I don’t know about you, but I personally think it is pretty incredible to look up at the sky and know that there are people right at this very second, stationed on the ISS.
If you’re not familiar with the International Space Station, It is described as a space environment laboratory where crew members conduct various experiments that involved physics, meteorology, biology, astronomy, and many other fields.
Because the ISS has a microgravity environment, it allows the crew members to conduct experiments that wouldn’t be possible here on Earth.
If you’d like to learn more about how the ISS came to be, and other purposes that it helps to serve, read on!
Facts About the International Space Station
The ISS Cost a Pretty Penny
Even though the ISS isn’t something most people might have on their mind all that often, it is something that a great deal of money was invested in. It costs more than any other object that has ever been built, to the tune of $120 billion.
You Can Smell Space
Astronauts have noted that there is an obvious “metallic ionization type smell” in the area where pressure between docking crafts and the station is equalized.
More Roomy Than You Might Expect
Think about the square footage of your home, and then consider the square footage of ISS: 43,000 cubic feet. That’s the equivalent of three American sized houses that are about 2000 sq ft inside,7-foot7 foot ceilings.
Can’t Say No to Workouts
If you happened to work on the ISS, you would be required to work out for at least two full hours a day. This is because otherwise, you wouldn’t be able to maintain your health. In zero gravity environments, the human body tends to lose very necessary bone and muscle mass.
Oh So Bright
If you were to look closely enough at the night sky, you might notice the ISS as it is one of the three brightest objects, other than Venus and the moon. It will appear as a fast moving, bright object.
If you want a better chance of seeing it, you can use the Spot the Station service that NASA provides that will alert you when the ISS is passing over your area.
Five Miles Per Second
That’s how fast the International Space Station travels! That speed allows the ISS to travel around the entire Earth every 90 seconds.
