ISS (International Space Station)

Cool facts about the ISS:

Total length: 108 meters.

Total width: 73 meters.

Time to orbit the earth: 91 minutes.

Astronauts see 16 sunrises and sunsets a day as the ISS orbits Earth once every 90 minutes.

The first piece of the ISS went up in 1998.

A crew has continuously lived on board since the year 2000.

Amazingly, the ISS appears as the third-brightest object in our sky after the Sun and Moon.

When complete, the ISS’s habitable volume will equal the size of a three-bedroom house.

There are two toilets on the Station, one Russian and one American.

Astronauts typically stay 6 months aboard the ISS per mission.

The parts of the ISS:

• Modules and Nodes—These are the main areas of the ISS where astronauts live and conduct research.
• The Truss—This acts as a support structure for the radiators and solar arrays.
• Solar Arrays and Radiators—The arrays con-vert sunlight into power, while radiators cool the ISS by eliminating excess heat.

Five agencies built the ISS:

• Nasa (United States)
• Roscosmos (Russia)
• CSA (Canada)
• ESA (Europe)
• JAXA (Japan)

There are 16 countries in the ISS:

• The United States
• Russia
• Canada
• Japan
• Belgium
• Denmark
• France
• Germany
• Italy
• Netherlands
• Norway
• Spain
• Sweden
• Switzerland
• United Kingdom
• Brazil

Here are examples of international foods served on board the ISS:

United States

• Beverage: Coffee
• Appetizer: Shrimp cocktail
• Main course: Fajitas with black beans and rice
• Dessert: Cherry/blueberry cobbler

Russia

• Beverage: Apricot juice
• Appetizer: Beet salad
• Main course: Beef goulash with mashed potatoes and onion
• Dessert: Honey cake

Europe

• Beverage: Iced tea (lemon or orange)
• Appetizer: Legumaise (mushroom truffle dip)
• Main course: Duck breast confit with capers
• Dessert: Rich chocolate cake

Japan

• Beverage: Green or oolong tea
• Appetizer: Soup with Wakame (seaweed)
• Main course: Mackerel with Miso sauce and rice
• Dessert: Sweet bread bean paste

Canada

• Main course: Salmon
• Dessert: Maple cookies
• Snack: Berry fruit bars