There’s no human-made object orbiting our
planet bigger than the International Space Station (or ISS, for short). I think some
would argue that there’s nothing more fascinating either! The ISS speeds through space at 5 miles per
second. (Imagine getting from LA to New York in less than 10 minutes!) It takes about 1
& ½ hours to complete one orbit around our planet, and it does this a little over 15
times per day. The ISS is a real speed racer flying about 250 miles above Earth. And don’t
forget – there’s a whole crew of astronauts in there! The station is shared by the space agencies
of the United States, Canada, Europe, Russia, and Japan, hence the whole “international”
thing. The purpose of this joint effort is to conduct research for future space missions,
such as more trips to the moon or maybe even to Mars someday! And I’m sure it’d take
a whole global effort to keep this bad boy running. The estimated cost as of 2010 was
$150 billion. The cost per crewmember per day is $7.5 million. No wonder the Station
has been dubbed the priciest human-made structure in history! As of March 2019, 236 people have served aboard
the ISS, and they collectively represent 18 different countries. It’s had people on
board continually since November 2000. The ISS usually houses crews made up of 3 to 6
individuals, and one expedition typically lasts for about 6 months before an astronaut
is relieved by someone else. That’s when it can get really interesting because there
might be up to 13 crewmembers onboard at once while they’re sort of changing shifts! But
I imagine astronauts don’t have to worry about their toes getting stepped on in a crowded
place, huh? This impressive structure is often visible
from Earth, even during the day since sunlight shines on its reflective surfaces. And in
case you’d like to see it, there are smartphone apps that show you when and where you can
see the ISS on it’s next fly-by over your town. Perhaps that’s what helped Washington-based
photographer Rainee Colacurcio snap an amazing shot of the ISS flying in front of the sun!
Just imagine: our sun is almost 900,000 miles across. That means you could fit 109 earth-sized
objects along its diameter. So, when the Station crossed paths with our own bright star, it
looked so tiny in comparison to that orange backdrop that’s still humungous despite
being almost 100 million miles away! It’s an incredible picture, and it even
got NASA’s attention! They recently chose it as their Astronomy Photo of the Day. They
also included a statement, explaining that it’s not really unusual for the ISS to transit
the sun. The shocking thing is that Colacurcio was able to get her timing and equipment just
right for a spectacular image. Another interesting detail is that there were
no sunspots visible when she snapped the picture at that moment. That’s a pretty rare occurrence,
but now would be a better time than ever for there to be absolutely no spots on the sun.
You see, our star is currently in a phase called a “Solar Minima” when you don’t
really see much sunspot activity. Yes, sunspots are temporary, so they come
and go, sometimes lasting for months. They appear because of magnetic fields reducing
the temperature on the sun’s surface. They look darker because they’re cooler. Hotter
areas burn bright, kinda like when you heat metal and it glows orange. These spots might
look teeny tiny from here on Earth, but they can actually be as big as a planet! Still, nobody knows why there aren't ANY spots
in the photo, even if the sun is going through a regular phase of decreased activity. These
periods, known as a solar cycle, usually last an average of 11 years. But get this: when
there’s a lot of activity on the sun’s surface, it can create auroras, effect electric
grids, and even interfere with radio signals here on Earth! Anyway, Colacurcio’s picture is actually
a composite of two separate photos. One was of the Space Station crossing paths with the
sun, and the other was an image of the surface of the sun itself. Both pictures were taken
simultaneously and then sort of “sewn” together. And guess what? You can also take a picture
of the ISS! You'll first need to set up a tripod or mount in a place that won't experience
any sort of vibrations. Set up a webcam on the mount so that it’s looking through a
telescope. Use an app such as ISS Transit Finder to track the station’s path. You
then shoot a short video magnified through the telescope. After that, use an image-enhancing
program to make a composite of all the frames to pull together an awesome shot that could
get you some praise and respect from NASA! Or, of course, you can do it the easy way
and just grab a DSLR camera or some other camera that can take long exposures. The most
important thing is that the tripod or mount doesn’t budge the whole time. Find the ISS
and basically point and shoot when the station is passing through! So, you look at the picture, and you might
wonder, “What’s going on in that little TIE-fighter-looking black speck against all
that orange bubbly hotness?” Glad you asked! The current ISS crew has been working on growing
plants, and they plan to grow some Espanola chili peppers this November! Because, ya know,
posing for an epic picture in front of the sun wasn’t hot enough as is! Jokes aside,
NASA is looking for something hardy that doesn't grow too tall. Now, this is a big undertaking
because it’ll be their first fruit grown entirely in space. Growing food is essential for astronauts on
long-term missions. And fruits are perfect, especially these chilies, since they’re
packed with health-boosting Vitamin C. Space gardens will be a major step up from the vacuum-packed
food we’ve come to associate with an astronaut’s typical diet. Plus, it’s just downright
necessary to grow from scratch when you’re on a major time-consuming mission, like building
a lunar station or colonizing Mars! A space garden would also be a way to produce oxygen,
recycle compostable waste, and maybe make space residents feel a little more at home! In 2015, astronaut Scott Kelly and others
made history by growing zinnias as part of a gardening program. They used a contraption
called “Veggie” which pretty much serves as a little onboard greenhouse for plant cultivation
in space. Veggie is bringing to light the effects of low gravity and radiation on plants.
It also helps astronauts determine how much water the plants need and how to manage things
like mold. The crew has to monitor the lighting and moisture
levels really carefully. I mean, it’s hard enough keeping a houseplant alive, so just
imagine how precise they need to be in a space station with no direct sunlight or even gravity!
Seeds are first planted in Kevlar pouches coated in Teflon. These pouches, or “plant
pillows” as they’re called, contain soil, fertilizer, water wicks, and, of course, the
seeds. Veggie works together with the Advanced Plant Habitat, a smaller, automated lab that
has more than 180 sensors and automatic watering. So, yeah, ISS astronauts are up there trying
to create a viable food source for us in the future once we start colonizing other celestial
bodies! Currently, there are plans for the ISS to be operational through 2024 and maybe
even to 2028. But after that, there’s nothing on the agenda yet. It may be recycled and
used for future projects such as other space stations. Until then, we can all just applaud
the important work they’re doing and snap a cool picture when we see the right opportunity! So how about you? Would you like to visit
the International Space Station? Let me know in the comments below! If you learned something
new today, then give this video a like and share it with a friend. But – hey! – don't
go starting your own space garden just yet! We have over 2,000 cool videos for you to
check out. Just click on this left or right video and enjoy! Stay on the Bright Side of
life!
