The ISS: The Ultimate Group Project

Working with others isn’t always easy. Different people have different opinions and sometimes fights break out. But when we work together, great things are possible! Some of the world’s greatest achievements would have never been possible without the pooled resources and knowledge that a group of people brings to the table. The International Space Station is an example of such a group project. Without this world-wide collaboration, we wouldn’t have gotten as far as we would have individually.

WHAT IS THE INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION

The International Space Station, or ISS for short, is a spacecraft orbiting the Earth right this very minute. Traveling at 17,500 mph, it makes a complete orbit every 90 minutes. Aboard this spacecraft are scientists from countries all over the world that live and work together to learn more about the cosmos and ourselves. Scientists want to not only learn more about the universe, but also about how humans react to the conditions of space, and how these effects can be counteracted.

THE SPACE RACE

Space exploration wasn’t always as collaborative as it is today. Starting in the 1950’s, relations between the Soviet Union, a collection of countries that included Russia, and the United States were very tense. This time period was called the Cold War because there was not any actual fighting. However, both countries exchanged threats that caused high tension between the two superpowers and the threat of warfare was strong. Because of this, there was a lot of competition between the Soviet Union and the US in every arena, including space.

In 1957, the Soviet Union launched a satellite called Sputnik, beating the Americans to launch the first ever satellite. The Americans had attempted to launch a satellite twice before and failed both times. Finally in 1958, the US successfully launched a satellite, this time with a special tool to study high energy rays in space. To continue the work to explore space, the US established a government agency called the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, or NASA, as it is now commonly known.

The competition between the two nations continued; both the Soviet Union and the US wanted to show off their power and capabilities. The next hurdle was to put a person in space. The Soviet Union won, putting a man in space in April 1961, and the US followed the next month. This competition to be the first nation to explore space is commonly referred to as the “space race.”

Despite the space race and the tensions that it brought, space eventually proved itself to be a peacemaker in the relations between the Soviet Union and the US. In 1975, US and Soviet Union astronauts engaged in a now famous handshake in space. This is generally considered to be where the space race ended and the end of the Cold War began. After the dissolvement of the Soviet Union in 1991, Russia offered to merge space stations with the US. The US took this opportunity to put relations with Russia on a good note post-Cold War.

Under President Ronald Regan’s order to NASA, the United States began construction of the ISS in 1998. The Russians sent up a rocket with the Zarya (zar-EE-uh) control module first. The US then sent a rocket called the Endeavor to bring the US Unity node. These two pieces were attached together, thus making the ISS.

In addition to Russia, the US collaborated with Europe, Japan, and Canada to complete this project. The design of the spaceship was modular cylindrical tubes that are connected. The two largest sections of the ISS are the Russian side and the American side. The construction is ongoing, and other countries have contributed to the station. Canada added a crane to move large items around and even catch incoming spacecraft. Japan contributed a large space laboratory with an external section for conducting experiments in the vacuum of space. Europe sent up a module that both functions as a robotics command tower and serves stunning views of Earth below. The ISS truly is an international collaboration amongst nations.

Even in the canteen, the meals are a collaboration between the various countries working in the space station. To keep morale high, each country has contributed important foods from their home. The Japanese Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) invented a rehydratable noodle, and the Italian Space Agency created an espresso machine that works in low gravity. China even created a rehydratable Kung Pao chicken.

COMMERCIAL TRAVEL TO THE SPACE STATION

As space travel becomes more routine, NASA is now looking to collaborate with some new partners: businesses. One of these businesses is SpaceX, a company started by Elon Musk to design and launch rockets and to facilitate space travel.

Until 2020, all flights to the ISS were through government owned spaceships. However, in May 2020, a space shuttle manned and crewed by the private company SpaceX introduced new potential for commercial space travel. The idea of commercial space flights is starting to take off, quite literally.

In 2016, the ISS added an inflatable structure, almost like a bouncy house, to the station. This is opening the potential for space hotels. These are easy to inflate and string together, perfect for temporary housing for space tourists. Though it might seem unsafe to trust a bouncy house to protect you from the elements and vacuum of space, the material these modular structures are made of is a strong Kevlar that can withstand even the harsh environment of space. The opportunity for the general public to go to space is still many years away, but within the next few decades, there might be more opportunities to travel into space.

When the US and Soviet Union weren’t working together, not as much was achieved. Twice the amount of energy was put in to achieve the same results. But collaboration on the International Space Station, along with other nations and now businesses, is proving to push us even farther than we could have individually.