Interesting Facts About the ISS

How much do you know about the ISS?

Here are some interesting facts about this orbiting international research facility that may surprise you!

Did you know that...?

 

• It has a mass of about 420,000 kg (or 925,000 lbs). That's the equivalent of more than 330 cars.

 

 

• It measures 110 m (about 360 ft) in length from one end to the other. That's about the length of one football field, including the end zones.

 

 

• It has an interior living space for its crew (with kitchens, bathrooms, bedrooms and a gym) that is about the size of a three-bedroom home.

 

 

• It has almost an acre of solar panels to provide electrical power to six state-of-the-art laboratories.

 

 

• The research being performed aboard the station includes studies to answer questions such as: How does long-term space exposure affect the human body? How do low-gravity settings affect the growth of plants?

 

 

• Approximately 3,630 kg (or 4 tons) of food supplies are needed to support a crew of 3 for about 6 months. Some of the most popular food items requested by crew members are: shrimp cocktail, chicken fajitas, lemonade, macaroni and cheese, and cherry blueberry cobbler.

 

 

• In about a day, it covers a distance roughly equivalent to traveling to the Moon and back. That's like going from one end of the U.S. to the other 135 times.

 

 

• The ISS can be seen from Earth with the naked eye.