Questions tagged [iss]
Questions about the ISS (International Space Station), a habitable man-made low Earth orbit satellite whose first component was launched in 1998 and used to conduct experiments for a wide variety of research fields in a microgravity environment.
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Where does ISS dump go? [duplicate]
I'm aware that the crew on the ISS have specialized toilets for them to do their business. My question is, where does this waste that they leave out go? including the washroom waste, where do other ...
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Could they free up a docking port on ISS by undocking the emergency vehicle and letting it float next to the station for a little while
The emergency return vehicle, a Soyuz I think, could either float next to the dock or be tethered nearby.
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Does food go bad on the ISS? How often is food thrown away?
How often does food spoil on the ISS, and how much food is thrown away on the ISS?
I imagine there would be a different answer between the preserved long duration food and the fresh produce available ...
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Are any of the new orexin antagonists in the ISS medicine cabinets?
This answer to What psychological issues do astronauts experience during spaceflight, caused by spaceflight? includes a block quote (from a (now broken link to an "ISS user's guide") which ...
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Could Butch Wilmore use BEAM as sleeping quarters?
According to Business Insider, while Sunita Williams is using (sharing?) a sleep module during her stay on the ISS, Butch Wilmore is 'roughing it' in a science module. I've seen comments that he has ...
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What ever happened to (that NASA link about) SpinSat?
My 2016 question What ever happened to SpinSat - did it work? about the 2012 "Special Purpose Inexpensive Satellite" draws heavily from "NASA's mission pages link for SpinSat" ...
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Will this be the first time that there are more people aboad the ISS than seats in docked spacecraft?
As NASA announced today, Boeing Starliner will return to earth uncrewed and before the SpaceX Crew-9 mission will start (because otherwise no docking port would be available).
This means (as far as I ...
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What (if any) pre-breathes were "attempted" on the ISS, and why?
CNN's August 19, 2024 SpaceX is about to send four people on a wild — and risky — mission into the radiation belts. Here’s what to know includes:
Almost immediately after reaching space, the Polaris ...
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ISS deorbit or raise? [duplicate]
How much more expensive would it be to move up the iss to a rare orbit where it would pose no risk to other space ventures, and not decay much due to atmospheric drag, to become a “museum” (or ship ...
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How is lost ammonia replaced aboard the ISS?
After reading about the old ammonia leak here, I began wondering if and how that lost ammonia is replaced. Some ideas I can think of are:
Launch some aboard the next supply run?
Synthesize some on-...
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After almost 40 years of research on space stations in LEO, what is there we still didn't find out?
The first modular space station Mir was launched in early 1986 into orbit, so the time of research on the Mir and the ISS (and the Tiangongs) combined is now more than 38 years. If you include Salyut ...
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Do space stations have anything that big spacecraft (such as the Space Shuttle and SpaceX Starship) don't have?
For quite some time I wonder why spacefaring countries find it necessary to go to space stations instead of doing scientific research on the spacecraft they launched on. Of course, modular space ...
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Does Russia plan to have any involvement with the rescue of stranded astronauts in the ISS?
I was just curious if Russia has been involved with the rescue planning in any way? I thought I read that they had transported astronauts to and from the ISS in the past. Do they no longer make the ...
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Was the July 29th EVA cancelled?
I no longer see the announcement of the July 29th EVA on Nasa TV's website. Was this cancelled and if so, why?
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How do cables and cooling lines transverse the pressure hull of the International Space Station?
The International Space Station (ISS) is notable for having large amount of unpressurized equipments on its Integrated Truss Structure (ITS), including the solar panels and the radiators. The electric ...
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How will the ISS be decommissioned?
According to the latest AP report, it's looking like SpaceX will get the contract to decommision the ISS in 2030. Will parts be saved and reused for a new station?
One thing quite objectionable is the ...
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What is this device on the ISS? [duplicate]
I was viewing footage from a live external camera on the ISS when I came across this rotating instrument :
Image from "ISS Live Now" Application.
I was unable to identify the object/...
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Eye Spy: Where are the other two (of six) vehicles docked to the ISS in this Maxar image (& what are they?)
I spy Crew Dragon, Starliner, & two Progress (?). Where are the rest?
(Credit: https://www.maxar.com/maxar-intelligence/products/non-earth-imaging)
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Did the ISS CREAM experiment actually get relocated?
A recent update (May 22) to the database for the NASA visualization tool DOUG shows that the CREAM payload has been relocated to the top of the Japanese Experiment Logistics Module - Pressurized ...
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If Crew Dragon can dock autonomously, why is there a crew aboard when they change from docking port to another?
I was watching the redocking the other night and they kept mentioning that it can redock autonomously. If so, why is the crew there? Is it there as a backup in case the autonomous system fails? Is ...
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Can the equipment behind panels of Russian ISS modules be reconfigured like the US modules?
I couldn't find any photos or information about how the Russian modules are configured inside the panels; RussianSpaceWeb's Nauka page has some articles that would likely help, but they're paywalled. ...
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Is this line in the SpaceX livestream engine exhaust?
In the livestream of the recent mission CRS-30 from SpaceX, one could see a vertical line going up. However in other camera shots it was not visible. Was this line the engine exhaust or was there some ...
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Is there an archive of photos shot by astronauts on the ISS?
Many astronauts on the ISS take photos which get published. Is there a single archive that contains all of these? I've done several searches, but I only come across small collections e.g. on the ...
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Why didn't Crew 8 launch to an elliptical orbit with an apogee closer to the altitude of the space station?
Crew 8 launched to a 191x215km orbit (ref), but the ISS is orbiting at 425km (ref). I'm curious as to the reason why they didn't launch into, for example, a 191x425km orbit initially.
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Are the pressurized modules of the ISS always open to each other?
Do pressurized modules next to each other always stay open, or do the resident astronauts glide through a module, open the hatch, go through, close the hatch, and then glide through the next module, ...
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How much does air on the ISS cost?
I was reading an article which broke down some of the methods of oxygen creation on the ISS. This was in response to my daughter commenting that "air is free," and being curious about ...
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Will there be another joint International Space Station (ISS) after the current is retired?
Currently, as far as I know, the Chinese are building their own "ISS". I heard that they are open to welcoming most EU countries.
Does anyone have heard any news on building a newer "...
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How much time does the ISS require in "non value adding activities"?
Generally, we can divide the things that a worker, in this case an astronaut, does, into two categories:
Value adding: Activities which contribute directly towards the employer's goals. In a company, ...
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A cancelled EVA for expedition 70?
I am wondering whether the December '23 EVA by Moghbeli and Mogensen (Expedition 70) is definitively canceled? If so, why? The mission ends now in a few weeks.
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Apparently the ISS cupola windows are Replaceable in orbit. What is the pressure hatch design and procedure used when the window is leaking?
Photo: ESA
In this answer to How (the heck) do you replace a space station window in orbit? it is explained that cupola windows can be completely replaced in orbit. Unfortunately, one of the .pdf has ...
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Who navigates the ISS?
The ISS orbits around the world. Do astronauts fly the ISS on Earth's orbit like a plane pilot? If it wanted, could the ISS go to a specific part of the world apart from the the usual orbit? Does the ...
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Will ISS astronauts be able to observe the 2024 solar eclipse?
Observing a total solar eclipse is an amazing experience, but observing it from orbit would be truly spectacular. The ISS astronauts could potentially have an opportunity in 2024, but will the ground ...
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The coolant leaks on the ISS and associated spaceships: are they still mysterious?
Are the real reasons now known that caused the leaks in the Soyouz, Progress and heater exchange devices on the Nauka module causing the loss of that special liquid and giving a lot of troubles to ...
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What happened to Flexcraft?
The DSH Flexcraft seems like a great complement to “traditional” EVAs. Interior environment would be “shirt sleeve”. Astronauts could “scratch where it itches”. It would share a common atmosphere (...
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Is there still a legless phantom crew member on ISS?
The Phantom Torso was designed to gather data on ISS crew Radiation exposure. What was its fate?
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What "extra protection" from ammonia is needed during an EVA?
From a Scientific American article$^\color{magenta}{\star}$ on an ammonia leak at the ISS:
Ammonia is so toxic that spacewalks nearby the substance must have extra precautions built in to reduce ...
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What are the "insect antennae" on the MMU (Manned Maneuvering Unit)?
What are the “insect antennae” structures in front of the astronaut’s visor? They appear to be attached to the MMU, but do not appear in the MMU User Guide, static displays or Weightless Environment ...
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Do ISS astronauts have a preference for when EVA tasks are scheduled with respect to lighting conditions?
Given the choice, do ISS astronauts prefer to schedule EVA tasks on the “day light” side of the ISS, the “shadow" side of the ISS or in the shadow of Earth’s night side?
I suspect the intense, ...
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If a baby was born on the ISS, what would its nationality be?
If a baby was born on the ISS, what would its nationality be? Many countries grant citizenship to any baby born within their territory, but the ISS is not national territory ... or is it? If a ...
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GMAT SGP TLE Propagator and maneuver
So this time I try to use GMAT(2022 ver).
I am using the SPICESGP4 TLE Propagator to simulator ISS's orbit.
For now it work well.
However when I try to use the burn to change its orbit altitude, it ...
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Why is the central truss segment of the ISS called S0?
Why is that segment of the ISS truss called S0, not P0, C (for center) or just 0?
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How many tonnes of cargo are stored on the International Space Station?
I think I read somewhere that SpaceX's Starship should carry 100 tonnes to the moon, and that this amount of mass was greater than the total cargo on the ISS, but I can't find a reference confirming ...
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Deorbit ISS vs. Preserve ISS as raw materials for ISM?
Recent news:
NASA Seeks Proposals from US Industry for Station Deorbit Spacecraft (ISS)
NASA has released a request for proposal from U.S. industry for the U.S. Deorbit Vehicle (USDV), a spacecraft ...
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Live_ISS_Stream stopped?
so I've come across this video, 11 hours of ISS transmissions during 2021 ASAT incident by Russia. The description says the footage was archived from this IBM stream site, so I've looked to see if it ...
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Has intra-cranial pressure been measured on ISS astronauts for SANS research?
Visual impairment (VI) <and spaceflight-associated neuro-ocular
syndrome (SANS)> is currently ... NASA's top health risk for long duration spaceflight,
and millions of dollars has been allocated ...
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In MATLAB, Computing a new TLE/orbit following a delta-v impulse?
I have already worked on this project for a week, and I still can not solve this problem by myself. How can I update data for the SGP4 OrbitPropagator in Matlab's ...
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Does earth orbiting debris that threatens the space station have a particular direction bias?
I'm starting to investigate the danger of orbital debris on the ISS (international space station). One could assume that due to the orbital velocity vector, that any debris that the ISS encounter, ...
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Visibility of ISS at extreme latitudes
Is there a limit to the latitudes the ISS can be seen from (i.e. could it be seen at the North or South poles)?
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Why Isn't the ISS exclusion zone spherical?
According to a video by Real Engineering the ISS has a 50x50x0.75 km exclusion zone.
Why Isn't it spherical and why is the "vertical" axis so much smaller?
Screenshot from Don’t Drop your ...
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Did the ISS modules have Flight Termination Systems when they launched?
Not that it did, but if something stuffed up during the launch of a module, could it have been destroyed before hitting the ground?