The International Space Station (ISS) is essentially a habitable artificial satellite in low Earth orbit. The ISS is a modular structure whose first component was launched in 1998. Now the largest artificial body in orbit, it can often be seen at the appropriate time with the naked eye from Earth. Continue reading for 10 interesting facts.
Since the arrival of Expedition 1 on November 2, 2000, the station has been continuously occupied for 12 years and 284 days, currently the longest continuous human presence in space. (In 2010, the station surpassed the previous record of almost 10 years (or 3,634 days) held by Mir.) The station is serviced by Soyuz spacecraft, Progress spacecraft, the Automated Transfer Vehicle, the H-II Transfer Vehicle, and the Dragon spacecraft. It has been visited by astronauts and cosmonauts from 15 different nations.
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