. nodes, it contains an additional life

support system to recycle waste water for crew use and supplements oxygen generation. Three of the

four berthing locations are not used. One location has the cupola installed, and one has the docking port

adapter installed.

Not large enough for crew using spacesuits, the

airlock on Kibō has an internal sliding drawer for

experiments.

The Columbus Module in 2008

Columbus, the primary research facility for European payloads aboard the ISS, provides a generic

laboratory as well as facilities specifically designed for biology, biomedical research and fluid physics.

Several mounting locations are affixed to the exterior of the module, which provide power and data to

external experiments such as the European Technology Exposure Facility (EuTEF), Solar Monitoring

Observatory, Materials International Space Station Experiment, and Atomic Clock Ensemble in Space. A

number of expansions are planned for the module to study quantum physics andcosmology.[97][98] ESA’s

development of technologies on all the main areas of life support has been ongoing for more than 20

years and are/have been used in modules such as Columbus and the ATV. The German Aerospace

Center DLR manages ground control operations for Columbus and the ATV is controlled from the French

CNES Toulouse Space Center.

Kibō (Japanese: きぼう , "hope") is the largest single ISS module. This laboratory is used to carry out

research in space medicine, biology, Earth observations, materials production, biotechnology,

communications research, and has facilities for growing plants and fish. During August 2011, an

observatory mounted on Kibō, which utilises the ISS's orbital motion to image the whole sky in the X-ray

spectrum, detected for the first time the moment a star was swallowed by a black hole.[99][100] The

laboratory contains a total of 23 racks, including 10 experiment racks and has a dedicated airlock for

experiments. In a 'shirt sleeves' environment, crew attach an experiment to the sliding drawer within the

airlock, close the inner, and then open the outer hatch. By extending the drawer and removing the

experiment using the dedicated robotic arm, payloads are placed on the external platform. The process

can be reversed and repeated quickly, allowing access to maintain external experiments without the

delays caused by EVA's. Only the Russian and Japanese laboratories have this feature. A smaller

pressurised module is attached to the top of Kibō, serving as a cargo bay. The dedicated Interorbital

communications system allows large amounts of data to be beamed from Kibō's ICS, first to the

Japanese KODAMA satellite in geostationary orbit, then to Japanese ground stations. When a direct

communication link is used, contact time between the ISS and a ground station is limited to approximately

10 minutes per visible pass. When KODAMA relays data between a LEO spacecraft and a ground station,

real-time communications are possible in 60% of the flight path of the spacecraft. Ground staff use tele-

present robotics to conduct on-orbit research without crew intervention.

The Cupola's design has been compared to

the Millennium Falcon from the motion

picture Star Wars.

Dmitri Kondratyev and Paolo Nespoli in the Cupola. Background left

to right, Progress M-09M, Soyuz TMA-20, the Leonardomodule

and HTV-2.

Tracy Caldwell Dyson poses for a photo in the Cupola, admiring the view of the Earth.

Cupola is a seven window observatory, used to view Earth and docking spacecraft. Its name derives from

the Italian word cupola, which means "dome". The Cupola project was started by NASA and Boeing, but

cancelled due to budget cuts. A barter agreement between NASA and the ESA resulted in the Cupola's

development being resumed in 1998 by the ESA. The module comes equipped with robotic workstations

for operating the station's main robotic arm and shutters to protect its windows from damage caused by

micrometeorites. It features 7 windows, with a 80-centimetre (31 in) round window, the largest window on

the station. The distinctive design has been compared to the 'turret' of the fictitious Millennium Falcon in

the motion picture Star Wars;[101][102]the original prop lightsaber used by actor Mark Hamill as Luke

Skywalker in the 1977 film was flown to the station in 2007,[103] and the Falcon rockets commercial ships

that come to the station use, are named after the Millennium Falcon itself.

Rassvet (Russian: РассвеV т; lit. "dawn"), also known as the Mini-Research Module 1 (MRM-1)

(Russian: Малый исследовательский модуль, МИМ 1) and formerly known as the Docking Cargo

Module (DCM), is similar in design to the Mir Docking Module launched on STS-74 in 1995. Rassvet is

primarily used for cargo storage and as a docking port for visiting spacecraft. It was flown to the ISS

aboard NASA's Space Shuttle Atlantis on the STS-132 mission and connected in May 2010,[104]

[105] Rassvet is the only Russian owned module launched by NASA, to repay for the launch of Zarya,

which is Russian designed and built, but partially paid for by NASA. [106] Rassvet was launched with the

Russian Nauka Laboratory's Experiments airlock temporarily attached to it, and spare parts for the

European Robotic Arm.

Leonardo Permanent Multipurpose Module (PMM) The three NASA Space Shuttle MPLM cargo

containers Leonardo, Raffaello and Donatello, were built for NASA in Turin, Italy by Alcatel Alenia Space,

now Thales Alenia Space.[107] The MPLMs are provided to the ISS programme by the Italy (independent of

Italy's role as a member state of ESA) to NASA and are considered to be U.S. elements. In a bartered

exchange for providing these containers, the U.S. has given Italy research time aboard the ISS out of the

U.S. allotment in addition to that which Italy receives as a member of ESA. [108] The Permanent

Multipurpose Module was created by converting Leonardo into a module that could be permanently

attached to the station.[109][110][111]

[edit]Scheduled additional modules

Nauka (Russian: НауVка; lit. Science), also known as the Multipurpose Laboratory Module (MLM)

or FGB-2, (Russian: Многофункциональный лабораторный модуль, or МЛМ), is the major Russian

laboratory module. It is scheduled to arrive at the station in 2014[112] and will replace PIRS. Prior to the

arrival of the Nauka, a progress robot spacecraft will dock with PIRS, depart with that module, and both

will be discarded. It contains an additional set of life support systems and orientation control. Originally it

would have routed power from the single Science-and-Power Platform, but that single module design

changed over the first ten years of the ISS mission, and the two science modules which attach to Nauka

via the Node Module each incorporate their own large solar arrays to power Russian science experiments

in the ROS. Nauka's mission has changed over time. During the mid 1990s, it was intended as a backup

for the FGB, and later as a universal docking module (UDM); its docking ports will be able to support

automatic docking of both space craft, additional modules and fuel transfer. Nauka is a module in the 20

ton class and has its own engines. Smaller ISS modules (less than 10 tons) which dock to the ROS do

not have engines of their own, but rely for propulsion upon the spaceship that brings them to the station.

Zvezda and Zarya, like Nauka, weigh about 20 tons each and are launched by the larger Proton rockets

rather than by Soyuz rockets. They are the only 3 modules on the ISS that contain engines, or navigation

computers with star, sun and horizon sensors, to enable flight and station-keeping. Nauka will be

separated from the ISS before de-orbit, together with support modules, and become the OPSEK space

station.

Node Module (UM)/(NM) This 4-ton ball shaped module will support the docking of two scientific and

power modules during the final stage of the station assembly and provide the Russian segment additional

docking ports to receive Soyuz TMA (transportation modified anthropometric) and Progress M spacecraft.

NM is to be incorporated into the ISS in 2014. It will be integrated with a special version of the Progress

cargo ship and launched by a standard Soyuz rocket. The Progress would use its own propulsion and

flight control system to deliver and dock the Node Module to the nadir (Earth-facing) docking port of the

Nauka MLM/FGB-2 module. One port is equipped with an active hybrid docking port, which enables

docking with the MLM module. The remaining five ports are passive hybrids, enabling docking of Soyuz

and Progress vehicles, as well as heavier modules and future spacecraft with modified docking systems.

However more importantly, the node module was conceived to serve as the only permanent element of

the future Russian successor to the ISS, OPSEK. Equipped with six docking ports, the Node Module

would serve as a single permanent core of the future station with all other modules coming and going as

their life span and mission required.[113][114] This would be a progression beyond the ISS and Russia's

modular MIR space station, which are in turn more advanced than early monolithic first generation

stations such as Skylab, and early Salyut and Almaz stations.

Science Power Modules 1 & 2 (NEM-1, NEM-2) (Russian: Научно-Энергетический Модуль-1 и -2)

[edit]Cancelled components

The US Habitation Module would have served as the station's living quarters. Instead, the sleep stations

are now spread throughout the station.[115] The US Interim Control Module and ISS Propulsion

Module were intended to replace functions of Zvezda in case of a launch failure.[116] The

Russian Universal Docking Module, to which the cancelled Russian Research modules and spacecraft

would have docked.[117] The Russian Science Power Platform would have provided the Russian Orbital

Segment with a power supply independent of the ITS solar arrays, [117] and twoRussian Research

Modules that were planned to be used for scientific research.[118]

[edit]Unpressurized elements

ISS Truss Components breakdown showing Trusses and all ORUs in situ

The ISS features a large number of external components that do not require pressurisation. The largest

such component is the Integrated Truss Structure (ITS), to which the station's main solar arrays and

thermal radiators are mounted.[119] The ITS consists of ten separate segments forming a structure 108.5 m

(356 ft) long.[3]

The station in its complete form has several smaller external components, such as the six robotic arms,

the three External Stowage Platforms (ESPs) and four ExPrESS Logistics Carriers (ELCs).[89][120] Whilst

these platforms allow experiments (including MISSE, the STP-H3 and the Robotic Refuelling Mission) to

be deployed and conducted in the vacuum of space by providing electricity and processing experimental

data locally, the platforms' primary function is to store Orbital Replacement Units (ORUs). ORUs are

spare parts that can be replaced when the item either passes its design life or fails. Examples of ORUs

include pumps, storage tanks, antennas and battery units. Such units are replaced either by astronauts

during EVA or by robotic arms. While spare parts were routinely transported to and from the station via

Space Shuttle resupply missions, there was a heavy emphasis on ORU transport once the NASA Shuttle

approached retirement.[121] Several shuttle missions were dedicated to the delivery of ORUs,

including STS-129,[122]STS-133[123] and STS-134.[124] To date only one other mode of transportation of

ORUs has been utilised – the Japanese cargo vessel HTV-2 – which delivered an FHRC and CTC-2 via

its Exposed Pallet (EP).[125]

Construction of the Integrated Truss Structure over New Zealand.

There are also smaller exposure facilities mounted directly to laboratory modules; the JEM Exposed

Facility serves as an external 'porch' for the Japanese Experiment Module complex,[126] and a facility on

the European Columbus laboratory provides power and data connections for experiments such as

the European Technology Exposure Facility[127][128] and the Atomic Clock Ensemble in Space.[129] A remote

sensing instrument, SAGE III-ISS, is due to be delivered to the station in 2014 aboard a Dragon capsule.[130] The largest such scientific payload externally mounted to the ISS is theAlpha Magnetic

Spectrometer (AMS), a particle physics experiment launched on STS-134 in May 2011, and mounted

externally on the ITS. The AMS measures cosmic rays to look for evidence of dark matter and antimatter.[131]

[edit]Cranes and robotic arms

Canadarm2, the largest robotic arm on the ISS, has a mass of 1,800 kilograms and is used to dock and

manipulate spacecraft and modules on the USOS, and hold crew members and equipment during EVAs.[132] The ROS does not require spacecraft or modules to be manipulated, as all spacecraft and modules

dock automatically, and may be discarded the same way. Crew use the 2 Strela (Russian: Стрела; lit.

Arrow) cargo cranes during EVAs for moving crew and equipment around the ROS. Each Strela crane

has a mass of 45 kg. The Russian and Japanese laboratories both have airlocks and robotic arms.

Commander Volkov stands on Pirs with his back to

the Soyuz whilst operating the manual Strela

craneholding photographer Kononenko. Zarya is seen

to the left and Zvezda across the bottom of the image.

Dextre, like many of the station's experiments and

robotic arms, can be operated from Earth and

perform tasks while the crew sleeps.

The Integrated Truss Structure serves as a base for the main remote manipulator system called the

Mobile Servicing System (MSS). This consists of the Mobile Base System (MBS), the Canadarm2,

and Dextre. Dextre is a 1,500 kg agile robotic manipulator with two 'arms' which have 7 degrees of

movement each, a 'torso' which bends at the waist and rotates at the base, a tool holster, lights and

video. Staff on earth can operate Dextre via remote control, performing work without crew intervention.

The MBS rolls along rails built into some of the ITS segments to allow the arm to reach all parts of the

United States segment of the station.[133] The MSS had its reach increased an Orbiter Boom Sensor

System in May 2011, used to inspect tiles on the NASA shuttle, and converted for permanent station use.

To gain access to the extreme extents of the Russian Segment the crew also placed a "Power Data

Grapple Fixture" to the forward docking section of Zarya, so that the Canadarm2 may inchworm itself onto

that point.[134]

The European Robotic Arm, which will service the Russian Orbital Segment, will be launched alongside

the Multipurpose Laboratory Module in 2012.[135] The Japanese Experiment Module's Remote Manipulator

System (JFM RMS), which services the JEM Exposed Facility,[136] was launched on STS-124 and is

attached to the JEM Pressurised Module.[137]

[edit]Station systems

[edit]Life support

Main articles: ISS ECLSS and Chemical oxygen generator

The critical systems are the atmosphere control system, the water supply system, the food supply

facilities, the sanitation and hygiene equipment, and fire detection and suppression equipment. The

Russian orbital segment's life support systems are contained in the Service Module Zvezda. Some of

these systems are supplemented by equipment in the USOS. The MLM Nauka laboratory has a complete

set of life support systems.

[edit]Atmospheric control systems

The atmosphere on board the ISS is similar to the Earth's.[138] Normal air pressure on the ISS is

101.3 kPa (14.7 psi);[139] the same as at sea level on Earth. An Earth-like atmosphere offers benefits for

crew comfort, and is much safer than the alternative, a pure oxygen atmosphere, because of the

increased risk of a fire such as that responsible for the deaths of the Apollo 1crew.[140] Earth-like

atmospheric conditions have been maintained on all Russian and Soviet spacecraft.[141]

Elektron units in the Zvezda service module.

The Elektron system aboard Zvezda and a similar system in Destiny generate oxygen aboard the station.[142] The crew has a backup option in the form of bottled oxygen and Solid Fuel Oxygen

Generation (SFOG) canisters, a chemical oxygen generator system.[143]Carbon dioxide is removed from

the air by the Vozdukh system in Zvezda. Other by-products of human metabolism, such as methane

from the intestines and ammonia from sweat, are removed by activated charcoal filters.[143]

Part of the ROS atmosphere control system is the oxygen supply, triple-redundancy is provided by the

Elektron unit, solid fuel generators, and stored oxygen. The Elektron unit is the primary oxygen

supply, O2 and H2 are produced by electrolysis, with the H2 being vented overboard. The 1 kW system

uses approximately 1 litre of water per crew member per day from stored water from Earth, or water

recycled from other systems. MIR was the first spacecraft to use recycled water for oxygen production.

The secondary oxygen supply is provided by burning O2-producing Vika cartridges (see also ISS ECLSS).

Each 'candle' takes 5–20 minutes to decompose at 450–500 °C, producing 600 litres of O2. This unit is

manually operated.[144]

The US orbital segment has redundant supplies of oxygen, from a pressurised storage tank on the Quest

airlock module delivered in 2001, supplemented ten years later by ESA built Advanced Closed-Loop

System (ACLS) in the Tranquility module (Node 3), which produces O2by electrolysis.[145] Hydrogen

produced is combined with carbon dioxide from the cabin atmosphere and converted to water and

methane.

[edit]Food

See also: Space food

The crews of STS-127 and Expedition 20enjoy a meal inside Unity.

Most of the food on board is vacuum sealed in plastic bags. Cans are too heavy and expensive to

transport, so there are not as many. The preserved food is generally not held in high regard by the crew,

and when combined with the reduced sense of taste in a microgravity environment, [146] a great deal of

effort is made to make the food more palatable. More spices are used than in regular cooking, and the

crew looks forward to the arrival of any ships from Earth, as they bring fresh fruit and vegetables with

them. Care is taken that foods do not create crumbs. Sauces are often used to ensure station equipment

is not contaminated. Each crew member has individual food packages and cooks them using the on-

board galley. The galley features two food warmers, a refrigerator added in November 2008, and a water

dispenser that provides both heated and unheated water.[147] Drinks are provided in dehydrated powder

form and are mixed with water before consumption.[147][148] Drinks and soups are sipped from plastic bags

with straws, while solid food is eaten with a knife and fork, which are attached to a tray with magnets to

prevent them from floating away. Any food that does float away, including crumbs, must be collected to

prevent it from clogging up the station's air filters and other equipment.[148]

[edit]Hygiene

Showers on space stations were introduced in the early 1970s on Skylab and Salyut 3.[149]:139 By Salyut 6,

in the early 1980s, the crew complained of the complexity of showering in space, which was a monthly

activity. The ISS does not feature a shower; instead, crewmembers wash using a water jet and wet wipes,

with soap dispensed from a toothpaste tube-like container. Crews are also provided with rinseless

shampoo and edible toothpaste to save water.[150][151]

There are two space toilets on the ISS, both of Russian design, located in Zvezda and Tranquility.[147] These Waste and Hygiene Compartments use a fan-driven suction system similar to the Space

Shuttle Waste Collection System. Astronauts first fasten themselves to the toilet seat, which is equipped

with spring-loaded restraining bars to ensure a good seal.[146] A lever operates a powerful fan and a

suction hole slides open: the air stream carries the waste away. Solid waste is collected in individual bags

which are stored in an aluminium container. Full containers are transferred to Progress spacecraft for

disposal.[147][152] Liquid waste is evacuated by a hose connected to the front of the toilet, with anatomically

correct "urine funnel adapters" attached to the tube so both men and women can use the same toilet.

Waste is collected and transferred to the Water Recovery System, where it is recycled back into drinking

water.[148]

[edit]Power and thermal control

Main articles: Electrical system of the International Space Station and External Active Thermal Control

System

Russian solar arrays, backlit by sunset. One of the eight truss mounted pairs of

USOS solar arrays

Double-sided solar, or Photovoltaic arrays, provide electrical power for the ISS. These bifacial cells are

more efficient and operate at a lower temperature than single-sided cells commonly used on Earth, by

collecting sunlight on one side and light reflected off the Earth on the other.[153]

The Russian segment of the station, like the Space Shuttle and most spacecraft, uses 28 volt DC from

four rotating solar arrays mounted on Zarya and Zvezda. The USOS uses 130–180 V DC from the USOS

PV array, power is stabilised and distributed at 160 V DC and converted to the user-required 124 V DC.

The higher distribution voltageallows smaller, lighter conductors, at the expense of crew safety. The ROS

uses low voltage. The two station segments share power with converters.[119]

The USOS solar arrays are arranged as four wing pairs, with each wing producing nearly 32.8 kW.[119] These arrays normally track the sun to maximise power generation. Each array is about 375 m2 (450

yd2) in area and 58 metres (63 yd) long. In the complete configuration, the solar arrays track the sun by

rotating the alpha gimbal once per orbit while the beta gimbal follows slower changes in the angle of the

sun to the orbital plane. The Night Glider mode aligns the solar arrays parallel to the ground at night to

reduce the significant aerodynamic drag at the station's relatively low orbital altitude.[154]

The station uses rechargeable nickel-hydrogen batteries (NiH2) for continuous power during the 35

minutes of every 90 minute orbit that it is eclipsed by the Earth. The batteries are recharged on the day

side of the Earth. They have a 6.5 year lifetime (over 37,000 charge/discharge cycles) and will be

regularly replaced over the anticipated 20-year life of the station.[155]

The station's large solar panels generate a high potential voltage difference between the station and the

ionosphere. This could cause arcing through insulating surfaces and sputtering of conductive surfaces as

ions are accelerated by the spacecraft plasma sheath. To mitigate this, plasma contactor units (PCU)s

create current paths between the station and the ambient plasma field.[156]

ISS External Active Thermal Control System (EATCS) diagram

The large amount of electrical power consumed by the station's systems and experiments is turned

almost entirely into heat. The heat which can be dissipated through the walls of the stations modules is

insufficient to keep the internal ambient temperature within comfortable, workable limits.Ammonia is

continuously pumped through pipework throughout the station to collect heat, and then into external

radiators exposed to the cold of space, and back into the station.

The International Space Station (ISS) External Active Thermal Control System (EATCS) maintains an

equilibrium when the ISS environment or heat loads exceed the capabilities of the Passive Thermal

Control System (PTCS). Note Elements of the PTCS are external surface materials, insulation such as

MLI, or Heat Pipes. The EATCS provides heat rejection capabilities for all the US pressurised modules,

including the JEM and COF as well as the main power distribution electronics of the S0, S1 and P1

Trusses. The EATCS consists of two independent Loops (Loop A & Loop B), they both use mechanically

pumped Ammonia in fluid state, in closed-loop circuits. The EATCS is capable of rejecting up to 70 kW,

and provides a substantial upgrade in heat rejection capacity from the 14 kW capability of the Early

External Active Thermal Control System (EEATCS) via the Early Ammonia Servicer (EAS), which was

launched on STS-105 and installed onto the P6 Truss.[157]

[edit]Communications and computers

Main articles: Tracking and Data Relay Satellite and Luch (satellite)

See also: ThinkPad use in space

The communications systems used by the ISS

* Luch satellite not currently in use

Radio communications provide telemetry and scientific data links between the station and Mission Control

Centres. Radio links are also used during rendezvous and docking procedures and for audio and video

communication between crewmembers, flight controllers and family members. As a result, the ISS is

equipped with internal and external communication systems used for different purposes.[158]

The Russian Orbital Segment communicates directly with the ground via the Lira antenna mounted

to Zvezda.[15][159] The Lira antenna also has the capability to use the Luch data relay satellite system.[15] This system, used for communications with Mir, fell into disrepair during the 1990s, and as a result is

no longer in use,[15][160][161] although two new Luch satellites—Luch-5A and Luch-5B—are planned for

launch in 2011 to restore the operational capability of the system.[162] Another Russian communications

system is the Voskhod-M, which enables internal telephone communications

between Zvezda, Zarya, Pirs, Poisk and the USOS, and also provides a VHF radio link to ground control

centres via antennas on Zvezda's exterior.[163]

The US Orbital Segment (USOS) makes use of two separate radio links mounted in the Z1 truss

structure: the S band (used for audio) and Ku band (used for audio, video and data) systems. These

transmissions are routed via the United States Tracking and Data Relay Satellite System (TDRSS)

in geostationary orbit, which allows for almost continuous real-time communications with NASA's Mission

Control Center (MCC-H) in Houston.[10][15][158] Data channels for the Canadarm2,

European Columbus laboratory and Japanese Kibōmodules are routed via the S band and Ku band

systems, although the European Data Relay Satellite System and a similar Japanese system will

eventually complement the TDRSS in this role.[10][164] Communications between modules are carried on an

internal digitalwireless network.[165]

Laptop computers surround the Canadarm2 console.

UHF radio is used by astronauts and cosmonauts conducting EVAs. UHF is employed by other spacecraft

that dock to or undock from the station, such as Soyuz, Progress, HTV, ATV and the Space Shuttle

(except the shuttle also makes use of the S band and Ku band systems via TDRSS), to receive

commands from Mission Control and ISS crewmembers.[15] Automated spacecraft are fitted with their own

communications equipment; the ATV uses a laser attached to the spacecraft and equipment attached

to Zvezda, known as the Proximity Communications Equipment, to accurately dock to the station.[166][167]

The ISS is equipped with approximately 100 IBM and Lenovo ThinkPad model A31 and T61P laptop

computers. Each computer is a commercial off-the-shelf purchase which is then modified for safety and

operation including updates to connectors, cooling and power to accommodate the station's 28V DC

power system and weightless environment. Heat generated by the laptops doesn't rise, but stagnates

surrounding the laptop, so additional forced ventilation is required. Laptops aboard the ISS are connected

to the station's wireless LAN via Wi-Fi and are connected to the ground at 3 Mbit/s up and 10 Mbit/s

down, comparable to home DSL connection speeds.[168]

Expeditions and private flights

Soyuz TM-31 being prepared to bring the first resident crew to the station in October 2000

See also the list of professional crew, private travellers, or both

The station crew "are our representatives spearheading humanity's exploration of new spaces and

possibilities for our future" according to Pope Benedict XVI.[169] Each permanent crew is given an

expedition number. Expeditions run up to six months, from launch until undocking, an 'increment' covers

the same time period, but includes cargo ships and all activities. Expeditions 1 to 6 consisted of 3 person

crews, Expeditions 7 to 12 were reduced to the safe minimum of two following the destruction of the

NASA Shuttle Columbia. From Expedition 13 the crew gradually increased to 6 around 2010.[170][171] With

the arrival of the American Commercial Crew vehicles in the middle of the 2010s, expedition size may be

increased to seven crew members, the number ISS is designed for.[172][173]

Sergei Krikalev, member of Expedition 1 and Commander of Expedition 11 has spent more time in space

than anyone else, a total of 803 days and 9 hours and 39 minutes. His awards include the Order of

Lenin, Hero of the Soviet Union, Hero of the Russian Federation, and 4 NASA medals. On 16 August

2005 at 1:44 am EDT he passed the record of 748 days held by Sergei Avdeyev, who had 'time travelled'

1/50th of a second into the future on board MIR.[174] He participated in psychosocial experiment SFINCSS-

99 (Simulation of Flight of International Crew on Space Station), which examined inter-cultural and other

stress factors effecting integration of crew in preparation for the ISS spaceflights. Commander Michael

Fincke is the U.S. space endurance record holder with a total of 382 days.

Travelers who pay for their own passage into space are called spaceflight participants by the RSA and

NASA, and are sometimes referred to as space tourists, a term they generally dislike. [note 1]All seven were

transported to the ISS on Russian Soyuz spacecraft. When professional crews change over in numbers

not divisible by the three seats in a Soyuz, and a short-stay crewmember is not sent, the spare seat is

sold by MirCorp through Space Adventures. When the space shuttle retired in 2011, and the station's

crew size was reduced to 6, space tourism was halted, as the partners relied on Russian transport seats

for access to the station. Soyuz flight schedules increase after 2013, allowing 5 Soyuz flights (15 seats)

with only two expeditions (12 seats) required.[180] The remaining seats are sold for around US$40 million

to members of the public who can pass a medical. ESA and NASA criticised private spaceflight at the

beginning of the ISS, and NASA initially resisted training Dennis Tito, the first man to pay for his own

passage to the ISS.[note 2] Toyohiro Akiyama was flown to Mir for a week, he was classed as a business

traveller, as his employer, Tokyo Broadcasting System, paid for his ticket, and he gave a daily TV

broadcast from orbit.

Anousheh Ansari (Persian:  انصاری (انوشه became the first Iranian in space and the first self-funded

woman to fly to the station. Officials reported that her education and experience make her much more

than a tourist, and her performance in training had been "excellent."[181] Ansari herself dismisses the idea

that she is a tourist. She did Russian and European studies involving medicine and microbiology during

her 10 day stay. The documentary Space Tourists follows her journey to the station, where she fulfilled

the childhood dream 'to leave our planet as a normal person and travel into outer space.'[182] In the film,

some Kazakhs are shown waiting in the middle of the steppes for four rocket stages to literally fall from

the sky. Film-maker Christian Frei states "Filming the work of the Kazakh scrap metal collectors was

anything but easy. The Russian authorities finally gave us a film permit in principle, but they imposed

crippling preconditions on our activities. The real daily routine of the scrap metal collectors could definitely

not be shown. Secret service agents and military personnel dressed in overalls and helmets were willing

to re-enact their work for the cameras – in an idealised way that officials in Moscow deemed to be

presentable, but not at all how it takes place in reality."

[edit]Crew activities

NASA astronaut Scott Kelly works on theCombustion Integrated Rack in the Destiny laboratory.

A typical day for the crew begins with a wake-up at 06:00, followed by post-sleep activities and a morning

inspection of the station. The crew then eats breakfast and takes part in a daily planning conference with

Mission Control before starting work at around 08:10. The first scheduled exercise of the day follows, after

which the crew continues work until 13:05. Following a one-hour lunch break, the afternoon consists of

more exercise and work before the crew carries out its pre-sleep activities beginning at 19:30, including

dinner and a crew conference. The scheduled sleep period begins at 21:30. In general, the crew works

ten hours per day on a weekday, and five hours on Saturdays, with the rest of the time their own for

relaxation or work catch-up.[183]

The station provides crew quarters for each member of the expedition's crew, with two 'sleep stations' in

the Zvezda and four more installed inHarmony.[184][185] The American quarters are private, approximately

person-sized soundproof booths. The Russian crew quarters include a small window, but do not provide

the same amount of ventilation or block the same amount of noise as their American counterparts. A

crewmember can sleep in a crew quarter in a tethered sleeping bag, listen to music, use a laptop, and

store personal items in a large drawer or in nets attached to the module's walls. The module also provides

a reading lamp, a shelf and a desktop.[146][147][148] Visiting crews have no allocated sleep module, and attach

a sleeping bag to an available space on a wall—it is possible to sleep floating freely through the station,

but this is generally avoided because of the possibility of bumping into sensitive equipment. [150] It is

important that crew accommodations be well ventilated; otherwise, astronauts can wake up oxygen-

deprived and gasping for air, because a bubble of their own exhaled carbon dioxide has formed around

their heads.[146]

Orbit and mission control

Graph showing the changing altitude of the ISS from November

1998 until January 2009

Animation of ISS orbit from a North American

geostationary point of view (sped up 1800 times)

The ISS is maintained in a nearly circular orbit with a minimum mean altitude of 330 km (205 mi) and a

maximum of 410 km (255 mi), in the centre of the Thermosphere, at an inclination of 51.6 degrees to

Earth's equator, necessary to ensure that Russian Soyuz and Progress spacecraft launched from

the Baikonur Cosmodrome may be safely launched to reach the station. Spent rocket stages must be

dropped into uninhabited areas and this limits the directions rockets can be launched from the spaceport.[186][187] The orbital inclination chosen was also low enough to allow American space shuttles launched

from Florida to reach the ISS.

It travels at an average speed of 27,724 kilometres (17,227 mi) per hour, and completes 15.7 orbits per

day.[20] The station's altitude was allowed to fall around the time of each NASA shuttle mission. Orbital

boost burns would generally be delayed until after the shuttle's departure. This allowed shuttle payloads

to be lifted with the station's engines during the routine firings, rather than have the shuttle lift itself and

the payload together to a higher orbit. This trade-off allowed heavier loads to be transferred to the station.

After the retirement of the NASA shuttle, the nominal orbit of the space station was raised in altitude. [188]

[189] Other, more frequent supply ships do not require this adjustment as they are substantially lighter

vehicles.[27][190]

Orbital boosting can be performed by the station's two main engines on the Zvezda service module, or

Russian or European spacecraft docked to Zvezda's aft port. The ATV has been designed with the

possibility of adding a second docking port to its other end, allowing it to remain at the ISS and still allow

other craft to dock and boost the station. It takes approximately two orbits (three hours) for the boost to a

higher altitude to be completed.[190] In December 2008 NASA signed an agreement with the Ad Astra

Rocket Company which may result in the testing on the ISS of aVASIMR plasma propulsion engine.[191] This technology could allow station-keeping to be done more economically than at present.[192][193]

The Russian Orbital Segment contains the station's engines and control bridge, which handles Guidance,

Navigation and Control (ROS GNC) for the entire station.[91] Initially, Zarya, the first module of the station,

controlled the station until a short time after the Russian service module Zvezda docked and was

transferred control. Zvezda contains the ESA built DMS-R Data Management System. [194] Using two fault-

tolerant computers (FTC), Zvezda computes the station's position and orbital trajectory using redundant

Earth horizon sensors, Solar horizon sensors as well as Sun and star trackers. The FTCs each contain

three identical processing units working in parallel and provide advanced fault-masking by majority voting.

Zvezda uses gyroscopes and thrusters to turn itself around. Gyroscopes don't need propellant, rather

they use electricity to 'store' momentum in flywheels by turning in the opposite direction to the station's

movement. The USOS has its own computer controlled gyroscopes to handle the extra mass of that

section. When gyroscopes 'saturate', reaching their maximum speed, thrusters are used to cancel out the

stored momentum. During Expedition 10, an incorrect command was sent to the station's computer, using

about 14 kilograms of propellant before the fault was noticed and fixed. When attitude control computers

in the ROS and USOS don't communicate properly, it can result in a rare 'force fight' where the ROS GNC

computer must ignore the USOS counterpart, which has no thrusters. [195][196][197] When an ATV, Nasa

Shuttle, or Soyuz is docked to the station, it can also be used to maintain station attitude such as for

troubleshooting. Shuttle control was used exclusively during installation of the S3/S4 truss, which

provides electrical power and data interfaces for the station's electronics.[198]

Space centres involved with the ISS programme

The components of the ISS are operated and monitored by their respective space agencies at mission

control centres across the globe, including:

Roskosmos's Mission Control Center at Korolyov, Moscow Oblast, controls the Russian Orbital

Segment which handles Guidance, Navigation & Control for the entire Station.,[91][194] in addition to

individual Soyuz and Progress missions.[15]

ESA's ATV Control Centre, at the Toulouse Space Centre (CST) in Toulouse, France, controls flights

of the unmanned European Automated Transfer Vehicle.[15]

JAXA's JEM Control Centre and HTV Control Centre at Tsukuba Space Centre (TKSC) in Tsukuba,

Japan, are responsible for operating the Japanese Experiment Module complex and all flights of the

'White Stork' HTV Cargo spacecraft, respectively.[15]

NASA's Mission Control Center at Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas, serves as

the primary control facility for the United States segment of the ISS and also controlled the Space

Shuttle missions that visited the station.[15]

NASA's Payload Operations and Integration Center at Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville,

Alabama, coordinates payload operations in the USOS.[15]

ESA's Columbus Control Centre at the German Aerospace Centre (DLR) in Oberpfaffenhofen,

Germany, manages the European Columbus research laboratory.[15]

CSA's MSS Control at Saint-Hubert, Quebec, Canada, controls and monitors the Mobile Servicing

System, or Canadarm2.[15]

[edit]Repairs

Main articles: Orbital Replacement Units and International Space Station maintenance

Orbital Replacement Units (ORUs) are spare parts that can be readily replaced when a unit either

passes its design life or fails. Examples of ORUs are pumps, storage tanks, controller boxes, antennas,

and battery units. Some units can be replaced using robotic arms. Many are stored outside the station,

either on small pallets called ExPRESS Logistics Carriers (ELCs) or share larger platforms called External

Stowage Platforms which also hold science experiments. Both kinds of pallets have electricity as many

parts which could be damaged by the cold of space require heating. The larger logistics carriers also have

computer local area network connections (LAN) and telemetry to connect experiments. A heavy emphasis

on stocking the USOS with ORU's occurred around 2011, before the end of the NASA shuttle program, as

its commercial replacements, Cygnus and Dragon, carry one tenth to one quarter the payload.

Spare parts are called ORU's, some are externally stored on pallets called ELC's and ESP's.

Unexpected problems and failures have impacted the station's assembly time-line and work schedules

leading to periods of reduced capabilities and, in some cases, could have forced abandonment of the

station for safety reasons, had these problems not been resolved. During STS-120 on 2007, following the

relocation of the P6 truss and solar arrays, it was noted during the redeployment of the array that it had

become torn and was not deploying properly.[199] An EVA was carried out by Scott Parazynski, assisted

by Douglas Wheelock, the men took extra precautions to reduce the risk of electric shock, as the repairs

were carried out with the solar array exposed to sunlight.[200] The issues with the array were followed in

the same year by problems with the starboard Solar Alpha Rotary Joint (SARJ), which rotates the arrays

on the starboard side of the station. Excessive vibration and high-current spikes in the array drive motor

were noted, resulting in a decision to substantially curtail motion of the starboard SARJ until the cause

was understood. Inspections during EVAs on STS-120 and STS-123 showed extensive contamination

from metallic shavings and debris in the large drive gear and confirmed damage to the large metallic race

ring at the heart of the joint, and so the joint was locked to prevent further damage.[201] Repairs to the joint

were carried out during STS-126 with lubrication of both joints and the replacement of 11 out of 12 trundle

bearings on the joint.[202][203]

While anchored on the end of the OBSS, astronaut Scott Parazynski performs makeshift repairs to a US Solar array which

damaged itself when unfolding, during STS-120.

2009 saw damage to the S1 radiator, one of the components of the station's cooling system. The problem

was first noticed in Soyuz imagery in September 2008, but was not thought to be serious. [204] The imagery

showed that the surface of one sub-panel has peeled back from the underlying central structure, possibly

due to micro-meteoroid or debris impact. It is also known that a Service Module thruster cover, jettisoned

during an EVA in 2008, had struck the S1 radiator, but its effect, if any, has not been determined. On 15

May 2009 the damaged radiator panel's ammonia tubing was mechanically shut off from the rest of the

cooling system by the computer-controlled closure of a valve. The same valve was used immediately

afterwards to vent the ammonia from the damaged panel, eliminating the possibility of an ammonia leak

from the cooling system via the damaged panel.[204]

Early on 1 August 2010, a failure in cooling Loop A (starboard side), one of two external cooling loops, left

the station with only half of its normal cooling capacity and zero redundancy in some systems.[205][206]

[207] The problem appeared to be in the ammonia pump module that circulates the ammonia cooling fluid.

Several subsystems, including two of the four CMGs, were shut down.

Planned operations on the ISS were interrupted through a series of EVAs to address the cooling system

issue. A first EVA on 7 August 2010, to replace the failed pump module, was not fully completed due to

an ammonia leak in one of four quick-disconnects. A second EVA on 11 August successfully removed the

failed pump module.[208][209] A third EVA was required to restore Loop A to normal functionality.[210][211]

The USOS's cooling system is largely built by the American company Boeing,[212] which is also the

manufacturer of the failed pump.[213]

An air leak from the USOS in 2004,[214] the venting of fumes from an Elektron oxygen generator in 2006,[215] and the failure of the computers in the ROS in 2007 during STS-117 which left the station without

thruster, Elektron, Vozdukh and other environmental control system operations, the root cause of which

was found to be condensation inside the electrical connectors leading to a short-circuit.[citation needed]

The four Main Bus Switching Units (MBSUs, located in the S0 truss), control the routing of power from the

four solar array wings to the rest of the ISS. In late 2011 MBSU-1, while still routing power correctly,

ceased responding to commands or sending data confirming its health, and was scheduled to be

swapped out at the next available EVA. In each MBSU, two power channels feed 160V DC from the

arrays to two DC-to-DC power converters (DDCUs) that supply the 124V power used in the station. A

spare MBSU was already on board, but the 30 August 2012 EVA failed to be completed when a bolt

being tightened to finish installation of the spare unit jammed before electrical connection was secured.[216] The loss of MBSU-1 limits the station to 75% of its normal power capacity, requiring minor limitations

in normal operations until the problem can be addressed.

As of 2 September 2012, a second EVA to tighten the balky bolt, completing the installation of the

replacement MBSU-1 in an attempt to restore full power, has been scheduled for Wednesday, [217] Yet in

the meanwhile, a third solar array wing has gone off line due to some fault in that array's Direct Current

Switching Unit (DCSU) or its associated system, further reducing ISS power to just five of the eight solar

array wings for the first time in several years.

On 5 September 2012, in a second, 6 hr, EVA to replace MBSU-1, astronauts Sunita Williams and

Akihiko Hoshide successfully restored the ISS to 100% power.[218]

[edit]Fleet operations

Progress M-15M (ISS-47P) was the 48th progress robot to arrive at the ISS, including M-MIM2 and M-

SO1 which installed modules. Thirty-five flights of the retired NASA Space Shuttle were made to the

station.[2] TMA-05M is the 31st Soyuz flight, and there have been three European ATV and three

Japanese Kounotori 'White Stork' arrivals.

The Progress M-14M resupply vehicle as it approaches the ISS. Almost 50 unpiloted Progress spacecraft have been sent

with supplies during the lifetime of the station.

[edit]Currently docked/berthed

See also the list of professional crew, private travellers, both or just the Robots.

Spacecraft and mission Location Arrived (UTC) Departure date

Progress M-16MProgress 48

CargoPirs 2 August 2012 01:18 11 February 2013

Soyuz TMA-06M 'Union' Expedition 33/34 Poisk 25 October 2012 12:29 15 March 2013

Progress M-17MProgress 49

CargoZvezda 31 October 2012 13:33 27 April 2013

[edit]Scheduled launches and dockings/berthings

All dates are UTC. Dates are the earliest possible dates and may change. Forward ports are at the front

of the station according to its normal direction of travel and orientation (attitude). Aft is at the rear of the

station, used by spacecraft boosting the station's orbit. Nadir is closest the Earth, Zenith is on top.

Uncrewed cargoships are in light blue. Crewed spacecraft are in light green. Modules are white.

Spacecraft operated by government agencies are indicated with 'Gov', while 'Com' denotes those

operated under commercial arrangements.

Spacecraft and operator Spaceport and mission LaunchDocking/Berthing

Port

2012 launches 2012

GovSoyuz TMA-

07M 'Union'Baikonur Expedition 34/35 19 December Rassvet

2013 onwards 2013

Gov Progress M-18M BaikonurProgress 50

CargoFebruary Pirs nadir

Com Dragon CRS Spx-2Cape

CanaveralDragon 2 Cargo March Harmony nadir

Com Cygnus COTS DemoMARS (in

USA)

Cygnus COTS

DemoApril Harmony nadir

Gov Albert Einstein French Guiana ATV-4 Cargo April Zvezda aft

GovKounotori 4 'White

Stork'Tanegashima HTV-4 Cargo June Harmony

Gov Proton BaikonurModule Nauka

MLMDecember[219] Zvezda nadir

GovProgress M-UM &

Soyuz-2.1bBaikonur

Module Node

Module2014 Nauka nadir

Gov Proton-M (or Angara Baikonur Module NEM-1 2014 Node Module nadir

A5)

GovProton-M (or Angara

A5)Baikonur Module NEM-2 2015 Node Module nadir

[edit]Docking

See also: Spacecraft Docking and Berthing Mechanisms

View through automatic (left) and NASA shuttle (right) docking systems.

All Russian manned spacecraft, modules, and progress craft are able to rendezvous and dock to the

space station without human intervention. UsingKurs radar they detect and intercept the ISS from over

200 kilometres away. The European ATV uses star sensors and GPS to determine its intercept course,

when it catches up it then uses laser equipment to optically recognise Zvezda, with Russian Kurs

redundancy. Crew supervise these craft, but do not intervene except to send abort commands in

emergencies. The Japanese H-II Transfer Vehicle parks itself in progressively closer orbits to the station,

and then awaits 'approach' commands from the crew, until it is close enough for the crew to grapple it with

a robotic arm and berth it to the USOS. The American Space Shuttle was manually docked, and on

missions with a cargo container, the container would be berthed to the Station with the use of manual

robotic arms. Berthed craft can transfer International Standard Payload Racks. Japanese spacecraft berth

for one to two months. Russian and European Supply craft can remain at the ISS for six months, [220]

[221] allowing great flexibility in crew time for loading and unloading of supplies and trash. NASA Shuttles

could remain docked for 11–12 days.[222]

The American manual approach to docking allows greater initial flexibility and less complexity. The

downside to this mode of operation is that each mission becomes unique and requires specialised training

and planning, making the process more labour-intensive and expensive. The Russians pursued an

automated methodology that used the crew in override or monitoring roles. Although the initial

development costs were high, the system has become very reliable with standardisations that provide

significant cost benefits in repetitive routine operations.[223] An automated approach could allow assembly

of modules orbiting other worlds prior to manned missions.

Space Shuttle Endeavour, ATV-2, Soyuz TMA-21 and Progress M-10M docked to the ISS during STS-134, as seen from the

departing Soyuz TMA-20

Soyuz manned spacecraft for crew rotation also serve as lifeboats for emergency evacuation, they are

replaced every six months and have been used once to remove excess crew after the Columbia disaster.[224] Expeditions require, on average, 2 722 kg of supplies, and as of 9 March 2011, crews had consumed

a total of around 22 000 meals.[2] Soyuz crew rotation flights and Progress resupply flights visit the station

on average two and three times respectively each year, [225] with the ATV and HTV planned to visit

annually from 2010 onwards.[citation needed] Following retirement of the NASA ShuttleCygnus and Dragon will

begin to fly cargo to the station until at least 2015.[226][227]

From 26 February 2011 to 7 March 2011 four of the governmental partners (United States, ESA, Japan

and Russia) had their spacecraft (NASA Shuttle, ATV, HTV, Progress and Soyuz) docked at the ISS, the

only time this has happened to date.[228]

[edit]Launch and docking windows

Prior to a ship's docking to the ISS, navigation and orientation (GNC) is handed over to the ground control

of the ships' country of origin. GNC is set to allow the station to drift in space, rather than fire its thrusters

or turn using gyroscopes. The solar panels of the station are turned edge-on to the incoming ships, so

residue from its thrusters does not damage the cells. When a NASA shuttle docked to the station, other

ships were grounded, as the carbon wingtips, cameras, windows, and instruments aboard the shuttle

were at too much risk from damage from thruster residue from other ships movements.

Approximately 30% of NASA shuttle launch delays were caused by poor weather. Occasional priority was

given to the Soyuz arrivals at the station where the Soyuz carried crew with time-critical cargoes such as

biological experiment materials, also causing shuttle delays. Departure of the NASA shuttle was often

delayed or prioritised according to weather over its two landing sites. Whilst the Soyuz is capable of

landing anywhere, anytime, its planned landing time and place is chosen to give consideration to

helicopter pilots and ground recovery crew, to give acceptable flying weather and lighting conditions.

Soyuz launches occur in adverse weather conditions, however the cosmodrome had been shut down on

occasions when buried by snow drifts up to 6 metres in depth, hampering ground operations.

[edit]Sightings

See also: List of satellite pass predictors

[edit]Naked eye

The ISS is visible to the naked eye before sunrise or after sunset as a slow-moving, bright white dot,

crossing the sky in 2 to 5 minutes. This happens before dawn and after dusk when the ISS is sunlit but

the ground and sky are dark, which is typically the case up to a few hours after sunset or before sunrise.[229] Because of the size of its reflective surface area, the ISS is the brightest man made object in the sky

excluding flares, with an approximate maximum brightness of −4 when overhead, similar to Venus. The

ISS, like many satellites including the Iridium constellation, can also produce flares as sunlight glints off

reflective surfaces as it orbits of up to 8 or 16 times the brightness of Venus. [230][231] The ISS is also visible

during broad daylight conditions, albeit with a great deal more effort.

Tools are provided by a number of websites such as Heavens-Above as well as smartphone applications

that use the known orbital data and the observer's longitude and latitude to predict when the ISS will be

visible (weather permitting), where the station will appear to rise to the observer, the altitude above the

horizon it will reach and the duration of the pass before the station disappears to the observer either by

setting below the horizon or entering into Earth's shadow.[232][233][234][235]

In November 2012 NASA launched its 'Spot the Station' service, which sends people text and email alerts

when the station is due to fly above their town.[236]

The ISS and HTV photographed using a

telescope-mounted camera by Ralf Vandebergh

A time exposure of a station pass

The station is visible from 95% of the inhabited land on Earth, but is not visible from extreme northern or

southern latitudes.[186] OPSEK will orbit at a higher inclination of 71 degrees, allowing observation to and

from all of the Russian federation.

[edit]Astrophotography

Using a telescope mounted camera to photograph the station is a popular hobby for

astronomers, [237] whilst using a mounted camera to photograph the Earth and stars is a popular hobby for

crew.[238] The use of a telescope or binoculars allows viewing of the ISS during daylight hours.[239]

Parisian engineer and astrophotographer Thierry Legault, known for his photos of spaceships crossing

the sun (called occultation), travelled to Oman in 2011, to photograph the sun, moon and space station all

lined up.[240] Legault, who received the Marius Jacquemetton award from the Société astronomique de

France in 1999, and other hobbyists, use websites that predict when the ISS will pass in front of the Sun

or Moon and what location those passes will be visible from.

Crew health and safety

Main article: Effect of spaceflight on the human body

[edit]Radiation

Main articles: Coronal mass ejection and Aurora (astronomy)

The ISS is partially protected from the space environment by the Earth's magnetic field. From an average

distance of about 70,000 km, depending on Solar activity, the magnetosphere begins to deflect solar wind

around the Earth and ISS. However, solar flares are still a hazard to the crew, who may receive only a

few minutes warning. The crew of Expedition 10 took shelter as a precaution in 2005 in a more heavily

shielded part of the ROS designed for this purpose during the initial 'proton storm' of an X-3 class solar

flare,[241][242] but without the limited protection of the Earth's magnetosphere, interplanetary manned

missions are especially vulnerable.

Video of the Aurora Australis taken by the crew ofExpedition 28 on an ascending pass from south ofMadagascar to just

north of Australia over the Indian Ocean.

Subatomic charged particles, primarily protons from cosmic rays and solar wind, are normally absorbed

by the earth's atmosphere, when they interact in sufficient quantity their effect becomes visible to the

naked eye in a phenomenon called an Aurora. Without the protection of the Earth's atmosphere, which

absorbs this radiation, crews are exposed to about 1 millisievert each day, which is about the same as

someone would get in a year on Earth, from natural sources. This results in a higher risk of astronauts'

developing cancer. Radiation can penetrate living tissue, damage DNA, and cause damage to

the chromosomes of lymphocytes. These cells are central to the immune system and so any damage to

them could contribute to the lowered immunity experienced by astronauts. Radiation has also been linked

to a higher incidence of cataracts in astronauts. Protective shielding and protective drugs may lower the

risks to an acceptable level.[37]

The radiation levels experienced on ISS are about five times greater than those experienced by airline

passengers and crew. The Earth's electromagnetic field provides almost the same level of protection

against solar and other radiation in low Earth orbit as in the stratosphere. Airline passengers, however,

experience this level of radiation for no more than 15 hours for the longest intercontinental flights. For

example, on a 12 hour flight an airline passenger would experience 0.1 millisievert of radiation, or a rate

of 0.2 millisieverts per day; only 1/5 the rate experienced by an astronaut in LEO.[243]

[edit]Stress

There has been considerable evidence that psychosocial stressors are among the most important

impediments to optimal crew morale and performance.[244] Cosmonaut Valery Ryumin, twice Hero of the

Soviet Union, wrote in his journal during a particularly difficult period onboard the Salyut 6 space station:

“All the conditions necessary for murder are met if you shut two men in a cabin measuring 18 feet by 20

and leave them together for two months.”

NASA's interest in psychological stress caused by space travel, initially studied when their manned

missions began, was rekindled when astronauts joined cosmonauts on the Russian space station Mir.

Common sources of stress in early American missions included maintaining high performance while

under public scrutiny, as well as isolation from peers and family. The latter is still often a cause of stress

on the ISS, such as when NASA Astronaut Daniel Tani's mother died in a car accident, and when Michael

Fincke was forced to miss the birth of his second child.

A study of the longest spaceflight concluded that the first three weeks represent a critical period where

attention is adversely affected because of the demand to adjust to the extreme change of environment.[245] While Skylab's 3 crews remained one, two, and three months respectively, long term crews on Salyut

6, Salyut 7, and the ISS last about five to six months while MIR's expeditions often lasted longer. The ISS

working environment includes further stress caused by living and working in cramped conditions with

people from very different cultures who speak a different language. First generation space stations had

crews who spoke a single language, while second and third-generation stations have crew from many

cultures who speak many languages. The ISS is unique because visitors are not classed automatically

into 'host' or 'guest' categories as with previous stations and spacecraft, and may not suffer from feelings

of isolation in the same way. Crew members with a military pilot background and those with an academic

science background or teachers and politicians may have problems understanding each other’s jargon

and worldview.

[edit]Medical

Astronaut Frank De Winne is attached to the TVIS treadmill with bungee cords aboard the International Space Station

Medical effects of long-term weightlessness include muscle atrophy, deterioration of the

skeleton (osteopenia), fluid redistribution, a slowing of the cardiovascular system, decreased production

of red blood cells, balance disorders, and a weakening of the immune system. Lesser symptoms include

loss of body mass, and puffiness of the face.[37]

Sleep is disturbed on the ISS regularly due to mission demands, such as incoming or departing ships.

Sound levels in the station are unavoidably high; because the atmosphere is unable to thermosyphon,

fans are required at all times to allow processing of the atmosphere which would stagnate in the freefall

(zero-g) environment.

To prevent some of these adverse physiological effects, the station is equipped with two treadmills

(including the COLBERT), and the aRED (advanced Resistive Exercise Device) which enables various

weightlifting exercises which add muscle but do nothing for bone density,[246] and a stationary bicycle;

each astronaut spends at least two hours per day exercising on the equipment. [146][147] Astronauts use

bungee cords to strap themselves to the treadmill.[247][248]

[edit]Orbital debris

Main article: Space debris

A 7 gram object (shown in centre) shot at 7 km/s

(the orbital velocity of the ISS) made this 15 cm

Radar-trackable objects including debris, note

crater in a solid block of aluminium. distinct ring of Geostationary satellites

At the low altitudes at which the ISS orbits there is a variety of space debris, [249] consisting of many

different objects including entire spent rocket stages, dead satellites, explosion fragments—including

materials fromanti-satellite weapon tests, paint flakes, slag from solid rocket motors, coolant released

by RORSAT nuclear powered satellites and some of the 750,000,000[250] small needles from the American

military Project West Ford.[251] These objects, in addition to natural micrometeoroids,[252] are a significant

threat. Large objects could destroy the station, but are less of a threat as their orbits can be predicted. [253]

[254] Objects too small to be detected by optical and radar instruments, from approximately 1 cm down to

microscopic size, number in the trillions. Despite their small size, some of these objects are still a threat

because of their kinetic energyand direction in relation to the station. Spacesuits of spacewalking crew

could puncture, causing exposure to vacuum.[255]

The station's shields and structure are divided between the ROS and the USOS, with completely different

designs. On the USOS, a thin aluminium sheet is held apart from the hull, the sheet causes objects to

shatter into a cloud before hitting the hull thereby spreading the energy of the impact. On the ROS, a

carbon plastic honeycomb screen is spaced from the hull, an aluminium honeycomb screen is spaced

from that, with a screen-vacuum thermal insulation covering, and glass cloth over the top. It's about 50%

less likely to be punctured, and crew move to the ROS when the station is under threat. Punctures on the

ROS would be contained within the panels which are 70 cm square.

Example of risk management: A NASA model showing areas at high risk from impact for the International Space Station.

Space debris objects are tracked remotely from the ground, and the station crew can be notified. [256] This

allows for a Debris Avoidance Manoeuvre (DAM) to be conducted, which uses thrusters on the Russian

Orbital Segment to alter the station's orbital altitude, avoiding the debris. DAMs are not uncommon, taking

place if computational models show the debris will approach within a certain threat distance. Eight DAMs

had been performed prior to March 2009,[257] the first seven between October 1999 and May 2003.[258] Usually the orbit is raised by one or two kilometres by means of an increase in orbital velocity of the

order of 1 m/s. Unusually there was a lowering of 1.7 km on 27 August 2008, the first such lowering for 8

years.[258][259] There were two DAMs in 2009, on 22 March and 17 July. [260] If a threat from orbital debris is

identified too late for a DAM to be safely conducted, the station crew close all the hatches aboard the

station and retreat into their Soyuz spacecraft, so that they would be able to evacuate in the event it was

damaged by the debris. This partial station evacuation has occurred on 13 March 2009, 28 June 2011

and 24 March 2012.[261] Ballistic panels, also called micrometeorite shielding, are incorporated into the

station to protect pressurised sections and critical systems. The type and thickness of these panels varies

depending upon their predicted exposure to damage.

[edit]Politics

Main article: International Space Station program

[edit]International co-operation

Primary contributing nations

Formerly contracted nations

Allocation of US Orbital Segmenthardware

usage between contributors

International co-operation in space began between the United States and the Soviet Union in 1972, with

theApollo-Soyuz Test Project. This cooperative venture resulted in the July 1975 docking of Soyuz

19 with anApollo spacecraft. From 1978–1987 the USSR's Interkosmos programme included allied

Warsaw Pact countries, and countries which were not Soviet allies, such as India, Syria and France, in

manned and unmanned missions to Space stations Salyut 6 and 7. In 1986 the USSR extended this co-

operation to a dozen countries in the MIR programme. In 1994–98 NASA Space Shuttles and crew visited

MIR in the Shuttle-Mir programme. In 1998 the ISS programme began.

In March 2012, a meeting in Quebec City between the leaders of the Canadian Space Agency and those

from Japan, Russia, the United States and involved European nations resulted in a renewed pledge to

maintain the International Space Station until at least 2020. NASA reports to be still committed to the

principles of the mission but also to use the station in new ways of which were not elaborated. President

of the CSA Steve MacLean adds his belief that the station's Canadarm will continue to function properly

until 2028, alluding to Canada's probable extension of continued involvement.[262]

Ownership of modules, station usage by participant nations, and responsibilities for station resupply are

established by the Space Station Intergovernmental Agreement (IGA). This international treaty was

signed on 28 January 1998 by the United States of America, Russia, Japan, Canada and eleven member

states of the European Space Agency (Belgium, Denmark, France, Germany, Italy, The Netherlands,

Norway, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom).[18][19] With the exception of the United

Kingdom, all of the signatories went on to contribute to the Space Station project. A second layer of

agreements was then achieved, called Memoranda of Understanding (MOU), between NASA and ESA,

CSA, RKA and JAXA. These agreements are then further split, such as for the contractual obligations

between nations, and trading of partners' rights and obligations.[19] Use of the Russian Orbital Segment is

also negotiated at this level.[24]

Annotated image of the Russian Orbital Segment configuration

as of 2011

The USOS is shared

byNASA, ESA, CSA and JAXA

In addition to these main intergovernmental agreements, Brazil originally joined the programme as a

bilateral partner of the United States by a contract with NASA to supply hardware.[263] In return, NASA

would provide Brazil with access to its ISS facilities on-orbit, as well as a flight opportunity for one

Brazilian astronaut during the course of the ISS programme. However, due to cost issues, the

subcontractor Embraer was unable to provide the promised ExPrESS pallet, and Brazil left the

programme.[264] Italy has a similar contract with NASA to provide comparable services, although Italy also

takes part in the programme directly via its membership in ESA.[265] Expanding the partnership would

require unanimous agreement of the existing partners. Chinese participation has been prevented by

unilateral US opposition.[266][267] The heads of both the South Korean and Indian space

agency ISRO announced at the first plenary session of the 2009 International Astronautical Congress that

their nations wished to join the ISS programme, with talks due to begin in 2010. The heads of agency also

expressed support for extending ISS lifetime.[268] European countries not part of the programme will be

allowed access to the station in a three-year trial period, ESA officials say.[269]

The Russian part of the station is operated and controlled by the Russian Federation's space agency and

provides Russia with the right to nearly one-half of the crew time for the ISS. The allocation of remaining

crew time (three to four crew members of the total permanent crew of six) and hardware within the other

sections of the station is as follows: Columbus: 51% for the ESA, 46.7% for NASA, and 2.3% for CSA.[19] Kibō: 51% for the JAXA, 46.7% for NASA, and 2.3% for CSA.[164] Destiny: 97.7% for NASA and 2.3%

for CSA.[270] Crew time, electrical power and rights to purchase supporting services (such as data upload

and download and communications) are divided 76.6% for NASA, 12.8% for JAXA, 8.3% for ESA, and

2.3% for CSA.[19][89][164][270] [160]

[edit]China

China is not an ISS partner, and no Chinese nationals have been aboard. China has its own

contemporary manned space program, Project 921, and has carried out cooperation and exchanges with

countries such as Russia and Germany in manned and unmanned space projects. [271][272] China launched

its first experimental space station,[273] Tiangong 1, in September 2011,[274] and has officially initiated the

permanently manned Chinese space station project.[275] In 2007, Chinese vice minister of science and

technology Li Xueyong stated that China would like to participate in the ISS,[276] then, in 2010 ESA

Director-General Jean-Jacques Dordain stated his agency was ready to propose to the other 4 partners

that China be invited to join the partnership, but this needs to be a collective decision by all the current

partners.[47]

All 5 governmental partners would need to agree before China could be included. ESA is open to China's

inclusion, the United States of America (US) is against it. The US concerns over the transfer of

technology which could be used for military purposes echo similar concerns with Russia prior to their

membership.[277] These concerns were overcome, and NASA became solely dependent upon Russian

crew capsules when its Shuttles were grounded after the Columbia accident in 2003, [278] and again after

its retirement in 2011.[279][280] China believes that international exchanges and cooperation in the field of

aerospace engineering should be intensified on the basis of mutual benefit, peaceful use and common

development.[271] China's manned Shenzhouspacecraft use an APAS docking system, developed after a

1994–95 deal for the transfer of Russian Soyuz spacecraft technology. Included in the agreement was

training, provision of Soyuz capsules, life support systems, docking systems, and space suits. American

observers comment that Shenzhou spacecraft could dock at the ISS if it became politically feasible, whilst

Chinese engineers say work is still required on the rendezvous system. Shenzhou 7 passed within about

50 kilometres of the ISS.[272][281][282]

American co-operation with China in space is limited, efforts have been made by both sides to improve

relations,[283] but in 2011 new American legislation further strengthened legal barriers to co-operation,

preventing NASA co-operation with China or Chinese owned companies, even the expenditure of funds

used to host Chinese visitors at NASA facilities, unless specifically authorised by new laws,[49] at the same

time China, Europe and Russia have a co-operative relationship in several space exploration projects.[284] Between 2007 and 2011, the space agencies of Europe, Russia and China carried out the ground-

based preparations in the Mars500 project, which complement the ISS-based preparations for a manned

mission to Mars.[285]

[edit]End of mission

Many ISS resupply spacecraft have already undergone atmospheric re-entry, such as Jules Verne ATV

According to a 2009 report, RKK Energia is considering methods to remove from the station some

modules of the Russian Orbital Segment when the end of mission is reached and use them as a basis for

a new station, known as the Orbital Piloted Assembly and Experiment Complex (OPSEK). The modules

under consideration for removal from the current ISS include the Multipurpose Laboratory Module (MLM),

currently scheduled to be launched in 2014, with other Russian modules which are currently planned to

be attached to the MLM until 2015. Neither the MLM nor any additional modules attached to it would have

reached the end of their useful lives in 2016 or 2020. The report presents a statement from an unnamed

Russian engineer who believes that, based on the experience from Mir, a thirty-year life should be

possible, except for micrometeorite damage, because the Russian modules have been built with on-orbit

refurbishment in mind.[286]

According to the Outer Space Treaty the United States and Russia are legally responsible for all modules

they have launched.[287] In ISS planning, NASA examined options including returning the station to Earth

via shuttle missions (deemed too expensive, as the station (USOS) is not designed for disassembly and

this would require at least 27 shuttle missions[288]), natural orbital decay with random reentry similar

to Skylab, boosting the station to a higher altitude (which would simply delay reentry) and a controlled

targeted de-orbit to a remote ocean area.[289]

The technical feasibility of a controlled targeted deorbit into a remote ocean was found to be possible only

with Russia's assistance.[289] The Russian Space Agency has experience from de-orbiting the Salyut

4, 5, 6, 7 and Mir space stations, while NASA's first intentional controlled de-orbit of a satellite

(the Compton Gamma Ray Observatory) occurred in 2000.[290] As of late 2010, the preferred plan is to use

a slightly modified Progress spacecraft to de-orbit the ISS.[291] This plan was seen as the simplest, most

cost efficient one with the highest margin.[291] Skylab, the only space station built and launched entirely by

the US, decayed from orbit slowly over 5 years, and no attempt was made to de-orbit the station using

a deorbital burn. Remains of Skylab hit populated areas of Esperance, Western Australia[292] without

injuries or loss of life.

The Exploration Gateway Platform, a discussion by NASA and Boeing at the end of 2011, suggested

using leftover USOS hardware and 'Zvezda 2' [sic] as a refueling depot and servicing station located at

one of the Earth Moon Lagrange points, L1 or L2. While the entire USOS cannot be reused and will be

discarded, some other Russian modules are planned to be reused. Nauka, theNode module, two science

power platforms and Rassvet, launched between 2010 and 2015 and joined to the ROS may be

separated to form OPSEK.[293] The Nauka module of the ISS will be used in the station, whose main goal

is supporting manned deep space exploration. OPSEK will orbit at a higher inclination of 71 degrees,

allowing observation to and from all of the Russian Federation.

[edit]Program cost in United States dollars

As of 2010 NASA budgeted $58.7 billion for the station from 1985 to 2015, or $72.4 billion in 2010 dollars.

The cost is $150 billion including 36 shuttle flights at $1.4 billion each, Russia's $12 billion ISS budget,

Europe's $5 billion, Japan's $5 billion, and Canada's $2 billion. Assuming 20,000 person-days of use from

2000 to 2015 by two to six-person crews, each person-day would cost $7.5 million, slightly more than

$5.5 million per person-day on Skylab.[294]

[edit]Notes

1. ^ Privately funded travellers who have objected to the term include Dennis Tito, the first such

traveller (Associated Press, 8 May 2001), Mark Shuttleworth, founder of Ubuntu (Associated

press, The Spokesman Review, 6 January 2002, p. A4), Gregory Olsen and Richard Garriott.[175]

[176] Canadian astronaut Bob Thirsk said the term does not seem appropriate, referring to his

crewmate, Guy Laliberté, founder of Cirque du Soleil.[177] Anousheh Ansari denied being a

tourist[178] and took offence at the term.[179]

2. ^ ESA director Jorg Feustel-Buechl said in 2001 that Russia had no right to send 'amateurs' to

the ISS. A 'stand-off' occurred at the Johnson Space Centre between Commander Talgat

Musabayev and NASA manager Robert Cabana. Cabana refused to train Dennis Tito, a member

of Musabayev's crew along with Yuri Baturin. The commander argued that Tito had trained 700

hours in the last year and was as qualified as any NASA astronaut, and refused to allow his crew

to be trained on the American portions of the station without Tito. Cabana stated training could

not begin, and the commander returned with his crew to their hotel.

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