Life in Orbit: How Astronauts Live, Work, and Survive on the International Space Station
The International Space Station (ISS) is humanity’s permanent outpost in low-Earth orbit, about 400 kilometers above our planet. It is the size of a football field, traveling at an astonishing 28,000 km/h (7.7 km/s), completing one orbit every 90 minutes. Since November 2000, the ISS has been continuously inhabited, making it one of the most remarkable international collaborations in history.
1. Who Owns the ISS?
The ISS is a joint project, not owned by a single nation. It was built and is operated by five space agencies:
1. NASA (United States), 2. Roscosmos (Russia), 3. JAXA (Japan), 4. ESA (European Space Agency) and 5. CSA (Canadian Space Agency)
The first module, Zarya, was launched in 1998, and more sections have been added over time. NASA ISS Image Gallery
2. Which Countries Have Sent Astronauts?
So far, astronauts from 20 nations have flown to the ISS. These include the U.S., Russia, Japan, Canada, and many European countries. Others, such as Malaysia, South Africa, and the United Arab Emirates, have sent astronauts through collaboration.
3. What About China?
China is not part of the ISS. Instead, it has its own orbital station called Tiangong (“Heavenly Palace”), built from 2021 onward. Tiangong is smaller than the ISS and currently accommodates three astronauts (or “taikonauts”). At present, it is a Chinese-only mission, though future international cooperation is possible.
China’s Tiangong Overview (BBC)
4. Zero Gravity and Human Health
Living in microgravity has profound effects:
Short-term: Fluid shifts to the head (“puffy face, skinny legs”), nausea, disorientation. Long-term: Muscle loss, bone thinning (osteoporosis), heart weakening, vision changes, slower wound healing.
Astronauts must exercise at least 2 hours daily on treadmills, bikes, and resistance machines to stay healthy.
Canadian Space Agency: Health in Space
5. Is There a Doctor on Board?
The ISS usually has no full-time doctor, but at least one astronaut is trained in medical procedures. They have a well-equipped medical kit and can consult doctors on Earth by telemedicine.
For emergencies, the crew can return in docked spacecraft such as Soyuz or SpaceX Crew Dragon within hours.
6. Fire Safety on the ISS
Fire is one of the greatest dangers in space. The ISS has:
Smoke detectors
Fire extinguishers
Emergency masks
If a fire occurs, astronauts shut down ventilation, isolate the module, and prepare for evacuation.
7. Food, Water, and Oxygen
Food: Mostly freeze-dried or vacuum-packed. No frying or baking is possible in microgravity. Meals are rehydrated with water and sometimes heated. CSA: Space Food
Water: Produced by recycling sweat, breath condensation, and urine. The Water Recovery System recycles up to 90% of all water.Oxygen: Generated by splitting water molecules via electrolysis. Backups include oxygen tanks and chemical oxygen generators.
8. Hygiene and Waste Management
Bathing: No showers. In almost zero gravity water will float all over the place. Instead of the usual bathing with water, astronauts use wet towels, rinseless wipes, and leave-in shampoos.
Toilets: Airflow replaces gravity to move waste. Urine is filtered into drinking water. Solid waste is sealed, stored, and later burns up in Earth’s atmosphere inside disposable cargo capsules. CSA: Space Toilet9. Sleep in Space
Astronauts sleep in small private crew cabins, zipped into sleeping bags attached to the wall, so they don’t float around.
10. Entertainment and Communication
Astronauts have laptops, video calls with family, movies, music, and e-books. They don’t receive live TV, but NASA uploads news and shows regularly.
11. Life at 28,000 km/h
The ISS completes 16 orbits per day. Astronauts therefore see 16 sunrises and 16 sunsets every 24 hours.
NASA Spot the Station as it goes round and round earth
12. Stars, Astronomy, and Earth Views
From orbit, stars and the Milky Way shine brilliantly, unfiltered by the atmosphere. But sunlight reflected from Earth often makes stargazing difficult. Astronauts regularly photograph Earth’s weather, cities, auroras, and natural phenomena.
13. Duration of Missions
Most astronauts stay 6 months, though some remain for up to a year. Crews are transported by SpaceX Crew Dragon or Soyuz spacecraft, which also bring them back.
14. Altitude and Lifespan of the ISS
The ISS orbits at 370–420 km. Periodic “reboosts” keep it from falling due to atmospheric drag. Current plans expect it to remain in service until 2030 after which it may be replaced by a commercial station for tourists
15. Religion in Space: The Muslim Astronaut Question
Muslim astronauts face the challenge of prayer in orbit, where sunrise and sunset occur every 90 minutes. Islamic scholars have ruled that astronauts may follow Earth-based prayer times, either from the launch site (e.g., Baikonur, Kazakhstan) or aligned with Mecca, rather than using orbital sunrises.
16. Additional Fascinating Points
The ISS is the largest human-made structure in orbit. It weighs about 420 tons. A constant hum of fans, pumps, and computers fills the station , silence is rare.
Astronauts sometimes report a faint “metallic” smell from the airlock after spacewalks, thought to be from atomic oxygen reacting with metal surfaces.
For a virtual tour of the ISS:
👉 NASA 360° Virtual Tour
Life on the ISS is a mix of science, discipline, adaptation, and wonder. It demands resilience, teamwork, and creativity, as astronauts adjust to a world without gravity. Yet it also offers one of the most breathtaking perspectives ever known: a view of Earth as a fragile blue planet suspended in the vastness of space.
Let me summarise with additional information
On the International Space Station (ISS), astronauts adapt to the microgravity environment by using advanced recycling systems, special foods, and unique hygiene methods.
Bathing and hygiene
Because water floats away in blobs in microgravity, there are no showers on the ISS.
Cleaning their bodies: Astronauts use wet towels and rinseless soap to wipe down and clean themselves. The towels are collected so the moisture can be reclaimed.
Washing hair: They apply rinseless shampoo directly to their hair, massage it in, and then towel it dry. The shampoo is specially formulated to not foam up excessively.
Brushing teeth: They use edible toothpaste, brushing with a small amount of water. They either swallow the toothpaste or spit it into a towel.
Toilets: Special space toilets use a powerful vacuum system and air flow, rather than water, to suck waste away from the body. Astronauts strap themselves to the seat to use it.
Cooking and eating
There is no cooking done on the ISS to avoid safety issues and excessive power consumption.
Food variety: The ISS menu features over 300 different items, including thermostabilized food in pouches, freeze-dried options, and natural-form foods like nuts and cookies.
Preparation: Astronauts prepare food by rehydrating freeze-dried items, heating ready-to-eat pouches in a food warmer, or eating natural snacks directly from their packages.
Containment: To prevent food from floating away, meals are held in containers with Velcro, and liquids are consumed from pouches with straws. Since crumbs are a hazard to equipment, tortillas are often used instead of bread.
Taste changes: In microgravity, fluids shift to the upper body, which can dull the sense of taste, so astronauts often prefer spicier foods.
Water and air supply
The ISS has a sophisticated Environmental Control and Life Support System (ECLSS) to recycle critical resources.
Water sources: Approximately 80–90% of the water on the station is reclaimed. This includes water recycled from astronauts' urine, sweat, and condensation in the cabin air.
Water purification: The Water Recovery System processes this waste water through filtration and chemical treatments to produce clean, drinkable water.
Water delivery: Since the recycling system isn't 100% efficient, fresh water is still delivered periodically by cargo resupply missions, arriving in special tanks or pouches.
Oxygen generation: The station generates most of its oxygen by a process called electrolysis, which uses electricity from solar panels to split recycled water into hydrogen and oxygen.
Atmospheric control: The ECLSS constantly monitors and regulates the atmosphere, using filters to remove exhaled carbon dioxide and other trace contaminants from the air.
Other essential needs
Clothing: Astronauts wear clothes for several days until they are too dirty to use. Since washing clothes would consume too much precious water, they are discarded and burned up in the Earth's atmosphere on a resupply mission's return journey.
Exercise: To combat the muscle and bone density loss that occurs in microgravity, astronauts must exercise for about two hours every day using specialized equipment, such as treadmills with harnesses and resistance training machines.
Sleep: Astronauts sleep in small compartments, zipped into sleeping bags that are attached to the walls to prevent them from floating around.
Waste disposal: Solid waste is collected, compressed, and stored to be jettisoned on resupply vehicles that burn up on reentry into Earth's atmosphere.
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