Page 1,296«..1020..1,2951,2961,2971,298..1,3101,320..»

Category Archives: Transhuman News

Viruses Are Likely To Be Ubiquitous Throughout Cosmos – Forbes

Posted: May 8, 2020 at 10:55 am

artistic impression of a great discovery

As this wretched COVID-19 disease has so acutely demonstrated, we live in an ecological duopoly of predator versus prey.Nothing about this set-up is going to change.At least a part of this microbial world is going to continue to wreak havoc on humans anytime it can.

Thus, in our current quest to move off-world, first to the Moon and Mars, then even further afield what are the chances that any given exo-earth will also harbor microbes that will be lethal to other living organisms?In other words, will this predator versus prey dynamic play out on a grand cosmic scale?

Most if not all ecosystems on Earth depend on some life forms feeding on other life forms for energy or other nutrients.I don't see any reason that this would not be similar on exoplanets that harbor life, Ken Stedman, a virologist at Portland State University in Oregon, told me.

Would viruses be ubiquitous wherever life evolves?

Wherevercellular life evolves first, says Stedman.Thats because virusesneed to infect a living cell in order to reproduce, he says.

The inert virion, the viral form visible under the electron microscope, is analogous to a seed or a spore that can only replicate in an appropriate environment, Stedman and co-authors write in a 2018 paper appearing in Astrobiology Journal.It then reprograms the cellular machinery to produce more virions, and the release of virions from the host cell to infect other cells, the authors write.

People walk dogs in New York's Times Square, Wednesday night, April 29, 2020, during the coronavirus ... [+] pandemic. (AP Photo/Mark Lennihan)

As for SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COrona VIrusDisease-2019?

SARS-CoV-2 infects human cells (and possibly bat cells) and causes these cells to make more SARS-CoV-2, says Stedman.A lot of COVID-19 disease is due to our immune system's reaction to the viral infection, not the virus infection itself, he says.

But viruses arent all bad.

Over billions of years of evolution, multicellular organisms have been prodded and provoked to adapt and evolve to counter the deleterious infections of all manner of viruses.Even Earths ecosystem has been impacted by viruses.

Up until some 2 billion years ago, Earths atmosphere was pretty much devoid of molecular oxygen (O2), notes a 2013 report from the American Society of Microbiology (ASM).Thats when oxygen levels on Earth rose in what is now known as the Great Oxidation Event, which coincided with oxygenic photosynthesis.

Although cyanobacteria drove photosynthesis in the worlds oceans, the ASM report notes, a good portion of the cyanobacterias photosynthetic activity, may be attributed to viral cyanophages (viruses that infect bacterial cells). Thats because many cyanophages infect cyanobacteria and encode photosynthetic proteins within the bacteria. Its thought that the expression of these photosynthesis genes during infection not only promotes photosynthesis in the host, but also cyanophage replication, the ASM report concludes.

Without viruses on Earth, life [here] would probably be a layer of slime, said Stedman.

Corona Virus with Triangle Shapes Lines And Dots Forming A Plexus

As for ideas on how viruses actually originated, some researchers think they may either be genes that escaped from cells; or descendants of some of Earths earliest life forms.

Viruses are the only life-forms that use RNA as their primary genetic material, says Stedman.

Its now thought that the nucleic acid RNA evolved on Earth before DNA. Thus, as Stedman and colleagues wrote in their 2018 Astrobiology Journal paper, todays viruses may be descendants of viruses or similar replicative entities that existed in this hypothetical RNA world.

And if in the far future, humans colonized an exo-earth, or even Mars and found viruses there, would the viruses be able to infect our cells the same way they do on Earth?

Stedman says that would be highly unlikely unless there was life on an exo-earth that was extremely human-like.

What prevents viruses from infecting a host cell?

Thecell has to have the appropriate receptor on the cell surface (that the virus has evolved to interact with), says Stedman.And the cell has to have the machinery that the virus needs to make more virus, he says.

What about detecting viruses on an extrasolar earth?

Thus far, astronomers have no viable means of remotely detecting exo-viruses, says Stedman.

We are trying to develop methods to change that, but are not there yet, he says.

As for finding viruses on Mars?

I would love to put an electron microscope on a rover, but that has not yet been done, said Stedman.

Alien microbes in space above Mars, conceptual illustration. Mars once had a wet climate, which ... [+] prompts many astronomers to believe that life may have arisen there in the past, and perhaps exists there still. This illustration conceptualises the idea, showing microorganisms floating above Mars. In 1996, NASA announced that they had found evidence for fossilised microorganisms in a meteorite hailing from Mars. However, whether these structures are indeed fossilised life forms or merely Earth-based contaminants remains unsettled.

Read the original here:
Viruses Are Likely To Be Ubiquitous Throughout Cosmos - Forbes

Posted in Mars Colonization | Comments Off on Viruses Are Likely To Be Ubiquitous Throughout Cosmos – Forbes

STREAMING WARS: The Expanse trades sci-fi fantasy for realism and it works – The Guardian

Posted: at 10:55 am

Shedding the cowboy antics of Star Wars and the utopian idealism of Star Trek, Amazon Prime Video's The Expanse highlights how royally we can screw things up, which is made only worse by being in the vacuum of space.

Rather than slick spaceships and operatic overtones, The Expanse takes a hard, cold look at what colonizing the solar system could look like in the next few centuries.

I'll admit I'm only a couple of seasons in so far, but I haven't been able to watch anything else since I started. It's so damn watchable.

The story centres around Jim Holden (Steven Strait) and his crew of misfits as they bounce from one crisis to another in the colonized solar system. Things go from bad, to worse and then much worse.

Holden is a reluctant, but capable leader. Alex Kamal (Cas Anvar), Naomi Nagata (Dominique Tipper) and Amos Burton (Wes Chatham) make up the rest of the team, each with their own can't-help-but-root-for-them attitudes.

Luckily, they have each other (for the most part) and a relatively stable moral centre.

The expanded cast includes some fantastic performances from Thomas Jane, who plays a hard-done-by detective and Jared Harris as a gang/rebel leader with an impossible accent.

But the highlight is easily Shohreh Aghdashloo as Chrisjen Avasarala, a powerful diplomat looking after Earth's interests. She doesn't suffer fools lightly, performing delicately when she needs to, but able to flip the switch to badass in an instant.

The series, based on novels of the same name by James S. A. Corey, is set during a solar system-spanning Cold War. On one side is Earth, governed by the decadent UN, and the other is Mars, a militaristic but fragile state which is bound in a tenuous peace. However, one little provocation and that could all come crashing down, along with all of human civilization.

Originally released on American channel Syfy, the series was picked up by Amazon after it was cancelled following its third season. Prime released the fourth season in 2019 and announced a fifth is already in the works.

And thank goodness Amazon scooped it up. The mystery surrounding an unusual and dangerous alien substance that can alter matter (being experimented on with the most Machiavellian way imaginable) is the main throughline for the plot.

But The Expanse is about much more than this existential threat, it's about the incredible world it's set in.

This isn't the idealized universe of Star Trek, where money and hunger have gone the way of the dodo, in The Expanse, water has become more precious than gold. It's a world full of greed, corruption and inequality. It is capitalism gone mad in the far reaches of space.

People have inhabited asteroids in the belt, which is being taken advantage of by the dominant planets in the system, Mars and Earth.

Mars, with the know-how to turn their rusty-red planet into a garden, is low on resources because of their spending on the military, just in case there's a war.

And Earth, after years of degradation and sea-level rise is changed (but all too familiar) with an elite pulling the strings for selfish ends.

One also has to admire the writers (both screen and novel) restraint when it comes to the technology. Yes, humans have been able to reach the other planets and stellar rocks in the solar system, but the ships people use are definitely built for speed, not comfort. They're blocky, with wires and scaffolding unceremoniously strapped to their sides.

New languages and phrases seem so natural. Yes, a group of people living on asteroids probably would develop their own culture and a sizeable chip on their shoulders.

Differences in gravity, resources, time, it's all taken into account and given its due. Sometimes I'll pause an episode just to remark, wow, they've thought of everything.

It also doesn't hide the audience from the cruelty and inequalities, and it doesn't pull away from the atrocities that could happen. It's a warning of what we could become.

It's science fiction without the utopia, and although somewhat depressing, it adds a layer of realism that is so compelling to watch.

Needing an escape from planet Earth? I get it. Here are some other sci-fi shows worth checking out I haven't already recommended (like The Mandalorian, Star Trek Discovery and Picard).

Battlestar Galactica (remake), available on Amazon Prime Video. A deep, though sometimes convoluted plot that touches on humanity and artificial intelligence. An excellent musical score that reverberates throughout.

Westworld, available on Crave (with HBO add-on). A theme park made for the elite with no limits, the characters within the fantasy are highly intelligent robots, what could go wrong?

Space Force, available on Netflix on May 29. Needing something a little lighter? Steve Carell is tasked with forming the Space Force (an actual real thing), a new branch of the American Armed Forces with no idea of what it's supposed to be. Hopefully, it will be a sufficient replacement for The Office for the streaming giant.

For All Mankind, available on Apple TV Plus.What if the Soviets landed on the moon first? This alternate history drama takes a look at what could have been and what it would mean for America's psyche.

RELATED:

Read more from the original source:
STREAMING WARS: The Expanse trades sci-fi fantasy for realism and it works - The Guardian

Posted in Mars Colonization | Comments Off on STREAMING WARS: The Expanse trades sci-fi fantasy for realism and it works – The Guardian

NASA concludes agreements for returning to the moon with three companies – InTallaght

Posted: at 10:55 am

NASA has announced that it has concluded contracts with three commercial teams, each of which will develop a human landing system as part of the Artemis program of the space agency.

The groups in question are SpaceX, Dynetics and a team led by Blue Origin, which will share a total of $ 967 million over 10 months of development work. The options are, at this early stage, quite varied, as commercial teams are adopting very different approaches towards their landers.

SpaceX, for example, will continue to develop its deep-space transportation system called Starship, which Elon Musks company plans to make economically feasible for the colonization of Mars and other exploration activities. The 50-meter spaceship will be launched from Earth on top of a giant rocket called Super Heavy. Both of these elements will be reusable. The spaceship will also be able to carry up to 100 people at a time.

The Dynetics crew module, however, is designed to accommodate two astronauts travelling to and from the lunar orbit, including stays on the lunar surface for about a week, company representatives say.

The third team will be led by Jeff Bezos Blue Origin, with the participation of Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman and Draper. This group will develop a three-phase architecture, which has elements of descent, ascent and transfer. The descent phase will be based on the Blue Moon lander, the ascent phase will take advantage of Lockheeds experience in developing the Orion crew capsule, while Northrop Grumman will handle the transfer.

In short, the plans for the return to the Moon seem to take shape gradually.

Visit link:
NASA concludes agreements for returning to the moon with three companies - InTallaght

Posted in Mars Colonization | Comments Off on NASA concludes agreements for returning to the moon with three companies – InTallaght

A Third of the World’s Population Could Be Blanketed in Sahara-Like Heat by 2070 – Gizmodo

Posted: at 10:55 am

Brain geniuses like Elon Musk may want to colonize Mars, which sure. But for simpletons like me, keeping Earth mostly habitable seems like a better use of time and resources.

If carbon emissions are allowed to continue unchecked, though, that may be a tough proposition. According to a new study, extreme heat now only found in parts of the Sahara could spread to nearly 20 percent of the globe (and nearly a third of humanity) if carbon emissions arent curtailed. The paper, published on Monday in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, makes a pretty compelling case to cut carbon emissions and not fry the world.

The authors of the new paper use a host of historical data going back 6,000 years ago to uncover just what conditions make humans tick. It turns out people can make do with all levels of rainfall, with humans living in all but the very driest places on Earth. Civilization has also adapted to all types of soil fertility. The biggest limiting factor in terms of human habitation is how hot it gets.

The results of the study show people thrive in a narrow temperature band, where the average annual temperature spans 11 to 15 degrees Celsius or roughly the 50s if youre into Fahrenheit. Its in that belt where many staple crops grow best and livestock can be highly productive, and its why the authors define it as the human climate niche. Thats not say there arent other confounding factors for human thriving, but temperature is one of the key elements linked with well-being.

G/O Media may get a commission

Unfortunately for us, theres a shock on the way if climate change continues unchecked. Were already seeing the toll rising heat is taking on people around the world, from heat wave-related deaths to billions of hours in lost productivity because it was simply too hot to be outside. Still, humans have made it work in many hot places, from Phoenix to New Delhi to Dubai. But eventually, climate change could overwhelm us.

The study uses RCP8.5, a scenario where carbon emissions rise on an extreme level, to model what the end of the century would look like for our little human climate niche. The results show it would contract substantially. The Sahara is one of the only places on Earth where the annual average temperature cranks above 29 degrees Celsius (84 degrees Fahrenheit) and where the human climate niche basically ends. The areas with that much heat only cover 0.8 percent of the worlds land. But by 2070, that type of heat would become commonplace over nearly 20 percent of land on Earth. That area is home to up to 3 billion people who, if they dont migrate, will be living in conditions humans have never been able to tolerate for year-round existence.

Whats more, this spike in temperature over the intervening 50 years will be more dramatic than anything experienced in at least 6,000 years. You know, the period where human civilization really hit its groove.

The results are truly shocking in map form. Nearly all of Brazil will become essentially uninhabitable, as will huge chunks of the Middle East and India, showing the poorest areas will be hit the hardest. But the impacts arent limited to developing countries; the U.S. South, parts of Australia, and Mediterranean Europe will also see temperatures beyond the niche. The flip, though, that North America and Europe will also make habitability gains. When scientists found last year that we were all going to want to move to Siberia by the end of the century, they werent kidding.

Thats whats most alarming about the results. They show that, absent curbing emissions, there will almost certainly be mass migrations out of the hot zones. It wont all happen in 2070 like a switch flipped. Rather, some areas will pass the climate niche threshold first, potentially triggering waves of migration. The results show that, first and foremost, we need to start cutting emissions now. But just as important is the need to prepare for climate-induced migration in the future. And not in the ecofascist kind of way.

Read more here:
A Third of the World's Population Could Be Blanketed in Sahara-Like Heat by 2070 - Gizmodo

Posted in Mars Colonization | Comments Off on A Third of the World’s Population Could Be Blanketed in Sahara-Like Heat by 2070 – Gizmodo

Alien life on Mars: Scientists claim to have spotted thousands of mushrooms on Red Planet – International Business Times, Singapore Edition

Posted: at 10:55 am

A study report published in the journal Astrobiology and Space Science has claimed to have discovered alien life on Mars. The study report states that mushroom-like objects can be seen oriented towards the sky, and researchers believe that the alleged living beings are showing typical behaviors of mushrooms that grow on earth.

Biological causes behind these alien mushrooms

In the study report, the researchers revealed that non-biological presence could not explain the presence of the structures on Mars. They also claimed that the 'puffball-shaped' objects could be the result of a biological process.

Even though the study report was initially published in 2019, researchers have now revised their claims, and made it clear that their findings are not conclusive proof of alien life, but can be considered as a stepping stone for future research as humans are vigorously searching for extraterrestrial life on the Red Planet.

"There are no abiogenic processes that can explain the mushroom-morphology, size, colors, and orientation and growth of, and there are no terrestrial geological formations which resemble these mushroom-lichen-shaped specimens. Although the authors have not proven these are living organisms, the evidence supports the hypothesis that mushrooms, algae, lichens, fungi, and related organisms may have colonized the Red Planet and may be engaged in photosynthetic activity and oxygen production on Mars," read the study's abstract which is published in Research Gate.

Jim Green's prediction holds the clue

Jim Green is a chief scientist at NASA, and he strongly believes that alien life forms, at least in its microbial form will be discovered by 2021 on Mars. However, Green claimed that the world is not enough prepared to accept the reality of extraterrestrial existence.

Green also revealed that the discovery of alien life could be revolutionary and it will open a whole new line of thinking. Green is one of the key personalities behind the NASA mission that will start drilling on the Martian surface in 2020. NASA's Mars 2020 Rover will collect samples from Mars, and the testing will be completed by 2021. Green predicts that the testing of the samples will provide vital clues behind the existence of alien life on Mars.

Visit link:
Alien life on Mars: Scientists claim to have spotted thousands of mushrooms on Red Planet - International Business Times, Singapore Edition

Posted in Mars Colonization | Comments Off on Alien life on Mars: Scientists claim to have spotted thousands of mushrooms on Red Planet – International Business Times, Singapore Edition

space station | Definition, History, & Facts | Britannica

Posted: at 10:52 am

Salyut 1U.S.S.R.April 19, 1971October 11, 197123 (1)first space station, equipped for scientific studies; abandoned after its first crew died returning to EarthSalyut 2U.S.S.R.April 3, 1973May 28, 19730military reconnaissance platform; suffered explosion after achieving orbit and was never occupiedCosmos 557U.S.S.R.May 11, 1973May 22, 19730scientific station; crippled after achieving orbit and was never occupiedSkylabU.S.May 14, 1973July 11, 1979171 (3)first U.S. space station; successfully supported solar studies and biomedical experiments on the effects of weightlessnessSalyut 3U.S.S.R.June 25, 1974January 24, 197516 (1)military reconnaissance platformSalyut 4U.S.S.R.December 26, 1974February 3, 197793 (2)scientific station; operated until its systems were exhaustedSalyut 5U.S.S.R.June 22, 1976August 8, 197767 (2)military reconnaissance platformSalyut 6U.S.S.R.September 29, 1977July 29, 1982684 (6)first second-generation Salyut, operated as highly successful scientific station; resident crews hosted a series of international visitorsSalyut 7U.S.S.R.April 19, 1982February 2, 1991815 (5)problem-plagued follow-up to Salyut 6 that had to be repeatedly rescuedMir (modular)U.S.S.R./RussiaMarch 23, 2001occupied March 14, 1986, to June 15, 2000 (continuously from September 7, 1989, to August 28, 1999)first space station assembled in orbit using individually launched, specialized modules; successfully applied lessons learned from Salyut programMir base blockFebruary 20, 1986habitat moduleKvant 1March 31, 1987astrophysics observatory with X-ray telescopesKvant 2November 26, 1989supplementary life-support systems and large air lockKristallMay 31, 1990microgravity materials-processing laboratorySpektrMay 20, 1995module with apparatus for NASA researchPrirodaApril 23, 1996module with NASA apparatus and Earth-sciences sensorsInternational Space Station (modular)international consortium, primarily U.S. and Russiapermanently occupied since November 2, 2000modular, expandable station intended to serve world's space agencies for first quarter of 21st centuryZaryaRussiaNovember 20, 1998U.S.-funded, Russian-built module supplying initial solar power and attitude-control systemUnityU.S.December 4, 1998U.S.-built connecting nodeZvezdaRussiaJuly 2, 2000Russian-built habitat module and control centreDestinyU.S.February 7, 2001U.S.-built NASA microgravity laboratoryQuestU.S.July 12, 2001U.S.-built air lock, allowing station-based space walks for U.S. and Russian astronautsPirsRussiaSeptember 14, 2001Russian-built docking compartment, providing Soyuz docking port and additional air lock for Russian space walksHarmonyU.S.October 23, 2007U.S.-built connecting nodeColumbusU.S.February 7, 2008European Space Agency-built microgravity laboratoryKiboU.S.March 11, 2008; May 31, 2008Japanese-built microgravity laboratoryDextreU.S.March 11, 2008Canadian-built robotMini-Research Module-2RussiaNovember 10, 2009Russian-built docking compartment, providing Soyuz docking port and additional air lock for Russian space walksTranquilityU.S.February 8, 2010U.S.-built connecting nodeMini-Research Module-1U.S.May 14, 2010Russian-built docking compartmentPermanent Multipurpose Module LeonardoU.S.February 24, 2011Italian-built moduleBigelow Expandable Activity ModuleU.S.April 8, 2016Module built by Bigelow Aerospace to test expandable module technologyTiangong 1ChinaSeptember 29, 2011April 2, 201821 (2)first Chinese space stationTiangong 2ChinaSeptember 15, 201629 (1)second Chinese space station

See more here:
space station | Definition, History, & Facts | Britannica

Posted in Space Station | Comments Off on space station | Definition, History, & Facts | Britannica

International Space Station – Wikipedia

Posted: at 10:52 am

Space station in low Earth orbit

ISS Agreements

ISS Logo

The International Space Station (ISS) is a modular space station (habitable artificial satellite) in low Earth orbit. The ISS programme is a multi-national collaborative project between five participating space agencies: NASA (United States), Roscosmos (Russia), JAXA (Japan), ESA (Europe), and CSA (Canada).[6][7] The ownership and use of the space station is established by intergovernmental treaties and agreements.[8]

The ISS serves as a microgravity and space environment research laboratory in which scientific experiments are conducted in astrobiology, astronomy, meteorology, physics, and other fields.[9][10][11] The station is suited for testing the spacecraft systems and equipment required for possible future long-duration missions to the Moon and Mars.[12] It is the largest artificial object in space and the largest satellite in low Earth orbit, regularly visible to the naked eye from Earth's surface.[13][14] It maintains an orbit with an average altitude of 400 kilometres (250mi) by means of reboost manoeuvres using the engines of the Zvezda Service Module or visiting spacecraft.[15] The ISS circles the Earth in roughly 92minutes, completing 15.5orbits per day.[16]

The station is divided into two sections: the Russian Orbital Segment (ROS), operated by Russia; and the United States Orbital Segment (USOS), which is shared by many nations. Roscosmos has endorsed the continued operation of ISS through 2024,[17] but had previously proposed using elements of the Russian segment to construct a new Russian space station called OPSEK.[18] As of December2018[update], the station is expected to operate until 2030.[19]

The first ISS component was launched in 1998, with the first long-term residents arriving on 2November 2000.[20] Since then, the station has been continuously occupied for 19years and 188days.[21] This is the longest continuous human presence in low Earth orbit, having surpassed the previous record of 9years and 357days held by the Mir space station. The latest major pressurised module was fitted in 2011, with an experimental inflatable space habitat added in 2016. Development and assembly of the station continues, with several major new Russian elements scheduled for launch starting in 2020. The ISS consists of pressurised habitation modules, structural trusses, photovoltaic solar arrays, radiators, docking ports, experiment bays and robotic arms. Major ISS modules have been launched by Russian Proton and Soyuz rockets and US Space Shuttles.[22]

The ISS is the ninth space station to be inhabited by crews, following the Soviet and later Russian Salyut, Almaz, and Mir stations as well as Skylab from the US. The station is serviced by a variety of visiting spacecraft: the Russian Soyuz and Progress, the US Dragon and Cygnus, the Japanese H-II Transfer Vehicle,[6] and formerly the European Automated Transfer Vehicle. The Dragon spacecraft allows the return of pressurised cargo to Earth (downmass), which is used for example to repatriate scientific experiments for further analysis. The Soyuz return capsule has minimal downmass capability next to the astronauts.

The ISS has been visited by astronauts, cosmonauts and space tourists from 19 different nations. As of September 2019[update], 239people from 19countries had visited the space station, many of them multiple times. The United States sent 151people, Russia sent 47, nine were Japanese, eight Canadian, five Italian, four French, three German, and one each from Belgium, Brazil, Denmark, Kazakhstan, Malaysia, the Netherlands, South Africa, South Korea, Spain, Sweden, the United Arab Emirates, and the United Kingdom.[23]

The ISS was originally intended to be a laboratory, observatory, and factory while providing transportation, maintenance, and a low Earth orbit staging base for possible future missions to the Moon, Mars, and asteroids. However, not all of the uses envisioned in the initial memorandum of understanding between NASA and Roscosmos have come to fruition.[24] In the 2010 United States National Space Policy, the ISS was given additional roles of serving commercial, diplomatic,[25] and educational purposes.[26]

Fisheye view of several labs

The ISS provides a platform to conduct scientific research, with power, data, cooling, and crew available to support experiments. Small uncrewed spacecraft can also provide platforms for experiments, especially those involving zero gravity and exposure to space, but space stations offer a long-term environment where studies can be performed potentially for decades, combined with ready access by human researchers.[27][28]

The ISS simplifies individual experiments by allowing groups of experiments to share the same launches and crew time. Research is conducted in a wide variety of fields, including astrobiology, astronomy, physical sciences, materials science, space weather, meteorology, and human research including space medicine and the life sciences.[9][10][11][29][30] Scientists on Earth have timely access to the data and can suggest experimental modifications to the crew. If follow-on experiments are necessary, the routinely scheduled launches of resupply craft allows new hardware to be launched with relative ease.[28] Crews fly expeditions of several months' duration, providing approximately 160 person-hours per week of labour with a crew of six. However, a considerable amount of crew time is taken up by station maintenance.[9][31]

Perhaps the most notable ISS experiment is the Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer (AMS), which is intended to detect dark matter and answer other fundamental questions about our universe and is as important as the Hubble Space Telescope according to NASA. Currently docked on station, it could not have been easily accommodated on a free flying satellite platform because of its power and bandwidth needs.[32][33] On 3 April 2013, scientists reported that hints of dark matter may have been detected by the AMS.[34][35][36][37][38][39] According to the scientists, "The first results from the space-borne Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer confirm an unexplained excess of high-energy positrons in Earth-bound cosmic rays".

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.[40] Some simple forms of life called extremophiles,[41] as well as small invertebrates called tardigrades[42] can survive in this environment in an extremely dry state through 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 high duration human spaceflight and space colonisation are feasible. As of 2006[update], 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.[43][44]

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.[45][46][47]

Gravity at the altitude of the ISS is approximately 90% as strong as at Earth's surface, but objects in orbit are in a continuous state of freefall, resulting in an apparent state of weightlessness.[48] This perceived weightlessness is disturbed by five separate effects:[49]

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.[10]

Investigating the physics of fluids in microgravity will provide better models of the behaviour of fluids. Because fluids can be almost completely combined in microgravity, physicists investigate fluids that do not mix well on Earth. In addition, examining reactions that are slowed by low gravity and low temperatures will improve our understanding of superconductivity.[10]

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.[50] 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 oxides in Earth's atmosphere, as well as cosmic rays, cosmic dust, antimatter, and dark matter in the Universe.[10]

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.[12] Referring to the MARS-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".[51] 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.[52]

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."[53] A crewed mission to Mars may be a multinational effort involving space agencies and countries outside the current ISS partnership. In 2010, ESA Director-General Jean-Jacques Dordain stated his agency was ready to propose to the other four partners that China, India and South Korea be invited to join the ISS partnership.[54] NASA chief Charlie Bolden stated in February 2011, "Any mission to Mars is likely to be a global effort".[55] Currently, US federal legislation prevents NASA co-operation with China on space projects.[56]

The ISS crew provides 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.[6][57] ESA offers a wide range of free teaching materials that can be downloaded for use in classrooms.[58] 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.[59]

JAXA aims to inspire children to "pursue craftsmanship" and to heighten their "awareness of the importance of life and their responsibilities in society".[60] Through a series of education guides, a deeper understanding of the past and near-term future of crewed space flight, as well as that of Earth and life, will be learned.[61][62] 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. In the first phase of Kib utilisation from 2008 to mid-2010, researchers from more than a dozen Japanese universities conducted experiments in diverse fields.[63]

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."[64]

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 nine 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.[65]

First Orbit is a feature-length documentary film about Vostok 1, the first crewed 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.[66] The film was streamed through the website firstorbit.org in a global YouTube premiere in 2011, under a free licence.[67]

In May 2013, commander Chris Hadfield shot a music video of David Bowie's "Space Oddity" on board the station; the film was released on YouTube.[68] It was the first music video ever to be filmed in space.[69]

In November 2017, while participating in Expedition 52/53 on the ISS, Paolo Nespoli made two recordings (one in English the other in his native Italian) of his spoken voice, for use on Wikipedia articles. These were the first content made specifically for Wikipedia, in space.[70][71]

Since the International Space Station is a multi-national collaborative project, the components for in-orbit assembly were manufactured in various countries around the world. Beginning in the mid 1990s, the U.S. components Destiny, Unity, the Integrated Truss Structure, and the solar arrays were fabricated at the Marshall Space Flight Center and the Michoud Assembly Facility. These modules were delivered to the Operations and Checkout Building and the Space Station Processing Facility for final assembly and processing for launch.[72]

The Russian modules, including Zarya and Zvezda, were manufactured at the Khrunichev State Research and Production Space Center in Moscow. Zvezda was initially manufactured in 1985 as a component for Mir-2, but was never launched and instead became the ISS Service Module.[73]

The European Space Agency Columbus module was manufactured at the EADS Astrium Space Transportation facilities in Bremen, Germany, along with many other contractors throughout Europe[74]. The other ESA-built modules - Harmony, Tranquility, the Leonardo MPLM, and the Cupola - were initially manufactured at the Thales Alenia Space factory located at the Cannes Mandelieu Space Center. The structural steel hulls of the modules were transported by aircraft to the Kennedy Space Center SSPF for launch processing.[75]

The Japanese Experiment Module Kib, was fabricated in various technology manufacturing facilities in Japan, at the NASDA (now JAXA) Tsukuba Space Center, and the Institute of Space and Astronautical Science. The Kibo module was transported by ship and flown by aircraft to the KSC Space Station Processing Facility.[76]

The Mobile Servicing System, consisting of the Canadarm2 and the Dextre grapple fixture, was manufactured at various factories in Canada (such as the David Florida Laboratory) and the United States, under contract by the Canadian Space Agency. The mobile base system, a connecting framework for Canadarm2 mounted on rails, was built by Northrop Grumman.

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 Canadarm2 (SSRMS) and extra-vehicular activities (EVAs); as of 5June2011[update], they had added 159 components during more than 1,000 hours of EVA (see List of ISS spacewalks). 127 of these spacewalks originated from the station, and the remaining 32 were launched from the airlocks of docked Space Shuttles.[77] The beta angle of the station had to be considered at all times during construction.[78]

The first module of the ISS, Zarya, was launched on 20 November 1998 on an autonomous Russian Proton rocket. It provided propulsion, attitude 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 Pressurised Mating Adapters (PMAs), one connects permanently to Zarya, the other allowed the Space Shuttle to dock to the space station. At that time, the Russian station Mir was still inhabited, and the ISS remained uncrewed for two years. 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 target for a rendezvous with Zarya and Unity: it maintained a station-keeping orbit while 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.[79][80]

The first resident crew, Expedition 1, arrived in November 2000 on Soyuz TM-31. At the end of the first day on the station, astronaut Bill Shepherd requested the use of the radio call sign "Alpha", which he and cosmonaut Krikalev preferred to the more cumbersome "International Space Station".[81] The name "Alpha" had previously been used for the station in the early 1990s,[82] and its use was authorised for the whole of Expedition 1.[83] Shepherd had been advocating the use of a new name to project managers for some time. Referencing a naval tradition in a pre-launch news conference he had said: "For thousands of years, humans have been going to sea in ships. People have designed and built these vessels, launched them with a good feeling that a name will bring good fortune to the crew and success to their voyage."[84] Yuri Semenov, the President of Russian Space Corporation Energia at the time, disapproved of the name "Alpha" as he felt that Mir was the first modular space station, so the names "Beta" or "Mir2" for the ISS would have been more fitting.[83][85][86]

Expedition 1 arrived 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 US television, additional attitude support needed for the additional mass of the USOS, and substantial solar arrays supplementing the station's four existing solar arrays.[87]

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 Space Shuttle Columbia disaster in 2003 and a resulting hiatus in flights. The Space Shuttle was grounded until 2005 with STS-114 flown by Discovery.[88]

Assembly resumed in 2006 with the arrival of STS-115 with Atlantis, 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 soon followed by the first two components of Kib. 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 Kib 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, followed in May 2010 by the penultimate Russian module, Rassvet. Rassvet was delivered by Space Shuttle Atlantis on STS-132 in exchange for the Russian Proton delivery of the US-funded Zarya module in 1998.[89] The last pressurised module of the USOS, Leonardo, was brought to the station in February 2011 on the final flight of Discovery, STS-133.[90] The Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer was delivered by Endeavour on STS-134 the same year.[91]

As of June2011[update], the station consisted of 15 pressurised modules and the Integrated Truss Structure. Five modules are still to be launched, including the Nauka with the European Robotic Arm, the Prichal module, and two power modules called NEM-1 and NEM-2.[92] As of March2019[update], Russia's future primary research module Nauka is set to launch in the summer of 2020, along with the European Robotic Arm which will be able to relocate itself to different parts of the Russian modules of the station.[93]

The gross mass of the station changes over time. The total launch mass of the modules on orbit is about 417,289kg (919,965lb) (as of 3September2011[update]).[94] 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. Hydrogen gas is constantly vented overboard by the oxygen generators.

Technical blueprint of components

The ISS is a third generation[95] modular space station.[96] Modular stations can allow modules to be added to 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. The Unity node joins directly to the Destiny laboratory. For clarity, they are shown apart.

Zarya (Russian: , lit.'Dawn'), also known as the Functional Cargo Block or FGB (from the Russian: "- ", lit.'Funktsionalno-gruzovoy blok' or ), is the first module of the ISS to be launched.[97] The FGB provided electrical power, storage, propulsion, and guidance to the ISS during the initial stage of assembly. With the launch and assembly in orbit of other modules with more specialised functionality, Zarya is now[when?] primarily used for storage, both inside the pressurised section and in the externally mounted fuel tanks. The Zarya is a descendant of the TKS spacecraft designed for the Russian Salyut program. The name Zarya, which means sunrise,[97] was given to the FGB because it signified the dawn of a new era of international cooperation in space. Although it was built by a Russian company, it is owned by the United States.[98]

Zarya was built from December 1994 to January 1998 at the Khrunichev State Research and Production Space Center (KhSC) in Moscow.[97]

Zarya was launched on 20November 1998 on a Russian Proton rocket from Baikonur Cosmodrome Site 81 in Kazakhstan to a 400 kilometres (250mi) high orbit with a designed lifetime of at least 15 years. After Zarya reached orbit, STS-88 launched on 4 December 1998 to attach the Unity module.

The Unity connecting module, also known as Node 1, is the first US-built component of the ISS. It connects the Russian and US segments of the station, and is where crew eat meals together.

The module is cylindrical in shape, with six berthing locations (forward, aft, port, starboard, zenith, and nadir) facilitating connections to other modules. Unity measures 4.57 metres (15.0ft) in diameter, is 5.47 metres (17.9ft) long, made of steel, and was built for NASA by Boeing in a manufacturing facility at the Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama. Unity is the first of the three connecting modules; the other two are Harmony and Tranquility.

Unity was carried into orbit as the primary cargo of the Space Shuttle Endeavour on STS-88, the first Space Shuttle mission dedicated to assembly of the station. On 6 December 1998, the STS-88 crew mated the aft berthing port of Unity with the forward hatch of the already orbiting Zarya module. This was the first connection made between two station modules.

Zvezda (Russian: , meaning "star"), Salyut DOS-8, also known as the Zvezda Service Module, is a module of the ISS. It was the third module launched to the station, and provides all of the station's life support systems, some of which are supplemented in the USOS, as well as living quarters for two crew members. It is the structural and functional center of the Russian Orbital Segment, which is the Russian part of the ISS. Crew assemble here to deal with emergencies on the station.[99][100][101]

The basic structural frame of Zvezda, known as "DOS-8", was initially built in the mid-1980s to be the core of the Mir-2 space station. This means that Zvezda is similar in layout to the core module (DOS-7) of the Mir space station. It was in fact labeled as Mir-2 for quite some time in the factory. Its design lineage thus extends back to the original Salyut stations. The space frame was completed in February 1985 and major internal equipment was installed by October 1986.

The rocket used for launch to the ISS carried advertising; it was emblazoned with the logo of Pizza Hut restaurants,[102][103][104] for which they are reported to have paid more than US$1 million.[105] The money helped support Khrunichev State Research and Production Space Center and the Russian advertising agencies that orchestrated the event.[106]

On 26 July 2000, Zvezda became the third component of the ISS when it docked at the aft port of Zarya. (U.S. Unity module had already been attached to the Zarya.) Later in July, the computers aboard Zarya handed over ISS commanding functions to computers on Zvezda.[107]

The Destiny module, also known as the U.S. Lab, is the primary operating facility for U.S. research payloads aboard the International Space Station (ISS).[108][109] It was berthed to the Unity module and activated over a period of five days in February 2001.[110] Destiny is NASA's first permanent operating orbital research station since Skylab was vacated in February 1974.

The Boeing Company began construction of the 14.5-tonne (32,000lb) research laboratory in 1995 at the Michoud Assembly Facility and then the Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama.[108] Destiny was shipped to the Kennedy Space Center in Florida in 1998, and was turned over to NASA for pre-launch preparations in August 2000. It launched on 7February 2001 aboard the Space Shuttle Atlantis on STS-98.[110]

The Quest Joint Airlock, previously known as the Joint Airlock Module, is the primary airlock for the ISS. Quest was designed to host spacewalks with both Extravehicular Mobility Unit (EMU) spacesuits and Orlan space suits. The airlock was launched on STS-104 on 14July 2001. Before Quest was attached, Russian spacewalks using Orlan suits could only be done from the Zvezda service module, and American spacewalks using EMUs were only possible when a Space Shuttle was docked. The arrival of Pirs docking compartment on 16September 2001 provided another airlock from which Orlan spacewalks can be conducted.[citation needed]

The Pirs module attached to the ISS.

Poisk after arriving at the ISS on 12 November 2009.

Pirs (Russian: , lit.'pier') and Poisk (Russian: , lit.'search') are Russian airlock modules, each having two identical hatches. An outward-opening hatch on the Mir space station failed after it swung open too fast after unlatching, because of a small amount of air pressure remaining in the airlock.[111] All EVA hatches on the ISS open inwards and are pressure-sealing. Pirs was used to store, service, and refurbish Russian Orlan suits and provided 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.[112]

Pirs was launched on 14September 2001, as ISS Assembly Mission 4R, on a Russian Soyuz-U rocket, using a modified Progress spacecraft, Progress M-SO1, as an upper stage. Poisk was launched on 10November 2009[113][114] attached to a modified Progress spacecraft, called Progress M-MIM2, on a Soyuz-U rocket from Launch Pad 1 at the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan.

Harmony, also known as Node 2, is the "utility hub" of the ISS. It connects the laboratory modules of the United States, Europe and Japan, as well as providing electrical power and electronic data. Sleeping cabins for four of the six crew are housed here.[115]

Harmony was successfully launched into space aboard Space Shuttle flight STS-120 on 23October 2007.[116][117] After temporarily being attached to the port side of the Unity node,[118] it was moved to its permanent location on the forward end of the Destiny laboratory on 14November 2007.[119] Harmony added 2,666 cubic feet (75.5m3) to the station's living volume, an increase of almost 20 percent, from 15,000cuft (420m3) to 17,666cuft (500.2m3). Its successful installation meant that from NASA's perspective, the station was "U.S. Core Complete".

Tranquility, also known as Node 3, is a module of the ISS. It contains environmental control systems, life support systems, a toilet, exercise equipment, and an observation cupola.

ESA and the Italian Space Agency had Tranquility built by Thales Alenia Space. A ceremony on 20November 2009 transferred ownership of the module to NASA.[120] On 8February 2010, NASA launched the module on the Space Shuttle's STS-130 mission.

Columbus is a science laboratory that is part of the ISS and is the largest single contribution to the ISS made by the European Space Agency (ESA).

The Columbus laboratory was flown to the Kennedy Space Center (KSC) in Florida in an Airbus Beluga. It was launched aboard Space Shuttle Atlantis on 7February 2008 on flight STS-122. It is designed for ten years of operation. The module is controlled by the Columbus Control Centre, located at the German Space Operations Centre, part of the German Aerospace Center in Oberpfaffenhofen near Munich, Germany.

The European Space Agency has spent 1.4billion (about US$2 billion) on building Columbus, including the experiments that will orbit in Columbus and the ground control infrastructure necessary to operate the experiments.[121]

The Japanese Experiment Module (JEM), nicknamed Kibo (, Kib, Hope), is a Japanese science module for the ISS developed by JAXA. It is the largest single ISS module, and is attached to the Harmony module. The first two pieces of the module were launched on Space Shuttle missions STS-123 and STS-124. The third and final components were launched on STS-127.[122]

Experiment Logistics Module

Experiment Logistics Module

Remote Manipulator System

The Cupola is an ESA-built observatory module of the ISS. Its name derives from the Italian word cupola, which means "dome". Its seven windows are used to conduct experiments, dockings and observations of Earth. It was launched aboard Space Shuttle mission STS-130 on 8February 2010 and attached to the Tranquility (Node 3) module. With the Cupola attached, ISS assembly reached 85 percent completion. The Cupola's central window has a diameter of 80cm (31in).[123]

Rassvet (Russian: ; lit. "dawn"), also known as the Mini-Research Module 1 (MRM-1) (Russian: , 1) and formerly known as the Docking Cargo Module (DCM), is a component of the ISS. The module's design is similar 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 Space Shuttle Atlantis on the STS-132 mission on 14May 2010,[124] and was connected to the ISS on 18 May.[125] The hatch connecting Rassvet with the ISS was first opened on 20 May.[126] On 28June 2010, the Soyuz TMA-19 spacecraft performed the first docking with the module.[127]

The Leonardo Permanent Multipurpose Module (PMM) is a module of the ISS. It was flown into space aboard the Space Shuttle on STS-133 on 24February 2011 and installed on 1March. Leonardo is primarily used for storage of spares, supplies and waste on the ISS, which was until then stored in many different places within the space station. The Leonardo PMM was a Multi-Purpose Logistics Module (MPLM) before 2011, but was modified into its current configuration. It was formerly one of three MPLM used for bringing cargo to and from the ISS with the Space Shuttle. The module was named for Italian polymath Leonardo da Vinci.

The Bigelow Expandable Activity Module (BEAM) is an experimental expandable space station module developed by Bigelow Aerospace, under contract to NASA, for testing as a temporary module on the ISS from 2016 to at least 2020. It arrived at the ISS on 10April 2016,[128] was berthed to the station on 16April, and was expanded and pressurised on 28May 2016.

The International Docking Adapter (IDA) is a spacecraft docking system adapter developed to convert APAS-95 to the NASA Docking System (NDS)/International Docking System Standard (IDSS). An IDA is placed on each of the ISS' two open Pressurised Mating Adapters (PMAs), both of which are connected to the Harmony module.

IDA-1 was lost during the launch failure of SpaceX CRS-7 on 28June 2015.[129][130][131]

IDA-2 was launched on SpaceX CRS-9 on 18July 2016.[132] It was attached and connected to PMA-2 during a spacewalk on 19August 2016.[133] First docking was achieved with the arrival of Crew Dragon Demo-1 on 3March 2019.[134]

IDA-3 was launched on the SpaceX CRS-18 mission in July 2019.[135] IDA-3 is constructed mostly from spare parts to speed construction.[136] It was attached and connected to PMA-3 during a spacewalk on 21August 2019.[137]

The ISS has a large number of external components that do not require pressurisation. The largest of these is the Integrated Truss Structure (ITS), to which the station's main solar arrays and thermal radiators are mounted.[138] The ITS consists of ten separate segments forming a structure 108.5 m (356 ft) long.[3]

The station was intended to have several smaller external components, such as six robotic arms, three External Stowage Platforms (ESPs) and four ExPRESS Logistics Carriers (ELCs).[139][140] While these platforms allow experiments (including MISSE, the STP-H3 and the Robotic Refueling Mission) to be deployed and conducted in the vacuum of space by providing electricity and processing experimental data locally, their primary function is to store spare Orbital Replacement Units (ORUs). ORUs are parts that can be replaced when they fail or pass their design life, including pumps, storage tanks, antennas, and battery units. Such units are replaced either by astronauts during EVA or by robotic arms.[141] Several shuttle missions were dedicated to the delivery of ORUs, including STS-129,[142] STS-133[143] and STS-134.[144] As of January2011[update], only one other mode of transportation of ORUs had been utilisedthe Japanese cargo vessel HTV-2which delivered an FHRC and CTC-2 via its Exposed Pallet (EP).[145][needs update]

There are also smaller exposure facilities mounted directly to laboratory modules; the Kib Exposed Facility serves as an external "porch" for the Kib complex,[146] and a facility on the European Columbus laboratory provides power and data connections for experiments such as the European Technology Exposure Facility[147][148] and the Atomic Clock Ensemble in Space.[149] A remote sensing instrument, SAGE III-ISS, was delivered to the station in February 2017 aboard CRS-10,[150] and the NICER experiment was delivered aboard CRS-11 in June 2017.[151] The largest scientific payload externally mounted to the ISS is the Alpha 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.[152][153]

The commercial Columbus External Payload Facility#Bartolomeo External Payload Hosting Platform, manufactured by Airbus, was launched on 6 March 2020 aboard CRS-20 and be attached to the European Columbus module. It will provide a further 12 external payload slots, supplementing the eight on the ExPRESS Logistics Carriers, ten on Kib, and four on Columbus. The system is designed to be robotically serviced and will require no astronaut intervention. It is named after Christopher Columbus's younger brother.[154][155][156]

The Integrated Truss Structure serves as a base for the station's primary remote manipulator system, called the Mobile Servicing System (MSS), which is composed of three main components. Canadarm2, the largest robotic arm on the ISS, has a mass of 1,800 kilograms (4,000lb) and is used to dock and manipulate spacecraft and modules on the USOS, hold crew members and equipment in place during EVAs and move Dextre around to perform tasks.[157] Dextre is a 1,560kg (3,440lb) robotic manipulator with two arms, a rotating torso and has power tools, lights and video for replacing orbital replacement units (ORUs) and performing other tasks requiring fine control.[158] The Mobile Base System (MBS) is a platform which rides on rails along the length of the station's main truss. It serves as a mobile base for Canadarm2 and Dextre, allowing the robotic arms to reach all parts of the USOS.[159] To gain access to the Russian Segment a grapple fixture was added to Zarya on STS-134, so that Canadarm2 can inchworm itself onto the ROS.[160] Also installed during STS-134 was the 15m (50ft) Orbiter Boom Sensor System (OBSS), which had been used to inspect heat shield tiles on Space Shuttle missions and can be used on station to increase the reach of the MSS.[160] Staff on Earth or the station can operate the MSS components via remote control, performing work outside the station without space walks.

Japan's Remote Manipulator System, which services the Kib Exposed Facility,[161] was launched on STS-124 and is attached to the Kib Pressurised Module.[162] The arm is similar to the Space Shuttle arm as it is permanently attached at one end and has a latching end effector for standard grapple fixtures at the other.

The European Robotic Arm, which will service the Russian Orbital Segment, will be launched alongside the Multipurpose Laboratory Module in 2020.[163] 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 two Strela (Russian: ; lit. Arrow) cargo cranes during EVAs for moving crew and equipment around the ROS. Each Strela crane has a mass of 45kg (99lb).

Nauka (Russian: ; lit. Science), also known as the Multipurpose Laboratory Module (MLM), (Russian: , or ), is a component of the ISS which has not yet been launched into space. The MLM is funded by the Roscosmos State Corporation. In the original ISS plans, Nauka was to use the location of the Docking and Stowage Module. Later, the DSM was replaced by the Rassvet module and it was moved to Zarya's nadir port. Planners anticipate Nauka will dock at Zvezda's nadir port, replacing Pirs.[164]

The launch of Nauka, initially planned for 2007, has been repeatedly delayed for various reasons. As of April2020[update], the launch to the ISS is assigned to no earlier than November 2020.[165] After this date, the warranties of some of Nauka's systems will expire.

Prichal, also known as Uzlovoy Module or UM (Russian: "", Nodal Module Berth),[166] is a 4-tonne (8,800lb)[167] ball-shaped module that will allow 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 MS and Progress MS spacecraft. UM is due to be launched in 2022.[168] It will be integrated with a special version of the Progress cargo ship and launched by a standard Soyuz rocket, docking to the nadir port of the Nauka 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. The node module was intended to serve as the only permanent element of the cancelled OPSEK.[169][170]

Science Power Module 1 (SPM-1, also known as NEM-1) and Science Power Module 2 (SPM-2, also known as NEM-2) are modules planned to arrive at the ISS not earlier than 2023.[165][168][171] It is going to dock to the Prichal module, which is planned to be attached to the Nauka module.[citation needed] If Nauka is cancelled, then the Prichal, SPM-1, and SPM-2 would dock at the zenith port of Zvezda. SPM-1 and SPM-2 would also be required components for the OPSEK space station.[172]

The NanoRacks Bishop Airlock Module is a commercially-funded airlock module intended to be launched to the ISS on SpaceX CRS-21 in August 2020.[173][174] The module is being built by NanoRacks, Thales Alenia Space, and Boeing.[175] It will be used to deploy CubeSats, small satellites, and other external payloads for NASA, CASIS, and other commercial and governmental customers.[176]

In January 2020, NASA awarded Axiom Space a contract to build a commercial module for the space station with it launching in 2024. The contract is under the NextSTEP2 program. NASA said it will begin negotiations with Axiom on a firm-fixed-price contract to build and deliver the module, which will attach to the forward port on space station's Harmony module, or Node 2. Although NASA has only commissioned one module, Axiom plans to build an entire segment which would consists of five modules. These modules would include a node module, an orbital research and manufacturing facility, a crew habitat, and a "large-windowed Earth observatory". The Axiom segment would greatly increase the capabilities and value of the station and allow for larger crews and private spaceflight by other organisations. Axiom plans to turn its segment into its own space station once the ISS is decommissioned and would let it act as a successor to the station.[177][178][179]

Several modules planned for the station were cancelled over the course of the ISS program. Reasons include budgetary constraints, the modules becoming unnecessary, and station redesigns after the 2003 Columbia disaster. The US Centrifuge Accommodations Module would have hosted science experiments in varying levels of artificial gravity.[180] The US Habitation Module would have served as the station's living quarters. Instead, the sleep stations are now spread throughout the station.[181] The US Interim Control Module and ISS Propulsion Module would have replaced the functions of Zvezda in case of a launch failure.[182] Two Russian Research Modules were planned for scientific research.[183] They would have docked to a Russian Universal Docking Module.[184] The Russian Science Power Platform would have supplied power to the Russian Orbital Segment independent of the ITS solar arrays.

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 Zvezda service module. Some of these systems are supplemented by equipment in the USOS. The MLM Nauka laboratory has a complete set of life support systems.

The atmosphere on board the ISS is similar to the Earth's.[185] Normal air pressure on the ISS is 101.3kPa (14.69psi);[186] the same as at sea level on Earth. An Earth-like atmosphere offers benefits for crew comfort, and is much safer than a pure oxygen atmosphere, because of the increased risk of a fire such as that responsible for the deaths of the Apollo 1 crew.[187] Earth-like atmospheric conditions have been maintained on all Russian and Soviet spacecraft.[188]

The Elektron system aboard Zvezda and a similar system in Destiny generate oxygen aboard the station.[189] The crew has a backup option in the form of bottled oxygen and Solid Fuel Oxygen Generation (SFOG) canisters, a chemical oxygen generator system.[190] 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.[190]

Read the original post:
International Space Station - Wikipedia

Posted in Space Station | Comments Off on International Space Station – Wikipedia

Astronaut offers insights on coronavirus from space station – Community Impact Newspaper

Posted: at 10:52 am

Christopher Cassidy answered educators' questions from the International Space Station at a Space Center Houston-sponsored live event. (Screenshot of May 6 livestream)

NASA astronaut and current space station commander Christopher Cassidy answered educators questions from 250 miles above the Earth during a livestream event May 6.

Pre-recorded questions for Cassidy came from Space Center Houstons international network of educators and the Space Exploration Educator Crew. Space Center Houston is the official visitor center of NASAs Johnson Space Center, where astronauts are trained to further the agencys space exploration goals.

Astronauts have continuously lived and worked on the space station for nearly two decades, testing technologies, performing experiments and developing the skills needed to explore farther from Earth, according to a Space Center Houston news release. NASAs Mission Control Center in Houston communicates 24 hours a day with the astronauts living in space on the orbiting laboratory through the Space Networks Tracking and Data Relay Satellites.

Space Center Houston aims to link educators and students directly to astronauts aboard the space station and provide authentic experiences designed to enhance student learning, performance and interest in STEM, per the release. Videos and lesson plans highlighting research on the International Space Station are available at http://www.nasa.gov/stemonstation. The live event was hosted in honor of Teacher Appreciation Week, which takes place May 4-8.

Cassidy answered various questions during the half-hour broadcast and gave insights on coronavirus-related matters. Here are three takeaways from Cassidy about how the world is responding to coronavirus.

Although large gatherings of people have been virtually eliminated across the world in light of the pandemic, Cassidy said nothing in Earths atmosphere or cloud formations has indicated major changes to the physical landscape.

Weve been asked a few times, and I really have been trying with some diligence to see if theres anything perceivable that I can notice with my eye, Cassidy said in response to the question. You dont see that quite so much these days.

He added, however, that he sees less airplane contrailsthe line-shaped clouds produced by aircraft engine exhaust that form behind planesin the skies from his vantage point aboard the International Space Station.

It seems to me that airplane activity is less, he said.

I will tell you that its tough to find the balance between ... being there when youre needed and not overstepping your bounds, Cassidy said.

A Texas-based teacher asked Cassidy about his most successful failure. He described a space walk that failed logistically due to unforeseen circumstances and said that the long-term impacts of that failed space walk included new improvements to operational safety. Cassidy and the rest of the crew could laugh about it once the helmets came off, he said, because ultimately their teamwork still yielded positive results.

He likened this approach to how students and educators can best adapt amid school closures and the challenges of remote instruction: Work together and do not discount the importance of team-building skills.

Youve got to know when to be a leader and when to be a follower, and itll all pull together, he said. The technical things we can train ... its those soft skills that are of critical importance.

In certain times we can access the Internet up here. ... So you gave me a good homework assignment, he told the teacher who asked the question.

According to NASAs press desk, the agency first took action last month. NASA launched a call for ideas April 1 on its internal crowdsourcing platform NASA@WORK for how the agency can leverage its expertise and capabilities to assist with the global crisis. In two weeks the agency received 250 ideas, with more than 500 comments submitted and more than 4,500 votes cast, according to a news release.

Engineers at NASAs jet propulsion laboratory in California designed a new high-pressure ventilator tailored specifically to treat the coronavirus patients called VITAL (Ventilator Intervention Technology Accessible Locally), which passed a critical test April 21 at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai in New Yorkan epicenter of the virus in the United States. Other efforts include a positive pressure oxygen helmetwhich functions similar to a CPAP machine and used to treat patients exhibiting minor symptoms, minimizing the need for ventilators with those patientsand a new surface decontamination system.

VITAL is under review for an emergency use authorization by the Food and Drug Administration, as is the Aerospace Valley Positive Pressure Helmet, per the release.

"NASA's strength has always been our ability and passioncollective and individualfor solving problems," NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine said in the release. "All the work being done shows how NASA is uniquely equipped to aid in the federal response to coronavirus by leveraging the ingenuity of our workforce, mobilizing investments made in the U.S. space agency to combat this disease, and working with public and private partnerships to maximize results."

Original post:
Astronaut offers insights on coronavirus from space station - Community Impact Newspaper

Posted in Space Station | Comments Off on Astronaut offers insights on coronavirus from space station – Community Impact Newspaper

Tom Cruise Working With NASA To Film Aboard The International Space Station – WLEN-FM

Posted: at 10:51 am

NASA has confirmed that Tom Cruise is partnering with them to shoot a movie aboard the National Space Station, the first narrative feature to be shot in space. NASA is excited to work with @TomCruise on a film aboard the @Space_Station, NASA administrator Jim Bridentsine tweeted on Tuesday. We need popular media to inspire a new generation of engineers and scientists to make @NASAs ambitious plans a reality.

Cruise and Elon Musks SpaceX were in the early stages of teaming up with NASA for an action-adventure feature film that would be shot in outer space. Plot details have not been revealed.

Cruises next film is Top Gun: Maverick, in which he reprises his role as Captain Pete Maverick Mitchell. Due to the coronavirus pandemic, Paramount has moved Top Gun: Maverick off its July 12 release date to Dec. 23, 2020.

Editorial credit: JStone / Shutterstock.com

Excerpt from:
Tom Cruise Working With NASA To Film Aboard The International Space Station - WLEN-FM

Posted in Space Station | Comments Off on Tom Cruise Working With NASA To Film Aboard The International Space Station – WLEN-FM

Digital Space Solution Market to Witness Astonishing Growth With The SpaceStation, SpaceDigital, Mediaspace Solutions, Sajha Media Space, Nine…

Posted: at 10:51 am

Digital Space Solution Market 2020

This report studies the Digital Space Solution Market with many aspects of the industry like the market size, market status, market trends and forecast, the report also provides brief information of the competitors and the specific growth opportunities with key market drivers. Find the complete Digital Space Solution Market analysis segmented by companies, region, type and applications in the report.

The major players covered in Digital Space Solution Market The SpaceStation, SpaceDigital, Mediaspace Solutions, Sajha Media Space, Nine Digital, Cisco, JOANNEUM RESEARCH, T2, Pixelwork Interactive, and Cognizant

The final report will add the analysis of the Impact of Covid-19 in this report Digital Space Solution industry.

Get a Free Sample Copy @ https://www.reportsandmarkets.com/sample-request/global-digital-space-solution-market-size-status-and-forecast-2019-2025?utm_source=coleofduty&utm_medium=36

Digital Space Solution Market continues to evolve and expand in terms of the number of companies, products, and applications that illustrates the growth perspectives. The report also covers the list of Product range and Applications with SWOT analysis, CAGR value, further adding the essential business analytics. Digital Space Solution Market research analysis identifies the latest trends and primary factors responsible for market growth enabling the Organizations to flourish with much exposure to the markets.

Market Segment by Regions, regional analysis covers

North America (United States, Canada and Mexico)

Europe (Germany, France, UK, Russia and Italy)

Asia-Pacific (China, Japan, Korea, India and Southeast Asia)

South America (Brazil, Argentina, Colombia etc.)

Middle East and Africa (Saudi Arabia, UAE, Egypt, Nigeria and South Africa)

Research objectives:

To study and analyze the global Digital Space Solution market size by key regions/countries, product type and application, history data from 2013 to 2017, and forecast to 2026.

To understand the structure of Digital Space Solution market by identifying its various sub segments.

Focuses on the key global Digital Space Solution players, to define, describe and analyze the value, market share, market competition landscape, SWOT analysis and development plans in next few years.

To analyze the Digital Space Solution with respect to individual growth trends, future prospects, and their contribution to the total market.

To share detailed information about the key factors influencing the growth of the market (growth potential, opportunities, drivers, industry-specific challenges and risks).

To project the size of Digital Space Solution submarkets, with respect to key regions (along with their respective key countries).

To analyze competitive developments such as expansions, agreements, new product launches and acquisitions in the market.

To strategically profile the key players and comprehensively analyze their growth strategies.

The Digital Space Solution Market research report completely covers the vital statistics of the capacity, production, value, cost/profit, supply/demand import/export, further divided by company and country, and by application/type for best possible updated data representation in the figures, tables, pie chart, and graphs. These data representations provide predictive data regarding the future estimations for convincing market growth. The detailed and comprehensive knowledge about our publishers makes us out of the box in case of market analysis.

Table of Contents: Digital Space Solution Market

Chapter 1: Overview of Digital Space Solution Market

Chapter 2: Global Market Status and Forecast by Regions

Chapter 3: Global Market Status and Forecast by Types

Chapter 4: Global Market Status and Forecast by Downstream Industry

Chapter 5: Market Driving Factor Analysis

Chapter 6: Market Competition Status by Major Manufacturers

Chapter 7: Major Manufacturers Introduction and Market Data

Chapter 8: Upstream and Downstream Market Analysis

Chapter 9: Cost and Gross Margin Analysis

Chapter 10: Marketing Status Analysis

Chapter 11: Market Report Conclusion

Chapter 12: Research Methodology and Reference

Key questions answered in this report

What will the market size be in 2026 and what will the growth rate be?

What are the key market trends?

What is driving this market?

What are the challenges to market growth?

Who are the key vendors in this market space?

What are the market opportunities and threats faced by the key vendors?

What are the strengths and weaknesses of the key vendors?

Inquire More about This Report https://www.reportsandmarkets.com/sample-request/global-digital-space-solution-market-size-status-and-forecast-2019-2025?utm_source=coleofduty&utm_medium=36

About Us:

Reports and Markets is not just another company in this domain but is a part of a veteran group called Algoro Research Consultants Pvt. Ltd. It offers premium progressive statistical surveying, market research reports, analysis & forecast data for a wide range of sectors both for the government and private agencies all across the world. The database of the company is updated on a daily basis. Our database contains a variety of industry verticals that include: Food Beverage, Automotive, Chemicals and Energy, IT & Telecom, Consumer, Healthcare, and many more. Each and every report goes through the appropriate research methodology, Checked from the professionals and analysts.

Contact Us:

Sanjay Jain

Manager Partner Relations & International Marketing

http://www.reportsandmarkets.com

Ph: +1-352-353-0818 (US)

See the original post here:
Digital Space Solution Market to Witness Astonishing Growth With The SpaceStation, SpaceDigital, Mediaspace Solutions, Sajha Media Space, Nine...

Posted in Space Station | Comments Off on Digital Space Solution Market to Witness Astonishing Growth With The SpaceStation, SpaceDigital, Mediaspace Solutions, Sajha Media Space, Nine…

Page 1,296«..1020..1,2951,2961,2971,298..1,3101,320..»