What is the International Space Station and which countries are part of it?

Considered one of the greatest feats of space engineering ever built, the International Space Station serves as a laboratory for space studies. Find out everything you need to know.

Year after year, different space agencies, both public and private, send out space missions. Space projects that keep humanity’s adventure in space alive. What is the fate of many of these missions? International Space Station , Or ISS, for its acronym in English: International Space Station.

It is the largest spatial structure of man, It has been in orbit for more than 20 years around our planet, located in 400 km from us. Find out in this article everything you need to know about the International Space Station, the space research giant

How was the International Space Station built?

The idea originated in the 1920s, The fruit of ingenuity and ingenuity Russian scientist Tsiolkovsky. Later, in 1960, NASA He embraced the idea of ​​making this space project a reality one day. the challenge? Put a standard station into orbit.

International astronauts collaborate on maintenance work on the International Space Station.

He had to wait The collapse of the Soviet Union With the improvement of relations between the Russians and Americans, to see far-reaching space cooperation. the fruit of this new collaborative era, And the common sense of thinking big, United States and Russia He decided to adopt Tsiolkovsky’s theory of creation A huge, unique and unprecedented space project. They are aided in their efforts by other space superpowers, such as Canada, Brazil, Japan and France. All of these countries signed an agreement January 29, 1998, That would lay the foundations for the operation and birth of the International Space Station.

In the same year, on November 20, it was Launch of the Russian unit Zarya Construction opened in orbit of the International Space Station. This unit was followed by loneliness, American made. It was necessary to make up to 40 more launches, both Russian and American Bring the whole project into orbit. Now it can be seen from our planet, if you know How do you see the International Space Station?

In the picture we can see an astronaut from the International Space Station observing our planet.

apart from sure Technical problems during spaceflight To and from the International Space Station, which means sometime The sad loss of so many astronauts, The project also found many complications during construction from the same station. Scientists from all over the planet had to collaborate, and to do so they had to overcome cultural, linguistic, and logistical elements. It may seem trivial, but keep in mind that there are many times we find scientists using units of measurement other than the International Metric System. And under the idea of ​​avoiding these problems, it was decided create a co-working space, Digitized, offered to the world Spirit of cooperation and collaboration Scientists and researchers from all over the planet.

Unique and exceptional construction

today, The International Space Station consists of 13 modules. Some beta units are not counted. It weighs up to 400 tons, floats at an altitude of 400 km and moves at an average speed of 27,600 km / h.

The budget was pharaonic, because although there is no exact data on the cost, estimates calculate it Between $115 and $150 million was needed To develop, build and launch the project. The budget was born as a result of joint management, and the total cost of its creation is estimated at between 115 and 150 billion dollars. The International Space Station is jointly managed by five of the world’s leading space agencies: NASA (USA), Roscosmos (Russia), European Space Agency (Europe), JAXA (Japan) and CSA (Canada). With regard to the budget, it is jointly funded by fifteen cooperating countries, among which it is worth highlighting the previous five. generally, Most of the expenses are paid for by NASA And to a lesser extent, Roscosmos.

Pre-training unit for astronauts heading to the International Space Station.

What is the function of the International Space Station?

We’ve grown accustomed to the idea, or image, of these types of space rooms or facilities as refuges for would-be survivors of the apocalypse on Earth. It comes to The relevant influence that science fiction cinema had In our concepts about spatial issues. However, nothing could be further from reality. Function From the International Space Station is completely different, because the International Space Station is in fact The largest space science laboratory in the known universe. On board the station carried out thousands of experiences, that take advantage of microgravity to learn more about space. These experiences are difficult to reproduce on Earth.

Associated with investigations conducted on the International Space Station highly specialized areas Such as physics, chemistry, botany, the behavior of fluids and materials, or astronomy. So, for example, the International Space Station has it aquariums and greenhouses, with intention Study animal behavior in space or crop growth.