International Space Station (ISS)

This close-up view of the International Space Station (ISS), newly equipped with its new 27,000-pound S0 (S-zero) truss, was photographed by an astronaut aboard the Space Shuttle Atlantis STS-110 during its ISS flyaround mission while pulling away from the ISS. The STS-110 mission prepared the Station for future spacewalks by installing and outfitting the 43-foot-long S0 truss and preparing the first railroad in space, the Mobile Transporter. The 27,000 pound S0 truss was the first of 9 segments that will make up the Station's external framework that will eventually stretch 356 feet (109 meters), or approximately the length of a football field. This central truss segment also includes a flatcar called the Mobile Transporter and rails that will become the first "space railroad," which will allow the Station's robotic arm to travel up and down the finished truss for future assembly and maintenance. The completed truss structure will hold solar arrays and radiators to provide power and cooling for additional international research laboratories from Japan and Europe that will be attached to the Station. STS-110 Extravehicular Activity (EVA) marked the first use of the Station's robotic

Date: 2002-04-17
Collection: MSFC
Archive: NASA Image and Video Library
Type: photograph