A space station (also called an orbital station) is a manned satellite designed to remain in space (or most commonly low Earth orbit) for a long period of time, and which has the ability for other spacecraft to dock to it. A space station is distinguished from other manned spacecraft by its lack of major propulsion or landing facilities—instead, other vehicles are used to transport people and supplies to and from the station. The only space station currently in orbit is the International Space Station. Previous stations include the Almaz and Salyut series, Skylab and most recently Mir.
Space stations are used to study the effects of long-term space flight on the human body as well as to provide platforms for greater number and length of scientific studies than available on other space vehicles. All space stations have been designed with the intention of rotating multiple crews, with each crew member staying aboard the station for weeks or months, but rarely more than a year. Since the ill-fated flight of Soyuz 11 to Salyut 1, all manned spaceflight duration records have been set aboard space stations. The duration record for a single spaceflight is 437.7 days, set by Valeriy Polyakov aboard Mir from 1994 to 1995. As of 2009 [update], three astronauts have completed single missions of over a year, all aboard Mir.
Space stations have been used for both military and civilian purposes. The last military-use space station was Salyut 5, which was used by the Almaz program of the Soviet Union in 1976 and 1977.
Space station | Image | Launch date | Reentry | Days in use | Crew Size | Visits | Mass | Pressurised volume | Image | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Name | Type | In orbit | Occupied | Manned | Unmanned | |||||||
Salyut 1![]() |
DOS | 80px | 19 April 1971 | 11 October 1971 | 175 | 24 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 18,900 kg (41,700 lb) | 90 m³ (3,180 ft³) |
|
DOS-2![]() |
DOS |
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29 July 1972 | Failed to reach orbit | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 18,900 kg (41,700 lb) | 90 m³ (3,180 ft³) |
|
Salyut 2![]() |
OPS |
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4 April 1973 | 28 May 1973 | 54 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |||
Kosmos 557![]() |
DOS |
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11 May 1973 | 22 May 1973 | 11 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 19,400 kg (42,800 lb) | ||
Skylab![]() |
S-IVB |
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14 May 1973 | 11 July 1979 | 2249 | 171 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 77,088 kg (169,950 lb) | 283 m³ (10,000 ft³) |
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Salyut 3![]() |
OPS |
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25 June 1974 | 24 January 1975 | 213 | 15 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 18,900 kg (41,700 lb) | 90 m³ (3,180 ft³) |
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Salyut 4![]() |
DOS |
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26 December 1974 | 3 February 1977 | 770 | 92 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 18,900 kg (41,700 lb) | 90 m³ (3,180 ft³) |
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Salyut 5![]() |
OPS |
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22 June 1976 | 8 August 1977 | 412 | 67 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 19,000 kg (42,000 lb) | 100 m³ (3,530 ft³) |
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Salyut 6![]() |
DOS | 80px | 29 September 1977 | 29 July 1982 | 1764 | 683 | 3 | 16 | 14 | 19,824 kg (43,704 lb) | 90 m³ (3,180 ft³) |
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Salyut 7![]() |
DOS | 80px | 19 April 1982 | 7 February 1991 | 3216 | 816 | 3 | 12 | 15 | 19,824 kg (43,704 lb) | 90 m³ (3,180 ft³) |
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Mir![]() ![]() |
Modular |
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19 February 1986 | 23 February 2001 | 5519 | 4592 | 3 | 39 | 71 | 129,700 kg (285,900 lb) | 350 m³ (12,360 ft³) | |
International Space Station![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Modular |
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20 November 1998 | In orbit | 9348 | 8635 | 6 | 60 | 48 | 375,727 kg (828,336 lb) | 907 m³ (32,030 ft³) | |
Space station | Nation | Launch date | Reentry | Days in use | Total crew and visitors |
Visits | Mass | Pressurised volume | Image | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Name | Type | In orbit | Occupied | Manned | Unmanned | |||||||
Genesis I | prototype BA-330 | Commercial (USA) | 12 July 2006 | In orbit | 6557 | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | 1,360 kg (3,000 lb) | 11.5 m³ (406 ft³) | |
Genesis II | prototype BA-330 | Commercial (USA) | 28 June 2007 | In orbit | 6206 | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | 1,360 kg (3,000 lb) | 11.5 m³ (406 ft³) | |
[[:File:Bigelow Commercial Space Station.jpg|thumb|A 2010 conceptual image of Bigelow Aerospace's Space Complex Alpha.]]
China is ready to carry out a multiphase construction program that leads to a large space station around 2020. As a prelude to building that facility, China is set to loft the Tiangong-1 module this year as a platform to help master key rendezvous and docking technologies.
the North Las Vegas firm announced it intends to launch its first Orbital Space Complex from the Cape in 2014. The inflatable modules would be carried on United Launch Alliance Atlas V rockets. ... By 2017, Bigelow projects a need for 20 to 25 launches per year to send crew and cargo to commercial space stations.
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