What is the name of the ISS. International space station

The ISS is the successor to the MIR station, the largest and most expensive object in the history of mankind.

How big is the space station? How much does it cost? How do cosmonauts live and work on it?

We will talk about this in this article.

What is ISS and who owns it

The International Space Station (MKS) is an orbital station used as a multipurpose space complex.

This is a scientific project in which 14 countries are participating:

  • Russian Federation;
  • USA;
  • France;
  • Germany;
  • Belgium;
  • Japan;
  • Canada;
  • Sweden;
  • Spain;
  • Netherlands;
  • Switzerland;
  • Denmark;
  • Norway;
  • Italy.

In 1998, the creation of the ISS began. Then the first module of the Russian Proton-K rocket was launched. Subsequently, other participating countries began to deliver other modules to the station.

Note: in English, ISS is spelled ISS (transcript: International Space Station).

There are people who are convinced that the ISS does not exist, and all space flights were filmed on Earth. However, the reality of the manned station was proven, and the theory of deception was completely refuted by scientists.

The structure and dimensions of the international space station

The ISS is a huge laboratory dedicated to the study of our planet. At the same time, the station is home to the astronauts working there.

The station is 109 meters long, 73.15 meters wide and 27.4 meters high. The total weight of the ISS is 417,289 kg.

How much is an orbital station

The cost of the facility is estimated at $ 150 billion. This is by far the most expensive development in human history.

ISS orbital altitude and flight speed

The average altitude at which the station is located is 384.7 km.

The speed is 27,700 km / h. The station makes a complete revolution around the Earth in 92 minutes.

Station time and crew working hours

The station operates London time; the astronauts' working day begins at 6 am. At this time, each crew establishes contact with their country.

Crew reports can be listened to online. The working day ends at 19:00 London time .

Flight path

The station moves around the planet along a certain trajectory. There is a special map that shows which part of the route the ship is passing at a given time. This map also shows different parameters - time, speed, altitude, latitude and longitude.

Why doesn't the ISS fall to Earth? In fact, the object falls to Earth, but misses, as it is constantly moving at a certain speed. It is required to regularly raise the trajectory. As soon as the station loses some of its speed, it gets closer and closer to the Earth.

What is the temperature outside the ISS

The temperature is constantly changing and directly depends on the cut-off situation. In the shade, it stays at about -150 degrees Celsius.

If the station is located under the influence of direct sunlight, then the temperature overboard is +150 degrees Celsius.

Temperature inside the station

Despite the fluctuations overboard, the average temperature inside the ship is 23 - 27 degrees Celsius and is completely suitable for human habitation.

Astronauts sleep, eat, play sports, work and rest at the end of the working day - the conditions are close to the most comfortable for being on the ISS.

What astronauts breathe on the ISS

The primary task in the creation of the spacecraft was to provide the astronauts with the conditions necessary to maintain full breathing. Oxygen is obtained from water.

A special system called "Air" takes carbon dioxide and throws it overboard. Oxygen is replenished by electrolysis of water. There are also oxygen cylinders at the station.

How long to fly from the cosmodrome to the ISS

The flight takes just over 2 days. There is also a short 6-hour schedule (but not suitable for cargo ships).

The distance from Earth to the ISS ranges from 413 to 429 kilometers.

Life on the ISS - what astronauts do

Each crew conducts scientific experiments ordered from the research institutes of their country.

There are several types of such studies:

  • educational;
  • technical;
  • ecological;
  • biotechnology;
  • medical and biological;
  • research of living and working conditions in orbit;
  • exploration of space and planet Earth;
  • physical and chemical processes in space;
  • study solar system other.

Who is on the ISS now

At the moment, in orbit, the following personnel continue to maintain watch: Russian cosmonaut Sergei Prokopiev, Serena Aunyon-Chancellor from the USA and Alexander Gerst from Germany.

The next launch was scheduled from the Baikonur cosmodrome on October 11, but due to an accident the flight did not take place. At the moment, it is not yet known which of the astronauts will fly to the ISS and when.

How to get in touch with the ISS

In fact, anyone has a chance to communicate with the International Space Station. This requires special equipment:

  • transceiver;
  • antenna (for the frequency range 145 MHz);
  • rotary device;
  • a computer that will calculate the orbit of the ISS.

Today every astronaut has a high-speed Internet connection. Most specialists contact friends and family via Skype, maintain personal pages on Instagram and Twitter, Facebook, where they post stunningly beautiful photos of our green planet.

How many times the ISS orbits the Earth per day

The speed of rotation of the ship around our planet - 16 times a day... This means that in one day, astronauts can meet the sunrise 16 times and watch the sunset 16 times.

The ISS rotation speed is 27,700 km / h. This speed does not allow the station to fall to Earth.

Where is the ISS at the moment and how to see it from Earth

Many are interested in the question: is it realistic to see the ship with the naked eye? Due to its constant orbit and large size, anyone can see the ISS.

You can view the ship in the sky both during the day and at night, but it is recommended to do this at night.

In order to find out the flight time over your city, you need to subscribe to the NASA mailing list. You can monitor the movement of the station in real time thanks to the special Twisst service.

Conclusion

If you see a bright object in the sky, it is not always a meteorite, comet or star. Knowing how to distinguish the ISS with the naked eye, you definitely will not be mistaken in a celestial body.

You can learn more about the ISS news, see the movement of the object on the official website: http://mks-online.ru.

International Space Station. It is a 400-ton structure, consisting of several dozen modules with an internal volume of over 900 cubic meters, and is home to six space explorers. The ISS is not only the largest structure ever created by man in space, but also a true symbol of international cooperation. But this colossus did not appear from scratch - to create it, it took over 30 launches.

It all started with the Zarya module, delivered to orbit by the Proton launch vehicle in November 1998.



Two weeks later, the Unity module took off aboard the shuttle Endeavor.


The Endeavor crew docked two modules, which became the main ones for the future ISS.


The third element of the station was the Zvezda residential module, launched in the summer of 2000. Interestingly, Zvezda was originally designed as a replacement for the base module of the Mir orbital station (AKA Mir 2). But the reality that followed after the collapse of the USSR made its own adjustments, and this module became the heart of the ISS, which, in general, is also not bad, because only after its installation it became possible to send long-term expeditions to the station.


The first crew went to the ISS in October 2000. Since then, the station has been continuously inhabited for over 13 years.


In the same autumn of 2000, the ISS was visited by several shuttles, which mounted a power module with the first set of solar panels.


In winter 2001, the ISS was replenished with the Destiny laboratory module, delivered into orbit by the Atlantis shuttle. Destiny was docked to the Unity module.


The main assembly of the station was carried out by shuttles. In 2001-2002, they delivered external storage platforms to the ISS.


The manipulator arm "Canadarm2".


Airlocks "Quest" and "Pier".


And most importantly, the elements of the truss structures, which were used to store cargo outside the station, install radiators, new solar panels and other equipment. The total length of the farms to date reaches 109 meters.


2003 year. Due to the disaster of the space shuttle Columbia, work on the assembly of the ISS has been suspended for almost three to three years.


2005 year. Finally, shuttles return to space and station construction resumes


The shuttles deliver new truss elements into orbit.


With their help, new sets of solar batteries are being installed on the ISS, which makes it possible to increase its power supply.


In the fall of 2007, the ISS is replenished with the Harmony module (it docks with the Destiny module), which in the future will become a connecting node for two research laboratories: the European Columbus and the Japanese Kibo.


In 2008, Columbus is delivered into orbit by a shuttle and docked with Harmony (the lower left module at the bottom of the station).


March 2009. Shuttle Discovery delivers the final fourth set of solar arrays into orbit. Now the station is operating at full capacity and can receive a permanent crew of 6 people.


In 2009, the station is being replenished with the Russian Poisk module.


In addition, the assembly of the Japanese "Kibo" begins (the module consists of three components).


February 2010. The "Tranquility" module is added to the "Unity" module.


The famous "Dome", in turn, joins the "Calm".


It is so good to make observations from it.


Summer 2011 - shuttles retire.


But before that, they tried to deliver to the ISS as much equipment and equipment as possible, including robots specially trained to kill all humans.


Fortunately, by the time the shuttles retire, the assembly of the ISS is almost complete.


But still not completely. It is planned that in 2015 the Russian laboratory module "Science" will be launched, which will replace the "Pirs".


In addition, it is possible that an experimental inflatable module "Bigelow", which is now being created by "Bigelow Aerospace", will be docked to the ISS. If successful, it will become the first space station module built by a private company.


However, there is nothing surprising in this - the private Dragon truck flew to the ISS in 2012, and why not private modules appear? Although, of course, it is obvious that it will be a long time before private companies can create structures similar to the ISS.


Until this happens, it is planned that the ISS will operate in orbit until at least 2024 - although I personally hope that in reality this period will be much longer. Yet, too much human effort has been put into this project to be shut down due to immediate economy rather than scientific reasons. And even more so, I sincerely hope that no political squabbles will affect the fate of this unique building.

On November 2, 2000, its first long-term crew arrived at the station on the Russian Soyuz spacecraft. Three members of the first ISS expedition, having successfully launched on October 31, 2000 from the Baikonur cosmodrome in Kazakhstan on the Soyuz TM-31 spacecraft, docked with the ISS Zvezda service module. After spending four and a half months on board the ISS, the members of the expedition returned to Earth on March 21, 2001, on the American space shuttle Discovery STS-102. The crew performed the tasks of assembling new components of the station, including the connection to the orbital station of the American laboratory module Destiny. They also conducted various scientific experiments.
The first expedition started from the same launch pad of the Baikonur cosmodrome, from which Yuri Gagarin flew 50 years ago to become the first man to fly into space. Soyuz-U, a three-stage, 300-ton launch vehicle, lifted the Soyuz TM-31 spacecraft and crew into low-earth orbit, approximately 10 minutes after the launch, giving Yuri Gidzenko the opportunity to begin a series of rendezvous maneuvers with the ISS. On the morning of November 2, at about 09:21 UTC, the spacecraft docked to the docking station of the Zvezda service module from the side of the orbital station. Ninety minutes after docking, Shepherd opened the Star's hatch and the crew entered the complex for the first time.

Their primary tasks were: launching a food warming device in the Zvezda galley, setting up sleeping quarters and establishing communication with both MCCs: in Houston and Korolev near Moscow. The crew contacted both teams of ground specialists with the help of Russian transmitters installed in the Zvezda and Zarya modules, and a microwave transmitter installed in the Unity module, which had been used by American air traffic controllers for two years to control the ISS and reading the station system data when the Russian ground stations were out of the reception area.

During the first weeks on board, the crew members activated the main components of the life support system and reactivated all kinds of station equipment, laptop computers, overalls, office supplies, cables and electrical equipment left for them by previous shuttle crews, who conducted a number of transport expeditions to the new complex for the past two years.

During the work of the expedition, the station was docked with the cargo ships Progress M1-4 (November 2000), Progress M-44 (February 2001) and the American shuttles Endeavor (December 2000), Atlantis (" Atlantis "; February 2001), Discovery (" Discovery "; March 2001).

The crew conducted research on 12 different experiments, including "Cardio-ODNT" (study of the functional capabilities of the human body in space flight), "Forecast" (development of a method for operational forecasting of dose loads from cosmic radiation on the crew), "Uragan" (ground testing). - space system for monitoring and forecasting the development of natural and man-made disasters), "Bend" (determining the gravitational situation on the ISS, equipment operating conditions), "Plasma crystal" (studying plasma-dust crystals and liquids in microgravity conditions), etc.

Arranging their new home, Gidzenko, Krikalev and Shepherd prepared the ground for a long stay of earthlings in space and extensive international scientific researchfor at least the next 15 years.

Manned Orbital Multipurpose Space Research Complex

The International Space Station (ISS), created for scientific research in space. Construction began in 1998 and is carried out in cooperation with the aerospace agencies of Russia, the United States, Japan, Canada, Brazil and the European Union, and is scheduled to be completed by 2013. When completed, the plant will weigh approximately 400 tons. The ISS revolves around the Earth at an altitude of about 340 kilometers, making 16 revolutions per day. The station will roughly operate in orbit until 2016-2020.

Ten years after the first space flight made by Yuri Gagarin, in April 1971, the world's first space orbital station Salyut-1 was launched into orbit. Long-term habitable stations (DOS) were essential for scientific research. Their creation was a necessary stage in the preparation of future human flights to other planets. During the implementation of the Salyut program from 1971 to 1986, the USSR had the opportunity to test the main architectural elements of space stations and subsequently use them in the project of a new long-term orbital station - Mir.

The collapse of the Soviet Union led to a reduction in funding space programTherefore, Russia alone could not only build a new orbital station, but also keep the Mir station operational. Then the Americans had practically no experience in creating DOS. In 1993, US Vice President Al Gore and Russian Prime Minister Viktor Chernomyrdin signed an agreement on space cooperation "World - Shuttle". The Americans agreed to finance the construction of the last two modules of the Mir station: Spectrum and Priroda. In addition, the United States from 1994 to 1998 made 11 flights to Mir. The agreement also provided for the creation of a joint project - the International Space Station (ISS). In addition to the Federal Space Agency of Russia (Roscosmos) and the US National Aerospace Agency (NASA), the Japanese Aerospace Research Agency (JAXA), the European Space Agency (ESA, which includes 17 participating countries), the Canadian Space Agency (CSA) took part in the project. as well as the Brazilian Space Agency (AEB). India and China expressed their interest in participating in the ISS project. On January 28, 1998, the final agreement was signed in Washington to start construction of the ISS.

The ISS has a modular structure: its different segments were created by the efforts of the countries participating in the project and have their own specific function: research, residential, or are used as storage facilities. Some of the modules, for example the American modules of the Unity series, are jumpers or are used for docking with transport ships. When completed, the ISS will consist of 14 main modules with a total volume of 1,000 cubic meters; a crew of 6 or 7 people will be permanently aboard the station.

The weight of the ISS after the completion of its construction, according to plans, will be more than 400 tons. The station is roughly the size of a football field. In the starry sky, it can be observed with the naked eye - sometimes the station is the brightest celestial body after the Sun and the Moon.

The ISS revolves around the Earth at an altitude of about 340 kilometers, making 16 revolutions a day around it. Scientific experiments are carried out on board the station in the following areas:

  • Research of new medical methods of therapy and diagnostics and means of life support in zero gravity
  • Research in the field of biology, the functioning of living organisms in outer space under the influence of solar radiation
  • Experiments on the study of the earth's atmosphere, cosmic rays, cosmic dust and dark matter
  • Study of the properties of matter, including superconductivity.

The first module of the station - Zarya (weighs 19.323 tons) - was launched into orbit by the Proton-K launch vehicle on November 20, 1998. This module was used at the early stage of the construction of the station as a source of electricity, also to control orientation in space and maintain the temperature regime. Subsequently, these functions were transferred to other modules, and Zarya began to be used as a warehouse.

The Zvezda module is the main living module of the station; it contains life support and control systems for the station. Russian transport ships Soyuz and Progress dock to it. The module was launched into orbit with a two-year delay by the Proton-K launch vehicle on July 12, 2000 and docked on July 26 with the Zorya and previously launched into orbit by the American docking module Unity-1.

The Pirs docking module (weighs 3,480 tons) was launched into orbit in September 2001, serves for docking of the Soyuz and Progress spacecraft, as well as for entering open space... In November 2009, the Search module, which was almost identical to Piers, docked with the station.

Russia plans to dock a Multifunctional Laboratory Module (MLM) to the station, after launching in 2012 it should become the station's largest laboratory module weighing more than 20 tons.

The ISS already has laboratory modules from the USA (Destiny), ESA (Columbus) and Japan (Kibo). They and the main nodal segments Harmony, Quest and Unnity were launched into orbit by shuttles.

Over the first 10 years of operation, the ISS was visited by more than 200 people from 28 expeditions, which is a record for space stations (only 104 people visited Mir). The ISS was the first example of the commercialization of space flight. Roskosmos, together with Space Adventures, sent space tourists into orbit for the first time. In addition, within the framework of the contract for the purchase of Russian weapons by Malaysia, Roscosmos in 2007 organized a flight to the ISS of the first Malaysian cosmonaut, Sheikh Muszaphar Shukor.

Among the most serious accidents on the ISS is the crash during the landing of the space shuttle Columbia (Columbia, Columbia) on February 1, 2003. Although Columbia did not dock with the ISS, conducting an independent exploration mission, this disaster led to the fact that shuttle flights were terminated and only resumed in July 2005. This delayed the completion of the construction of the station and made russian ships Soyuz and Progress are the only means of delivering cosmonauts and cargo to the station. In addition, smoke occurred in the Russian segment of the station in 2006, and the failure of computers in the Russian and American segments was recorded in 2001 and twice in 2007. In the fall of 2007, the crew of the station was busy fixing a break in the solar battery that happened during its installation.

By agreement, each project participant owns its segments on the ISS. Russia owns the Zvezda and Pirs modules, Japan - the Kibo module, ESA - the Columbus module. Solar panels, which after the completion of the construction of the station will generate 110 kilowatts per hour, and the rest of the modules belong to NASA.

The completion of the ISS construction is scheduled for 2013. Thanks to the new equipment delivered on board the ISS by the Endeavor shuttle expedition in November 2008, the station's crew will be increased in 2009 from 3 to 6 people. It was originally planned that the ISS station should work in orbit until 2010, in 2008 another date was called - 2016 or 2020. According to experts, the ISS, unlike the Mir station, will not be drowned in the ocean; it is planned to use it as a base for assembling interplanetary spacecraft. Despite the fact that NASA spoke in favor of reducing funding for the station, the head of the agency, Michael Griffin, promised to fulfill all the US obligations to complete its construction. However, after the war in South Ossetia, many experts, including Griffin, stated that the cooling of relations between Russia and the United States could lead to the fact that Roskosmos would cease cooperation with NASA and the Americans would be deprived of the opportunity to send their expeditions to the station. In 2010, US President Barack Obama announced the end of funding for the Constellation program, which was supposed to replace the shuttles. In July 2011, the Atlantis shuttle made its last flight, after which the Americans had to rely indefinitely on Russian, European and Japanese colleagues to deliver cargo and astronauts to the station. In May 2012, the Dragon spacecraft, owned by the private American company SpaceX, docked with the ISS for the first time.

2014-09-11. NASA has announced plans to launch six units into orbit that will monitor the earth's surface on a regular basis. The Americans intend to send these devices to the International Space Station (ISS) by the end of the second decade of the XXI century. According to experts, the most modern equipment will be installed on them. According to scientists, the location of the ISS in orbit offers great advantages for observing the planet. The first installation, ISS-RapidScat, will be sent to the ISS by private company SpaceX no earlier than September 19, 2014. The sensor is going to be installed on the outside of the station. It is intended for observing ocean winds, forecasting weather and hurricanes. ISS-RapidScat was built by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California. The second instrument, CATS (Cloud-Aerosol Transport System), is a laser instrument designed to observe clouds and measure the content of aerosols, smoke, dust and pollutants. These data are necessary to understand how human activities (primarily the combustion of hydrocarbons) affect environment... It is expected to be sent to the ISS by the same SpaceX company in December 2014. CATS met at the Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland. The ISS-RapidScat and CATS launches, together with the July 2014 Orbiting Carbon Observatory-2 probe, designed to study the carbon content in the planet's atmosphere, made 2014 the busiest year on NASA's Earth research program in a decade. The agency is going to send two other installations to the ISS by 2016. One of them, SAGE III (Stratospheric Aerosol and Gas Experiment III), will measure the content of aerosols, ozone, water vapor and other compounds in the upper atmosphere. This is necessary to control the processes global warming, in particular, behind the ozone holes above the Earth. The SAGE III was developed at NASA's Langley Research Center in Hampton, Virginia and assembled by Ball Aerospace in Boulder, Colorado. Roskosmos took part in the work of the previous SAGE III mission - Meteor-3M. Another device, which will be launched into orbit in 2016, the LIS (Lightning Imaging Sensor), will detect the coordinates of lightning over tropical and mid-latitudes. the globe... The device will communicate with ground services to coordinate their work. The fifth device, GEDI (Global Ecosystem Dynamics Investigation), will use a laser to study forests and monitor their carbon balance. Experts note that a laser can require large amounts of energy to operate. The GEDI was designed by scientists at the University of Maryland at College Park. The sixth device - ECOSTRESS (ECOsystem Spaceborne Thermal Radiometer Experiment on Space Station) - is a thermal imaging spectrometer. The device is designed to study the processes of the water cycle in nature. The device was created by specialists from the Jet Propulsion Laboratory.