![]() ![]() Then how do they know when it's bedtime?Įach 24-hour period has 8.5 hours allocated for sleeping, and astronauts try to stay on the same schedule, using Greenwich Mean Time to stay consistent, according to the Canadian Space Agency. That means astronauts have 16 sunrises and 16 sunsets they can watch every single day. The crew is in daylight half the time and in darkness the other half. Travelling at 28,000 kilometres an hour, the International Space Station makes a full trip around the world about once every 90 minutes. The ISS has a 3-D printer on board that has been used to make 20 objects, including a ratchet wrench. During downtime, astronauts can also watch TV and movies on their laptops, or simply gaze out the window at the stunning view. There's internet connectivity, so they can also keep in touch with family and friends through email and internet phone, or surf the web. Every weekend, the astronauts can have private video-conferences with their families back on Earth. Space station crew members work five days a week and get two days off to relax. Instead, astronauts use resistance bands. For cardiovascular activity, there's a modified exercise bicycle and treadmill. Because of the microgravity, lifting traditional weights would have no effect. In addition to conducting research and maintaining the space station, crew members work out about two hours each day to keep their bones and muscles strong. Astronauts could inhale them and hair can clog air filters. They have to be careful to contain any loose hairs that wind up on the towel, because if hairs float away, they become a safety hazard. ![]() They use no-rinse shampoo and a towel to wash their hair. Partly to conserve water and partly because water clings to the body in a microgravity environment, astronauts take sponge baths rather than showers. ![]() Because it's a microgravity environment, they use straps to keep from floating away. When it comes to excrement, there is a sort of toilet that people squat over, depositing their business into a bag. People urinate into a hose that takes the urine to the processor that turns it into water. The space station bathroom facilities use suction instead of water to flush. Since it was activated in 2008, NASA says, more than 10,000 kilograms of drinkable water has been generated from crew members' urine. The goal is to reuse as much water as possible, including wastewater from washing, human urine and sweat. The Environmental Control and Life Support System on board the station includes a urine processor. But no bread allowedįood that produces crumbs, like bread, isn't a good choice in weightless space because loose crumbs can float and contaminate the environment inside the space station.ĭelivering fresh water into space is extremely expensive, so the space station's water recovery system reduces the water resupply needs from about four litres a day to about 1.3 litres. Since the first expedition, space station residents have eaten more than 26,500 meals. It takes about 6,350 kilograms of supplies to feed three people for six months. Expeditions to the ISS usually last about six months.Īccording to NASA, food favourites aboard the station include shrimp cocktail, tortillas and macaroni and cheese. Crews of three to six people are on board at all times. Since that first crew arrived 15 years ago, there has always been someone living on the space station. The station weighs about 420,000 kilograms. The International Space Station is about the length of a Canadian football field (100 metres) and has as much living space inside as a five-bedroom house. Here are 15 facts from NASA and the Canadian Space Agency about the space station and what life is like on board: Since then, the ISS has hosted more than 220 people (including seven Canadians) from more than a dozen countries. On Nov. 2, 2000, an American astronaut and two Russian cosmonauts became the first humans to take up residence on the International Space Station. ![]()
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