2007 Will Be An Exciting Year for the ISS

When I was a kid and saw MOONRAKER on HBO, I wanted to live on a space station. But my pops explained to me that space stations didn't exist... They only existed in Science Fiction.

Flash Foreward: Some 22 years later, Brian and I go see his first IMAX 3-D movie called SPACE STATION 3-D. It's all about the creation of the International Space Station (ISS), and the IMAX 3-D experience allows you to experience a shuttle launch from the cockpit, as well as watch a Soviet Soyuz blast off from WAY TOO CLOSE up.

AND... You get to experience what daily life is like Up There!!! Somehow the larger-than-life IMAX screen and the 3-D effect makes what you're looking at on screen appear as though YOU'RE ACTUALLY THERE ON THE SPACE STATION!!! Your mind is almost completely convinced that you're looking at everything life-sized.

It's really profound.

And it gives one a sense of what astronauts mean when they try to describe just how indescribable space is.

The flick reawakened in me a child-like sense of awe reguarding outter space. And I actually had to ask Brian "Do we really have a space station? I mean, it's up there?!" In the late 80s or early 90s it seems I saw plenty of speculative pieces about "One day we might be able to do something like this..." but they were merely speculation and hopeful thinking.

So to find out we ACTUALLY HAVE A SPACE STATION UP THERE ABOVE US!!! Right now! As you read these words! In fact, for the last few weeks we've been able to see it (apparently, I've only seen pictures) with the naked eye from Earth! (It looks like a particularly large star.)

Anyway, I discovered that 2007 is kind of a crucial year for the ISS, and it got me all excited and nervous, so I had to share this with you...

My brother got a subscription to Popular Science a year or so ago, and I keep telling myself I'll sit down and read it sometime so I can keep up with what's around the corner. I've loved gadgets since I was a child watching STAR WARS and STAR TREK and all that. I just dig on Sci-Fi, and I get excited when we start catching up to Sci-Fi predictions! (For insatance: I still marvel over the fact that I communicate with my Gnomey, effectively, via a Video-Phone!!! in 2000 I wouldn't have believed you if you said I would be doing what I do almost every day! HOW COOL IS THAT?!!)

I never have the time to sit down and pour through Brian's back issues, tho'. I have back issues of screenwriting magazines that I haven't dipped into yet.

However... Brian has been leaving issues in the bathroom lately! He usually leaves them open to whatever article he was reading the last time he was in there, presumably. And recently I decided that, well, I'm here anyway...

So a couple of days ago I got a quick crash course in the possible health hazzards of nanotechnology (that we ARE CURRENTLY USING) and a very basic overview of the research that is curently being conducted.

Well, today I read an article about explaining why this will be a critical year for the growth of the ISS.

I'll paraphrase the information for ya, but you can read the online article here.

So here's the gist:

The ISS was only 49% completed in 2003 when the Columbia shuttle tragedy shut down the shuttle program. I mean, the ISS isn't incomplete, but the plan has always been to add to and expand.

Now, apparently, the space shuttle program is going to be shut down in 2010. And we're a couple of years behind on our shuttle missions to the space station. NASA has 14 more assembly missions to go to complete the International Space station, and 5 of those are scheduled to happen THIS YEAR.

If all 5 assembly missions go well, the ISS will be 30% bigger, have 3 times the power is currently has, and will be home to TWO additional labs!!!

Why is this cool? Humanity seems to have forgotten since the 1960s that we can study things in space that we simply CAN NOT study on Earth. It's a COMEPLETELY DIFFERENT ENVIRONMENT. Also, the sun isn't gonna last forever. It'll be well into the future -- LONG after our great-great-great grandkids have passed away -- but eventually out planet will get baked when our sun goes nova (or "supernova"? I'm SO not a scientist, just a sci-fi nerd) and if Humanity is still on it, then we die out. If the species is going to survive, we need to figure out how to travel great distances through space and live -- long-term -- off-planet.

And the first step for this is, inevitably, getting to Mars.

In the 1990s politicians lost interest in NASA and space travel when liberals realized that Federal social programs would make a good "slush fund" for their personal wealth building and conservatives realized that starting wars and then giving their corprorate buddies the contracts for weapons or supplies is a good way to keep the campaign contributions coming. And with this realization came the realization that pure scientific research uses up A LOT of money that could be going into their pockets, so polititians made sure to play-up the expense of NASA and completely fail to mention all the discoveries and technologies that fell into our laps as a result of our moon shots.

However, if we can get the ISS fully assembled before 2010, we may have a shot at learning new stuff DESPITE the fact that our government decides what we do with our tax dollars! Humanity might stumble onto some cool science-changing discoveries in spite of our leaders.

So I'm STOKED!

I really want all 5 of these assembly missions to go well, and I want to see the International Space Station grow and develop, and eventually discover something that makes all of us down here go "Cool! Let's do MORE space research!" Maybe even start demanding our governmental overlords (I'm not bitter) start using our tax dollars fund un-politicized, PURE scientific research! (A guy can dream...)

So heres' what we're looking at:

March 16, 2007 - The Atlantis is supposed to carry up a "starboard truss segment with Photovoltaic Radiator" and a set of solar arrays and batteries.

June 28, 2007 - The Endeavour is scheduled to take up a SPACEHAB single cargo module, another starboard truss segment and an external stowage platform.

September 7, 2007 - The Atlantis heads back up with a "Node 2" and a "Sidewall - Power and Data Grapple Fixture". (No idea what these items are, but they sound sci-fi-y so I'm game!)

October 2007 - (NASA hasn't specified the day yet) The Discovery takes up the COLUMBUS EUROPEAN LABORATORY MODULE (that's one of the labs I meantioned above), and a "Mutil-Purpose Experiment Support Structure - Non-Deployable".

December 2007 - The Endeavour transports the Kibo Japanese Experimental Logistics Module - Pressurized Section (THE OTHER LAB!) and the Spacelab Pallet - Deployable 1 "with Canadian Special Purpose Dexterous Manipulator" (which sounds pretty cool... They call it "Dextre" apparently)

I got this information from here.

So anyway...

That's one of the things I'm geeking out about recently.

Hee-hee! :D



P. S. If you want to actually see the International Space Station, check here.