Category Archives: Space Station

The Russian cargo spacecraft Progress M-20M, which undocked from the International Space Station on February 3, has ended its free flight and is to be sunk in the unnavigated part of the Pacific Ocean on February 11 around 8 pm MSK.

On board the spacecraft there is about a ton of garbage and decommissioned equipment taken from the ISS. Scientists have not come up with ways of utilizing other types of space debris. However, space debris poses a great threat to satellites and astronauts.

The era of active space exploration began 56 years ago. On October 4, 1957 Soviet scientists launched the first artificial satellite from the Earth. One cannot count how many satellites and piloted missions have been launched since then, each one leaving behind a trace in space - a booster, an apparatus that got out of control or a piece of the spacecraft coating.

Such garbage poses a serious threat, Andrei Ionin, a member of the Russian Tsiolkovsky Academy of Cosmonautics and specialist in space policy, points out.

"One must not be fooled by the fact that the size of most parts of that space debris is not big. Because in space particles move at a great speed and one must take into account relative speeds as well," he says.

There have been several instances when debris approaching the ISS presented a threat to the station. Astronauts then put on their space suits and moved to the Soyuz capsules so that they had an opportunity to start moving towards the Earth if needed. So far the ISS has been lucky.

The coating of the American shuttle spacecraft has been damaged twice. In 2006, a tiny space fragment collided with a satellite in its orbit, as a result of which residents of the Far East were left without a TV signal for a while. Taking into account that the planet's technologies are increasingly linked to space, orbital debris can at any moment interrupt the usual course of life for any of us, Igor Marynyn, editor-in-chief of the News of Cosmonautics magazine, notes.

"Currently neither Russia nor any other country has any reasonable solution as to how to clean the space debris. Some propose to use a net. It is an absolutely unrealistic project. Because all the debris fly in different directions at speed of 10-12 km per second. That is faster that a bullet. It is impossible to catch such debris with a net. Some propose to use a magnet. That is also unrealistic as most metals satellites are made of are not influenced by a magnetic field as they are made of duralumin," Marynyn adds.

There have been fantasy ideas to burn the debris with a laser beam from the Earth or launch a cleaning robot into space. But so far the only effective solution is to clean after yourself. For example, a booster block that launches satellites from a low orbit into a high one as a rule is left drifting in space.

If their design includes more fuel and an opportunity of control, then at a certain moment the booster can be sent back into the atmosphere to be burned down. But that makes the project more expensive, that is why not everyone likes that idea, the expert Igor Marynyn asserts.

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Space junk endangers mankind's usual course of life

Scythe Plays Starbound -S2E007- That #39;s No Space Station w/ FaceCam-ish [Let #39;s Play Walkthrough]
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Beyond the Rainbow on the International Space Station: Megan Harvey at TEDxSpenceSchool
In the spirit of ideas worth spreading, TEDx is a program of local, self-organized events that bring people together to share a TED-like experience. At a TED...

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Beyond the Rainbow on the International Space Station: Megan Harvey at TEDxSpenceSchool - Video

Sochi Olympic Park Viewed From the International Space Station at Night
An Expedition 38 crew member aboard the International Space Station took this photograph of Sochi Olympic Park at night. Fisht Olympic Stadium and the flame ...

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Sochi Olympic Park Viewed From the International Space Station at Night - Video

CU-Boulder #39;s Ants In Space
Ever wonder how ants would do on the International Space Station, which is whipping around in weightlessness 200 miles over our heads at a mind-blowing 17,00...

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CU-Boulder's Ants In Space - Video

Sochi #39;s Olympic Flame Seen From the International Space Station #W1TV
Ok! Putin, that is big: Sochi #39;s Olympic flame is visible from space - What say you, judges? An Expedition 38 crew member aboard the International Space Stati...

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Space Engineers - Gameplay - Best Space Station
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Space Engineers - Gameplay - Best Space Station - Video

April Flowers for redOrbit.com Your Universe Online

The world can change in a decade, as we well know. The same is true in space. Over the last ten years, the International Space Station (ISS) has been producing results at an extraordinary rate. The unique capabilities of this under-appreciated laboratory have resulted in:

The development of a precision robotic arm that aids in the removal of tumors from the human brain.

The ability to start a fire without flames an anti-intuitive technology that has applications in super-efficient auto engines.

The counting of hundreds of thousands of anti-matter particles among normal cosmic rays, which supports the theory of dark matter.

Atoms have been gathered into exotic forms, creating the building blocks of future smart materials.

These are just a few of the nearly miraculous advances that have been made over the last ten years, and NASA has just announced that the ISS mission has been extended another ten years.

The accomplishments of the past 10 years are remarkableespecially considering that the space station was still under construction. Julie Robinson, program scientist for the ISS, told Science@NASAs Dr. Tony Phillips. Now that the station is finished, weve been granted at least 10 more.

As redOrbit reported in January, the Obama Administration announced an extension of the ISS that will last until at least 2024, allowing extra time for NASA and the other participating space agencies to pursue important goals.

One of those goals is long-duration travel through deep space, and the ISS is vital. That may sound ironic given that the space station never leaves Earth orbit, says Robinson, but we have determined that research on station is necessary to mitigate 21 of 32 known human-health risks associated with long duration space missions. The road to Mars leads through the ISS.

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Looking Forward To Another 10 Years of Science On Board The International Space Station

Discoveries, Applications and Opportunities Organized by the American Astronautical Society with the support of the Center for the Advancement of Science in Space (CASIS) and NASA Hyatt Regency McCormick Place Chicago, Illinois

The annual International Space Station (ISS) Research and Development Conference will be held June 17-19, 2014, at the Hyatt Regency McCormick Place in Chicago. Abstracts and poster proposals are solicited under the categories of Discoveries in Microgravity Science; Discoveries in Space Science, Earth Science, Engineering and Education; Applications Benefiting Earth; Applications Enabling Exploration; Applications in Technology; Commercial Applications; and Opportunities. Topics should relate to science, exploration and technology activities (past, present, planned or under development) on the International Space Station.

One of NASAs top strategic goals is to sustain the operation and full use of the International Space Station and expand efforts to utilize the ISS as a National Laboratory for scientific, technological, diplomatic and educational purposes and for supporting future objectives in human space exploration (2011 NASA Strategic Plan).

NASAs International Space Station websitehttp://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/research/experiments_category.html

Biology and Biotechnology: In microgravity, controls on the directionality and geometry of cell and tissue growth can be dramatically different to those on Earth. Various experiments have used the culture of cells, tissues and small organisms on orbit as a tool to increase our understanding of biological processes in microgravity.

Earth and Space Science: The presence of the space station in low-Earth orbit provides a unique vantage point for collecting Earth and space science data. From an average altitude of about 400 km, details in such features as glaciers, agricultural fields, cities, and coral reefs taken from the ISS can be layered with other sources of data, such as orbiting satellites, to compile the most comprehensive information available.

Educational Activities: The space station provides a unique platform for inspiring students to excel in mathematics and science. Station educational activities have had a positive impact on thousands of students by involving them in station research, and by using the station to teach them the science and engineering that are behind space exploration.

Human Research: The space station is being used to study the risks to human health that are inherent in space exploration. Focal research questions address the mechanisms of the risks and develop test countermeasures to reduce these risks. Research on space station addresses the major risks to human health from residence in a long-duration microgravity environment. Results from this research are key enablers for future long-duration missions beyond low Earth orbit.

Physical Sciences: The space station provides the only place to study long-term physical effects in the absence of gravity. This unique microgravity environment allows different physical properties to dominate systems, and these have been harnessed for a wide variety of physical sciences.

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3rd Annual International Space Station Research & Development Conference Abstract Deadline Extended

The International Space Station streaks through the night sky over Pisa, Italy, as the bright blue Pleiades star cluster glitters in the background in this amazing photo recently submitted to Space.com.

Amateur astronomer Giuseppe Petricca took this image of thePleiades star cluster, which is also known as M45. It is an open star cluster formed about 100 million years ago and its brightest stars glow a hot blue color. Scientists estimate the young, recently formed stars in the cluster will burn out quickly, likely in the next 200 million years.

"It's always a waypoint in the winter skies, opening the way from Perseus to Orion," photographer Petricca said of Pleiades in an email to Space.com. "But, yesterday, above Pisa, Italy, the International Space Station made a beautiful passage, and it crossed next to the cluster." [See more amazing February night sky photos by stargazers]

The Pleiades clusteris a group of 800 stars located in the constellation Taurus, about 410 light-years from Earth. A light-year is the distance light travels in one year, or about 6 trillion miles (10 trillion kilometers).

To see more amazing night sky photos submitted by Space.com readers, visit ourastrophotography archive.

Editor's note:If you have an amazingnight skyphoto you'd like to share for a possible story or image gallery, please contact managing editor Tariq Malik atspacephotos@space.com.

Follow Space.com on Twitter@Spacedotcom. We're also onFacebook&Google+. Original story on Space.com.

Star Quiz: Test Your Stellar Smarts

Though they look serene and silent from our vantage on Earth, stars are actually roiling balls of violent plasma. Test your stellar smarts with this quiz.

0 of 10 questions complete

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Space Station Streaks Across Pleiades Star Cluster in Striking Amateur Photo