Beefing Up the International Space Station
Credit:
STS-113 Shuttle Crew,
NASA
The International Space Station (ISS) will be the largest
human-made object ever to
orbit the
Earth.
The station is so large that it could not be
launched all at once --
it is being built piecemeal with large sections added
continually by flights of the
Space Shuttle.
To function, the ISS needs
trusses to keep it rigid and to route
electricity and liquid coolants.
These
trusses are huge, extending over 15 meters long,
and with masses over 10,000 kilograms.
Pictured above at the end of last month,
astronaut
Michael Lopez-Alegria works to install the
Port-One Truss.
On the right is the end of
Canadarm2, the robotic remote control arm of the
ISS.