Living in space
A science laboratory 360 kilometres from Earth?
A preparation for a flight to Mars?
A cathedral in the sky?
The International Space Station, or ISS, is all of these.
At this very moment, the ISS is orbiting the Earth at
a distance of 360 kilometres. It is flying at 28,000 km/hr
(kilometres per hour). It goes round the Earth 16 times
a day. It took more than $100 billion and 14 years to
develop. It is the most expensive thing ever built.
The station
The first part of the station went into space in 1998.
Astronauts started to live on it in November 2000. There are
usually three astronauts on board, and they stay for about
six months at a time. Over the years there have been over
200 visitors from 15 different countries. Supply ships arrive
about eight times a year
Aims
Space agencies in the United States, Russia, Japan,
Canada, and Europe are working together. They are
using the zero gravity of space to do experiments in
biology, physics, and astronomy. They are learning about
living in space over a long time, and the effects of this on
the human body. The astronauts are growing plants to
make oxygen. They are studying the Earth’s weather and
geography. And they are looking at planets and stars to
understand the origin of the universe.
An astronaut’s day
Astronauts work for ten hours a day during the week
and five hours on Saturday. The rest of the time they
are free.
They wake up at 6.00 and have breakfast. There is
a meeting, and they decide the day’s plans. They have
an hour for lunch, then more work till dinner at 7.00.
Lights out is at 9.30. They do two hours’ exercise every
day, because weightlessness affects the body’s muscles
and bones.
Food
There isn’t a real kitchen, but there is a kitchen table.
All food comes in tins or packets. There is fresh fruit only
when a supply ship comes.
Astronauts eat with a spoon. It is a good idea to have
food with a sauce so that it stays on the spoon and
doesn’t float away! They like spicy food because in space
the sense of taste isn’t very strong.
Personal lives
They have their own sleeping compartment. They
sleep in bags attached to the wall. Because there is
no up or down in space, they sleep ‘standing up’. They
have their own clothes and books and laptops. The
temperature is always 72°F, so astronauts usually wear
shorts and a T-shirt.
There isn’t a shower, but there are two toilets. In their
free time they send emails home, read, and play games.
But what they like to do best is look out of the windows
at Earth below.
Future of the ISS
The ISS is the first of many space stations. There isn’t
a date yet for a manned trip to Mars, but space agencies
are already talking about it. One thing is sure – at some
time in the 21st century it will certainly happen
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