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The International Space Station, ISS (eng. International Space Station, ISS) is a manned multi-purpose space research complex.

The following are involved in the creation of the ISS: Russia (Federal Space Agency, Roskosmos); United States (US National Aerospace Agency, NASA); Japan (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, JAXA), 18 European countries (European Space Agency, ESA); Canada (Canadian Space Agency, CSA), Brazil (Brazilian Space Agency, AEB).

Start of construction - 1998.

The first module is "Dawn".

Completion of construction (presumably) - 2012.

The end date of the ISS is (presumably) 2020.

Orbit height - 350-460 kilometers from the Earth.

Orbital inclination - 51.6 degrees.

The ISS makes 16 revolutions per day.

The weight of the station (at the time of completion of construction) is 400 tons (for 2009 - 300 tons).

Internal space (at the time of completion of construction) - 1.2 thousand cubic meters.

Length (along the main axis along which the main modules lined up) is 44.5 meters.

Height - almost 27.5 meters.

Width (on solar panels) - more than 73 meters.

The first space tourists visited the ISS (sent by Roscosmos together with Space Adventures).

In 2007, the flight of the first Malaysian cosmonaut, Sheikh Muszaphar Shukor, was organized.

The cost of building the ISS by 2009 amounted to $100 billion.

Flight control:

the Russian segment is carried out from TsUP-M (TsUP-Moscow, the city of Korolev, Russia);

the American segment - from MCC-X (MCC-Houston, the city of Houston, USA).

The work of the laboratory modules included in the ISS is controlled by:

European "Columbus" - Control Center of the European Space Agency (Oberpfaffenhofen, Germany);

Japanese "Kibo" - MCC of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (Tsukuba, Japan).

The flight of the European automatic cargo spacecraft ATV Jules Verne, intended for supplying the ISS, was controlled jointly with MCC-M and MCC-X by the Center of the European Space Agency (Toulouse, France).

Technical coordination of work on the Russian Segment of the ISS and its integration with the American Segment is carried out by the Council of Chief Designers under the leadership of the President, General Designer of RSC Energia named after V.I. S.P. Korolev, academician of the Russian Academy of Sciences Yu.P. Semenov.
The Interstate Commission for Flight Support and Operation of Manned Orbital Systems is in charge of preparing and conducting the launch of elements of the ISS Russian Segment.

According to the existing international agreement, each project participant owns its segments on the ISS.

The leading organization for the creation of the Russian segment and its integration with the American segment is RSC Energia im. S.P. Queen, and in the American segment - the company "Boeing" ("Boeing").

About 200 organizations take part in the manufacture of elements of the Russian segment, including: the Russian Academy of Sciences; plant of experimental engineering RSC "Energia" them. S.P. Queen; rocket and space plant GKNPTs them. M.V. Khrunichev; GNP RCC "TsSKB-Progress"; Design Bureau of General Engineering; RNII of space instrumentation; Research Institute of Precision Instruments; RGNI TsPK im. Yu.A. Gagarin.

Russian segment: Zvezda service module; functional cargo block "Zarya"; docking compartment "Pirce".

American segment: node module "Unity" ("Unity"); gateway module "Quest" ("Quest"); laboratory module "Destiny" ("Destiny").

Canada has created a manipulator for the ISS on the LAB module - a 17.6-meter robot arm "Canadarm" ("Canadarm").

Italy supplies the ISS with the so-called Multi-Purpose Logistics Modules (MPLM). By 2009, three of them were made: "Leonardo", "Raffaello", "Donatello" ("Leonardo", "Raffaello", "Donatello"). These are large cylinders (6.4 x 4.6 meters) with a docking station. The empty logistics module weighs 4.5 tons and can be loaded with up to 10 tons of experimental equipment and consumables.

The delivery of people to the station is provided by Russian Soyuz and American shuttles (reusable shuttles); cargo is delivered by Russian "Progress" and American shuttles.

Japan created its first scientific orbital laboratory, which became the largest module of the ISS - "Kibo" (translated from Japanese as "Hope", the international abbreviation is JEM, Japanese Experiment Module).

By order of the European Space Agency, a consortium of European aerospace firms made the Columbus research module. It is intended for conducting physical, material science, biomedical and other experiments in the absence of gravity. By order of ESA, the Harmony module was made, which connects the Kibo and Columbus modules, as well as provides their power supply and data exchange.

Additional modules and devices were also made on the ISS: a module for the root segment and gyrodins at node-1 (Node 1); power module (section SB AS) on Z1; mobile service system; device for moving equipment and crew; device "B" of the equipment and crew movement system; trusses S0, S1, P1, P3/P4, P5, S3/S4, S5, S6.

All ISS laboratory modules have standardized racks for mounting units with experimental equipment. Over time, the ISS will acquire new nodes and modules: the Russian segment should be replenished with a scientific and energy platform, a multipurpose research module "Enterprise" ("Enterprise") and the second functional cargo block (FGB-2). On the Node 3 module, the "Cupola" assembly built in Italy will be mounted. This is a dome with a number of very large windows through which the inhabitants of the station, like in a theater, will be able to observe the arrival of ships and control the work of their colleagues in outer space.

History of the creation of the ISS

Work on the International Space Station began in 1993.

Russia offered the US to join forces in the implementation of manned programs. By that time, Russia had a 25-year history of operation of the Salyut and Mir orbital stations, as well as invaluable experience in conducting long-term flights, research, and a developed space infrastructure. But by 1991, the country was in a difficult economic situation. At the same time, the creators of the Freedom orbital station (USA) also experienced financial difficulties.

On March 15, 1993, the general director of the Roscosmos agency, Yu.N. Koptev and General Designer of NPO Energia Yu.P. Semenov approached the head of NASA, Goldin, with a proposal to create the International Space Station.

On September 2, 1993, Prime Minister of the Russian Federation Viktor Chernomyrdin and US Vice President Al Gore signed the "Joint Statement on Cooperation in Space", which provided for the creation of a joint station. On November 1, 1993, the "Detailed work plan for the International Space Station" was signed, and in June 1994, a contract between NASA and Roscosmos "On supplies and services for the Mir station and the International Space Station" was signed.

The initial stage of construction provides for the creation of a functionally complete plant structure from a limited number of modules. The first to be launched into orbit by the Proton-K launch vehicle was the Zarya functional cargo block (1998), made in Russia. The shuttle was delivered by the second ship and docked with the functional cargo block the American docking module Node-1 - "Unity" (December 1998). The third was the Russian service module Zvezda (2000), which provides station control, life support for the crew, station orientation and orbit correction. The fourth is the American laboratory module "Destiny" (2001).

The first prime crew of the ISS, who arrived at the station on November 2, 2000 on the Soyuz TM-31 spacecraft: William Shepherd (USA), ISS commander, flight engineer-2 of the Soyuz-TM-31 spacecraft; Sergey Krikalev (Russia), Soyuz-TM-31 flight engineer; Yuri Gidzenko (Russia), ISS pilot, Soyuz TM-31 spacecraft commander.

The duration of the flight of the ISS-1 crew was about four months. Its return to Earth was carried out by the American Space Shuttle, which delivered the crew of the second main expedition to the ISS. The Soyuz TM-31 spacecraft remained a part of the ISS for half a year and served as a rescue ship for the crew working on board.

In 2001, the P6 power module was installed on the Z1 root segment, the Destiny laboratory module, the Quest airlock, the Pirs docking compartment, two cargo telescopic booms, and a remote manipulator were delivered into orbit. In 2002, the station was replenished with three truss structures (S0, S1, P6), two of which are equipped with transport devices for moving the remote manipulator and astronauts while working in outer space.

The construction of the ISS was suspended due to the crash of the American spacecraft Columbia on February 1, 2003, and in 2006 construction work was resumed.

In 2001 and twice in 2007, computers failed in the Russian and American segments. In 2006, smoke occurred in the Russian segment of the station. In the fall of 2007, the station crew carried out repair work on the solar battery.

New sections of solar panels were delivered to the station. At the end of 2007, the ISS was replenished with two pressurized modules. In October, the Discovery shuttle STS-120 brought the Harmony Node-2 connection module into orbit, which became the main berth for the shuttles.

The European laboratory module Columbus was put into orbit on the Atlantis spacecraft STS-122 and, with the help of the manipulator of this spacecraft, was put into its regular place (February 2008). Then the Japanese Kibo module was introduced into the ISS (June 2008), its first element was delivered to the ISS by the Endeavor shuttle STS-123 (March 2008).

Prospects for the ISS

According to some pessimistic experts, the ISS is a waste of time and money. They believe that the station has not yet been built, but is already outdated.

However, in the implementation of a long-term program of space flights to the Moon or Mars, mankind cannot do without the ISS.

Since 2009, the permanent crew of the ISS will be increased to 9 people, and the number of experiments will increase. Russia has planned to conduct 331 experiments on the ISS in the coming years. The European Space Agency (ESA) and its partners have already built a new transport ship - the Automated Transfer Vehicle (ATV), which will be launched into the base orbit (300 kilometers high) by the Ariane-5 ES ATV rocket, from where the ATV will go into orbit due to its engines ISS (400 kilometers above the Earth). The payload of this automatic ship with a length of 10.3 meters and a diameter of 4.5 meters is 7.5 tons. This will include experimental equipment, food, air and water for the ISS crew. The first of the ATV series (September 2008) was named "Jules Verne". After docking with the ISS in automatic mode, the ATV can work in its composition for six months, after which the ship is loaded with garbage and flooded in the Pacific Ocean in a controlled mode. It is planned to launch ATVs once a year, and at least 7 of them will be built in total. The Japanese H-II "Transfer Vehicle" (HTV) automatic truck, launched into orbit by the Japanese H-IIB launch vehicle, which is still being developed, will join the ISS program. . The total weight of the HTV will be 16.5 tons, of which 6 tons is the payload for the station. It will be able to stay docked to the ISS for up to one month.

Obsolete shuttles will be decommissioned in 2010, and the new generation will appear no earlier than 2014-2015.
By 2010, the Russian manned Soyuz will be modernized: first of all, they will replace the electronic control and communication systems, which will increase the ship's payload by reducing the weight of electronic equipment. The updated "Union" will be able to be part of the station for almost a year. The Russian side will build the Clipper spacecraft (according to the plan, the first test manned flight into orbit is in 2014, commissioning is in 2016). This six-seater reusable winged shuttle is conceived in two versions: with an aggregate-household compartment (ABO) or an engine compartment (DO). The Clipper, which has risen into space to a relatively low orbit, will be followed by the interorbital tug Parom. Ferry is a new development designed to replace the cargo Progresses over time. This tug should pull from the low reference orbit to the ISS orbit the so-called "containers", cargo "barrels" with a minimum of equipment (4-13 tons of cargo), launched into space with the help of Soyuz or Proton. The "Parom" has two docking stations: one for the container, the second - for mooring to the ISS. After the container is put into orbit, the ferry, due to its propulsion system, descends to it, docks with it and lifts it to the ISS. And after unloading the container, "Parom" lowers it into a lower orbit, where it undocks and slows down on its own to burn up in the atmosphere. The tug will have to wait for a new container to deliver it to the ISS.

RSC Energia official website: http://www.energia.ru/rus/iss/iss.html

The official website of the Boeing Corporation (Boeing): http://www.boeing.com

Mission Control Center official website: http://www.mcc.rsa.ru

Official website of the US National Aerospace Agency (NASA): http://www.nasa.gov

Official website of the European Space Agency (ESA): http://www.esa.int/esaCP/index.html

Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) official website: http://www.jaxa.jp/index_e.html

Official website of the Canadian Space Agency (CSA): http://www.space.gc.ca/index.html

Official website of the Brazilian Space Agency (AEB):

The International Space Station (ISS), the successor to the Soviet station Mir, is celebrating its 10th anniversary since its inception. The agreement on the creation of the ISS was signed on January 29, 1998 in Washington by representatives of Canada, the governments of the member states of the European Space Agency (ESA), Japan, Russia and the United States.

Work on the International Space Station began in 1993 .

March 15, 1993 Director General of the RCA Yu.N. Koptev and General Designer of NPO "ENERGIA" Yu.P. Semenov approached the head of NASA, D. Goldin, with a proposal to create the International Space Station.

On September 2, 1993, the Chairman of the Government of the Russian Federation V.S. Chernomyrdin and US Vice President A. Gore signed a "Joint Statement on Cooperation in Space", which, among other things, provides for the creation of a joint station. In its development, RSA and NASA developed and on November 1, 1993 signed the "Detailed Work Plan for the International Space Station". This made it possible in June 1994 to sign a contract between NASA and RSA "On supplies and services for the Mir station and the International Space Station."

Taking into account certain changes at the joint meetings of the Russian and American sides in 1994, the ISS had the following structure and organization of work:

In addition to Russia and the USA, Canada, Japan and the countries of European cooperation are participating in the creation of the station;

The station will consist of 2 integrated segments (Russian and American) and will be gradually assembled in orbit from separate modules.

The construction of the ISS in near-Earth orbit began on November 20, 1998 with the launch of the Zarya functional cargo block.
Already on December 7, 1998, the American Unity connecting module, delivered into orbit by the Endeavor shuttle, was docked to it.

On December 10, hatches to the new station were opened for the first time. The first to enter it were Russian cosmonaut Sergei Krikalev and American astronaut Robert Cabana.

On July 26, 2000, the Zvezda service module was introduced into the ISS, which at the station deployment stage became its base unit, the main place for the life and work of the crew.

In November 2000, the crew of the first long-term expedition arrived at the ISS: William Shepherd (commander), Yuri Gidzenko (pilot) and Sergey Krikalev (flight engineer). Since then, the station has been permanently inhabited.

During the deployment of the station, 15 main expeditions and 13 visiting expeditions visited the ISS. Currently, the station is home to the crew of Expedition 16 - the first American woman commander of the ISS, Peggy Whitson, ISS flight engineers Russian Yuri Malenchenko and American Daniel Tani.

Under a separate agreement with ESA, six flights of European astronauts were carried out to the ISS: Claudie Haignere (France) - in 2001, Roberto Vittori (Italy) - in 2002 and 2005, Frank de Winne (Belgium) - in 2002, Pedro Duque (Spain) - in 2003, Andre Kuipers (Netherlands) - in 2004.

A new page in the commercial use of space was opened after the flights to the Russian segment of the ISS of the first space tourists - American Denis Tito (in 2001) and South African Mark Shuttleworth (in 2002). For the first time non-professional astronauts visited the station.

Work on the International Space Station began in 1993 .

Taking into account certain changes at the joint meetings of the Russian and American sides in 1994, the ISS had the following structure and organization of work:

In addition to Russia and the USA, Canada, Japan and the countries of European cooperation are participating in the creation of the station;

The station will consist of 2 integrated segments (Russian and American) and will be gradually assembled in orbit from separate modules.

On December 10, hatches to the new station were opened for the first time. The first to enter it were Russian cosmonaut Sergei Krikalev and American astronaut Robert Cabana.

On July 26, 2000, the Zvezda service module was introduced into the ISS, which at the station deployment stage became its base unit, the main place for the life and work of the crew.

The International Space Station is the result of the joint work of specialists from a number of fields from sixteen countries of the world (Russia, the USA, Canada, Japan, the states that are members of the European community). The grandiose project, which in 2013 celebrated the fifteenth anniversary of the start of its implementation, embodies all the achievements of the technical thought of our time. An impressive part of the material about the near and far space and some terrestrial phenomena and processes of scientists is provided by the international space station. The ISS, however, was not built in one day; its creation was preceded by almost thirty years of astronautical history.

How it all began

The predecessors of the ISS were Soviet technicians and engineers. Work on the Almaz project began at the end of 1964. Scientists were working on a manned orbital station, which could accommodate 2-3 astronauts. It was assumed that "Diamond" will serve for two years and all this time will be used for research. According to the project, the main part of the complex was the OPS - manned orbital station. It housed the working areas of the crew members, as well as the household compartment. The OPS was equipped with two hatches for spacewalks and dropping special capsules with information to Earth, as well as a passive docking station.

The efficiency of the station is largely determined by its energy reserves. The developers of Almaz found a way to increase them many times over. The delivery of astronauts and various cargo to the station was carried out by transport supply ships (TKS). They, among other things, were equipped with an active docking system, a powerful energy resource, and an excellent traffic control system. TKS was able to supply the station with energy for a long time, as well as manage the entire complex. All subsequent similar projects, including the international space station, were created using the same method of saving OPS resources.

First

Rivalry with the United States forced Soviet scientists and engineers to work as quickly as possible, so another orbital station, Salyut, was created in the shortest possible time. She was taken into space in April 1971. The basis of the station is the so-called working compartment, which includes two cylinders, small and large. Inside the smaller diameter there was a control center, sleeping places and recreation areas, storage and eating. The larger cylinder contained scientific equipment, simulators, which no such flight can do without, as well as a shower cabin and a toilet isolated from the rest of the room.

Each next Salyut was somehow different from the previous one: it was equipped with the latest equipment, had design features that corresponded to the development of technology and knowledge of that time. These orbital stations marked the beginning of a new era in the study of space and terrestrial processes. "Salutes" were the base on which a large amount of research was carried out in the field of medicine, physics, industry and agriculture. It is also difficult to overestimate the experience of using the orbital station, which was successfully applied during the operation of the next manned complex.

"World"

The process of accumulating experience and knowledge was a long one, the result of which was the international space station. "Mir" - a modular manned complex - its next stage. The so-called block principle of creating a station was tested on it, when for some time the main part of it increases its technical and research power through the addition of new modules. It will subsequently be “borrowed” by the international space station. Mir became a model of our country's technical and engineering prowess and actually provided it with one of the leading roles in the creation of the ISS.

Work on the construction of the station began in 1979, and it was delivered into orbit on February 20, 1986. During the entire existence of the Mir, various studies were carried out on it. The necessary equipment was delivered as part of additional modules. The Mir station allowed scientists, engineers and researchers to gain invaluable experience in using this scale. In addition, it has become a place of peaceful international interaction: in 1992, an Agreement on Cooperation in Space was signed between Russia and the United States. It actually began to be implemented in 1995, when the American Shuttle went to the Mir station.

Completion of the flight

The Mir station has become the site of a variety of studies. Here they analyzed, refined and opened data in the field of biology and astrophysics, space technology and medicine, geophysics and biotechnology.

The station ended its existence in 2001. The reason for the decision to flood it was the development of an energy resource, as well as some accidents. Various versions of the object's rescue were put forward, but they were not accepted, and in March 2001 the Mir station was submerged in the waters of the Pacific Ocean.

Creation of the international space station: preparatory stage

The idea of creating the ISS arose at a time when no one had yet thought of flooding the Mir. The indirect reason for the emergence of the station was the political and financial crisis in our country and economic problems in the United States. Both powers realized their inability to cope alone with the task of creating an orbital station. In the early nineties, a cooperation agreement was signed, one of the points of which was the international space station. The ISS as a project united not only Russia and the United States, but also, as already noted, fourteen more countries. Simultaneously with the selection of participants, the approval of the ISS project took place: the station will consist of two integrated units, American and Russian, and will be completed in orbit in a modular way similar to Mir.

"Dawn"

The first international space station began its existence in orbit in 1998. On November 20, with the help of a Proton rocket, a Russian-made functional cargo block Zarya was launched. It became the first segment of the ISS. Structurally, it was similar to some of the modules of the Mir station. It is interesting that the American side proposed to build the ISS directly in orbit, and only the experience of Russian colleagues and the example of Mir persuaded them towards the modular method.

Inside, Zarya is equipped with various instruments and equipment, docking, power supply, and control. An impressive amount of equipment, including fuel tanks, radiators, cameras and solar panels, is located on the outside of the module. All external elements are protected from meteorites by special screens.

Module by module

On December 5, 1998, the Endeavor shuttle with the American Unity docking module headed for Zarya. Two days later, the Unity was docked to the Zarya. Further, the international space station “acquired” the Zvezda service module, which was also manufactured in Russia. Zvezda was a modernized base unit of the Mir station.

The docking of the new module took place on July 26, 2000. From that moment on, Zvezda took over control of the ISS, as well as all life support systems, and it became possible for the cosmonaut team to stay permanently on the station.

Transition to manned mode

The first crew of the International Space Station was delivered by Soyuz TM-31 on November 2, 2000. It included V. Shepherd - the expedition commander, Yu. Gidzenko - the pilot, - the flight engineer. From that moment, a new stage in the operation of the station began: it switched to a manned mode.

Composition of the second expedition: James Voss and Susan Helms. She changed her first crew in early March 2001.

and earthly phenomena

The International Space Station is a venue for various activities. The task of each crew is, among other things, to collect data on some space processes, study the properties of certain substances under weightless conditions, and so on. Scientific research carried out on the ISS can be presented in the form of a generalized list:

observation of various remote space objects;
study of cosmic rays;
observation of the Earth, including the study of atmospheric phenomena;
study of the features of physical and bioprocesses under weightlessness;
testing of new materials and technologies in outer space;
medical research, including the creation of new drugs, testing of diagnostic methods in weightlessness;
production of semiconductor materials.

Future

Like any other object subjected to such a heavy load and so intensively exploited, the ISS will sooner or later cease to function at the required level. Initially, it was assumed that its “shelf life” would end in 2016, that is, the station was given only 15 years. However, already from the first months of its operation, assumptions began to sound that this period was somewhat underestimated. Today, hopes are expressed that the international space station will operate until 2020. Then, probably, the same fate awaits her as the Mir station: the ISS will be flooded in the waters of the Pacific Ocean.

Today, the international space station, the photo of which is presented in the article, successfully continues to orbit around our planet. From time to time in the media you can find references to new research done on board the station. The ISS is also the only object of space tourism: only at the end of 2012 it was visited by eight amateur astronauts.

It can be assumed that this type of entertainment will only gain strength, since the Earth from space is a bewitching view. And no photograph can be compared with the opportunity to contemplate such beauty from the window of the international space station.

2014-09-11. NASA has announced plans to launch six installations into orbit that will regularly monitor the earth's surface. The Americans intend to send these devices to the International Space Station (ISS) by the end of the second decade of the 21st century. According to experts, the most modern equipment will be installed on them. According to scientists, the location of the ISS in orbit offers great advantages for observing the planet. The first installation, ISS-RapidScat, will be sent to the ISS with the help of private company SpaceX no earlier than September 19, 2014. The sensor is going to be installed on the outside of the station. It is intended for monitoring ocean winds, forecasting weather and hurricanes. ISS-RapidScat was built by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California. The second instrument, CATS (Cloud-Aerosol Transport System), is a laser instrument that is designed to observe clouds and measure the content of aerosols, smoke, dust and pollutants in them. These data are necessary to understand how human activity (primarily the burning of hydrocarbons) affects the environment. It is expected that it will be sent to the ISS by the same company SpaceX in December 2014. CATS was assembled at the Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland. The launches of ISS-RapidScat and CATS, along with the launch of the Orbiting Carbon Observatory-2 probe into orbit in July 2014, designed to study the carbon content in the planet's atmosphere, make 2014 the busiest year in the NASA Earth research program in the last ten years. The agency is going to send two other installations to the ISS by 2016. One of them, SAGE III (Stratospheric Aerosol and Gas Experiment III), will measure the content of aerosols, ozone, water vapor and other compounds in the upper atmosphere. This is necessary to control the processes of global warming, in particular, the ozone holes above the Earth. The SAGE III instrument was developed at NASA's Langley Research Center in the Hamptons, Virginia and assembled by Ball Aerospace in Boulder, Colorado. Roskosmos took part in the work of the previous SAGE III mission - Meteor-3M. With the help of another device, which will be launched into orbit in 2016, the Lightning Imaging Sensor (LIS) sensor, lightning coordinates will be detected over the tropical and middle latitudes of the globe. The device will communicate with ground services to coordinate their work. The fifth device, GEDI (Global Ecosystem Dynamics Investigation), will use a laser to study forests and make observations on the carbon balance in them. Experts note that the operation of the laser may require large amounts of energy. GEDI was designed by scientists at the University of Maryland at College Park. The sixth device - ECOSTRESS (ECOsystem Spaceborne Thermal Radiometer Experiment on Space Station) - is a thermal imaging spectrometer. The device is designed to study the processes of the water cycle in nature. The device was created by specialists from the Jet Propulsion Laboratory.