This photo was taken from space shuttle Endeavour on approach to the unmanned, Russian-built Zarya module during the STS-88 mission in December 1998....[More]
FIRST THING FIRST
This photo was taken from space shuttle Endeavour on approach to the unmanned, Russian-built Zarya module during the STS-88 mission in December 1998. Zarya, which provided an early source of propulsion and power, had been launched into space the month before on a Russian Proton rocket, becoming the first piece of the International Space Station (ISS) to reach orbit.
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NASA
TWO'S COMPANY
The STS-88 mission delivered to orbit a U.S. passageway module known as Unity [ right ], which was attached to Zarya [ left ] and then released. ...[More]
TWO'S COMPANY
The STS-88 mission delivered to orbit a U.S. passageway module known as Unity [right], which was attached to Zarya [left] and then released. The Endeavour crew took the above photograph during an inspection fly-around after the two-piece space station had been released.
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NASA
PIECE BY PIECE
In July 2000 another Russian component was delivered to orbit by a Proton rocket. The Zvezda service module [ the pictured module with the largest solar wingspan ] linked to the existing Zarya module and provided working and sleeping quarters for future crew members....[More]
PIECE BY PIECE
In July 2000 another Russian component was delivered to orbit by a Proton rocket. The Zvezda service module [the pictured module with the largest solar wingspan] linked to the existing Zarya module and provided working and sleeping quarters for future crew members. The foreground of the above photograph, taken from space shuttle Atlantis in September 2000, also shows a small, unmanned Russian Progress supply craft docked to Zvezda.
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NASA
TAKING WING
By December 2000 the ISS had already been crewed for a month. That month, space shuttle mission STS-97 delivered to the station its first set of solar arrays, or "wings," to generate power for onboard activities....[More]
TAKING WING
By December 2000 the ISS had already been crewed for a month. That month, space shuttle mission STS-97 delivered to the station its first set of solar arrays, or "wings," to generate power for onboard activities. The ISS would eventually boast four sets of solar-panel wings, each of them 73 meters long.
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NASA
ONE-ARMED BANDIT
The crew of STS-110 snapped this photograph in 2002 after space shuttle Atlantis pulled away from the station. The extended appendage at the bottom of the photo is the Canadarm2, an articulated robotic arm built by the Canadian Space Agency that was installed in 2001....[More]
ONE-ARMED BANDIT
The crew of STS-110 snapped this photograph in 2002 after space shuttle Atlantis pulled away from the station. The extended appendage at the bottom of the photo is the Canadarm2, an articulated robotic arm built by the Canadian Space Agency that was installed in 2001.
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NASA
BACK TO WORK
On February 1, 2003, space shuttle Columbia broke apart during atmospheric reentry following a research mission, killing all seven crew members on board....[More]
BACK TO WORK
On February 1, 2003, space shuttle Columbia broke apart during atmospheric reentry following a research mission, killing all seven crew members on board. The shuttle program was put on hold, and the assembly of the ISS stalled. But by July 26, 2005, NASA was ready to restart shuttle operations, and the STS-114 mission lifted off carrying shuttle astronauts to the space station. The "Return to Flight" test mission was deemed a success, and the construction of the station resumed. The above photograph shows the ISS against the backdrop of Earth's limb as space shuttle Discovery pulled away from the station toward the end of its mission.
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NASA
BALANCE OF POWER
In 2007 the STS-117 mission delivered the ISS's third set of solar array wings. (Only two are visible here; one set was retracted until relocation during a later mission.) The above photograph was taken during space shuttle Atlantis 's inspection fly-around following the solar upgrade....[More]
BALANCE OF POWER
In 2007 the STS-117 mission delivered the ISS's third set of solar array wings. (Only two are visible here; one set was retracted until relocation during a later mission.) The above photograph was taken during space shuttle Atlantis's inspection fly-around following the solar upgrade.
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NASA
SPACE SCIENCE
The STS-122 mission in February 2008 delivered the Columbus laboratory module for the European Space Agency (ESA). In this view from space shuttle Atlantis following undocking with the ISS, the newly installed Columbus is visible as a cylinder jutting off to the left at the bottom of the station....[More]
SPACE SCIENCE
The STS-122 mission in February 2008 delivered the Columbus laboratory module for the European Space Agency (ESA). In this view from space shuttle Atlantis following undocking with the ISS, the newly installed Columbus is visible as a cylinder jutting off to the left at the bottom of the station.
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NASA
BRANCHING OUT
By September 2009, when this photograph from space shuttle Discovery was taken toward the end of the STS-128 mission, the ISS had its full complement of solar array wings and stretched more than 100 meters....[More]
BRANCHING OUT
By September 2009, when this photograph from space shuttle Discovery was taken toward the end of the STS-128 mission, the ISS had its full complement of solar array wings and stretched more than 100 meters. The station's crew size had also doubled, reaching its full complement of six earlier that year. ESA's Columbus module [right] and the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) Kibo experiment module [left] are visible at the top of the station in this view.
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NASA
SPACE SPRAWL
Shuttle astronauts have not visited the ISS since May, when space shuttle Atlantis delivered a Russian-built research module during STS-132. The photo above shows how the station looked on approach during that mission....[More]
SPACE SPRAWL
Shuttle astronauts have not visited the ISS since May, when space shuttle Atlantis delivered a Russian-built research module during STS-132. The photo above shows how the station looked on approach during that mission. On November 3—10 years and one day after the ISS became occupied for the long haul—space shuttle Discovery is scheduled to lift off for the station, bringing a load of spare parts meant to keep the station in good repair long after the shuttle program is phased out in 2011.
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NASA
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here goes - and what pray tell has been the outcome of this multi-billion dollar fiasco? At least we got Tang from the original space program. Let's spend our limited resources on unmanned missions - they have been beyond spectacular and have made contributions to science.
The idea behind ISS is very nobel...so cool having many countries contribute to a huge endeavor...
dbtinc...In some ways I agree...In the short term, bang for the buck goes to unmanned probes....In the long term, if human kind is to have a permanent presence in space we need to understand the impacts of zero g...then again in the long term...hopefully its not necessary...
DaleEMoore...If we can get materials that are strong enough it is definitely the way to go....it would be a huge engineering feat...probably several spread around the equator....
jimboagogo...I was going to post that the ISS had cost in the Trillions...but on further research I see your on target(~160 billion)...ps the ISS did not fix the hubble...that was the space shuttle crews and payloads...
@dbtinc, "and what pray tell has been the outcome of this multi-billion dollar fiasco" hey, it is ok if you are ignorant but don't jump to the conclusion it was a "fiasco" just because you haven't taken the time to understand the contribution the ISS has made to science and technology. You sound like one of those money grubbing republicans who doesn't consider anything worthwhile unless it pads his personal pockets. If that is the case, science isn't for you, science is about acquiring knowledge not about creating wealth.
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5 Comments
Add Commenthere goes - and what pray tell has been the outcome of this multi-billion dollar fiasco? At least we got Tang from the original space program. Let's spend our limited resources on unmanned missions - they have been beyond spectacular and have made contributions to science.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisI say we build the space elevator next.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisWay cheaper than Afghanistan...and it got the Hubble fixed!
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisThe idea behind ISS is very nobel...so cool having many countries contribute to a huge endeavor...
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisdbtinc...In some ways I agree...In the short term, bang for the buck goes to unmanned probes....In the long term, if human kind is to have a permanent presence in space we need to understand the impacts of zero g...then again in the long term...hopefully its not necessary...
DaleEMoore...If we can get materials that are strong enough it is definitely the way to go....it would be a huge engineering feat...probably several spread around the equator....
jimboagogo...I was going to post that the ISS had cost in the Trillions...but on further research I see your on target(~160 billion)...ps the ISS did not fix the hubble...that was the space shuttle crews and payloads...
@dbtinc, "and what pray tell has been the outcome of this multi-billion dollar fiasco" hey, it is ok if you are ignorant but don't jump to the conclusion it was a "fiasco" just because you haven't taken the time to understand the contribution the ISS has made to science and technology. You sound like one of those money grubbing republicans who doesn't consider anything worthwhile unless it pads his personal pockets. If that is the case, science isn't for you, science is about acquiring knowledge not about creating wealth.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to this