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between 300 and 460 km. It travels at a speedof 27,000 km an hour (17 000 mph). The space
station serves as a laboratory for scientific experiments in many fields. The spacecraftis also
used to make tests for future missions that will travel to Mars and other planets.
The International Space Station is not owned by a single country. ltis a project carried out by
the space agencies of many nations. Japan, Russia , the USA and European countries have
sent astronauts and scientists to the space station in the last decade.
The first part of the I1SS was launched into orbit by the Russian Soyuz spacecraft in 1998. Since
then Russian and American spacecraft have been delivering modules to expand the space
station. During this period of time crews have been constantly arriving and leaving the ISS.
The space station, with its over 30 modules, is scheduled to be finished in 2012 and will stay in
orbit until at least 2020
Before sunrise or after sunset you can see the ISS with the naked eye as a slow bight
moving dot across the sky. The ISS ¡is the biggest man-made object orbiting the earth, about as
bright as Venus.
Scientists on Earth can watch the experiments or carry out new ones. They can also monitor the
crew's data. Even students around the world can take part in certain ISS experiments
and compare results.
Living on the ISS for a longer period gives researchers an insight on how the human body
changes when it is exposed to weightlessness for a longer time. This data is important in order
to see how astronauts react when they go on a longer trip, for example ,to Mars. Such
an expedition would take almost three years to complete.
The space station gets ¡ts power from solar sails that turn the sun's energy into electricity. They
are much more efficient that than the solar cells on Earth. Some of the energy is turned into heat
which keeps the space station at the same temperature all the time.
Oxygen is delivered to the ISS by spacecraft from earth. lt can also make breathable air
from recycled water .
There are a number of health risks in long-term space travel. Muscles and bones become
weaker. Pumping blood into the heart slows down and the immune system weakens.
To prevent this from happening, astronauts and scientists have to exercise regularly. For
this purpose there is equipment for weightlifting, a stationary bicycle and a treadmill on
board.
Microgravity is similar to what we experience when we get older. So scientists can get
new insights on the aging process.
Words
e air stream = flow of air that leads into space
+ although = while
. altitude = height
. appliance = machine
e break = pause
+. breathable = to be able to pass through into your lungs
e Ccanned = in a round metallic container
e carry out = do
+ Compare = check, contrast
. complete = finish
. constantly = always; without a break
e. create = make
e crew =the people who work on board the spaceship
e data = information
. spacecraft = spaceship
e speed = how fast something is
e stationary = fixed to the floor
e treadmill = a machine with which you can run on a moving belt and stay at the same place
all the time
. waste = materials that are left over, which you don't need any more
. weaken = to become weaker
. weightlessness = something that seems to have no weight; it floats
. weighilifting = to lift pieces of metal into the air
e zero gravity = when there is no force that pulls you down
http://www.english-online.at/technology/international-space-station/international-space-
station.htm