How Did The ISS Get Into Space?

It would have been impossible to build the ISS on the ground and then launch it into space in one go; there is no rocket big enough or powerful enough. To get round this problem the Space Station is taken into space piece-by-piece and gradually built in orbit, approximately 400 km above the Earth's surface.



Here are some facts about the ISS:

240 individuals from 19 countries have visited the International Space Station.


The space station has been continuously occupied since November 2000


International crew of six people live and work while travelling at a speed of five miles per second, orbiting Earth about every 90 minutes.


In 24 hours, the space station makes 16 orbits of Earth, travelling through 16 sunrises and sunsets.


Peggy Whiteson set the record for spending the most total time living and working in space at 665 days on Sept. 2, 2017.




The acre of solar panels that power the station means sometimes you can look up in the sky at dawn or dusk and see the spaceship flying over your home, even if you live in a big city.


The living and working space in the station is larger than a six-bedroom house.


The solar array wingspan (240 feet) is about the same length as the world’s largest passenger aircraft, the Airbus A380.


Astronauts and cosmonauts have conducted more than 221  space walks (and counting!) for space station construction, maintenance and upgrades since December 1998.



To mitigate the loss of muscle and bone mass in the human body in microgravity, the astronauts work out at least two hours a day.



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