New photographs of the Worldwide House Station reveal that it’s nonetheless a jewel

The International Space Station, as seen in November 2021. Prominent at center in this view are the cymbal-shaped UltraFlex solar arrays of the Northrop Grumman Cygnus space freighter.

Enlarge / The Worldwide House Station, as seen in November 2021. Distinguished at heart on this view are the cymbal-shaped UltraFlex photo voltaic arrays of the Northrop Grumman Cygnus house freighter. (credit score: NASA)

The Worldwide House Station is now greater than twenty years previous. And whereas major development of the orbiting laboratory ended a bit greater than a decade in the past, earlier than the retirement of NASA’s house shuttle, the station has continued to evolve with smaller modules and an ever-changing array of visiting spacecraft.

Over this time the station has begun to indicate its age, being uncovered to the intense cold and hot temperatures of house, a vacuum atmosphere, and micrometeoroid particles. For greater than 20 years, these harsh circumstances have worn on the station, inducing stress fractures and different harm.

Following the house shuttle’s retirement in 2011, NASA misplaced the power to fly people across the station to catalog these adjustments with extremely detailed images. However because of the emergence of SpaceX’s Crew Dragon car, astronauts have began circumnavigating the station as soon as once more after undocking and earlier than heading house.

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