International Space Station(ISS)

International Space Station(ISS),a $100 billion research laboratory, flies about 260 miles (about 420 km) above Earth. It has been permanently staffed by rotating crews of astronauts and cosmonauts since November 2000.

The International Space Station (ISS) is a Space Station or a Habitable Artifical Satellite in low Earth Orbit

It is a modular structure whose first component was launched in 1998

Now the largest artificial body in orbit, it can often be seen at the appropriate time with the naked eye from Earth

ISS components have been launched by American Space Shuttles as well as Russian Proton and Soyuz Rockets

The ISS serves as a Microgravity and Space Environment Research laboratory in which crew members conduct experiments in  -

• Biology
• Human Biology
• Physics
• Astronomy Meteorology and
• Other fields

Since the arrival of Expedition 1 on Nov 02, 2000, the station has been continuously occupied for 13 years and 128 days, the longest continuous human presence in space

ISS has been visited by astronauts and cosmonauts from 15 countries

After the U.S. Space Shuttle program ended in 2011, Soyuz rockets became the only provider of transport for astronauts at the International Space Station

The ISS programme is a joint project among 5 participating space agencies -

• National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)of USA
• Russian Federal Space Agency, commonly called Roscosmos
• Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency(JAXA)
• European Space Agency (ESA)an intergovernmental organization of 20 member states
  
• Canadian Space Agency (CSA)

 The ownership and use of the space station is established by intergovernmental treaties and agreements

The ISS is divided into two sections -

• Russian Orbital Segment(ROS) and
• US Orbital Segment(USOS)

which is shared by many nations

The ISS is funded until 2024, and may operate until 2028