Skip to main content

International Space Station has a major upgrade task coming

 

If you’ve ever seen the International Space Station (ISS) as it passes overhead 250 miles above Earth, then you’ll probably know that its bright appearance is a result of the sun reflecting off its four pairs of solar arrays.

Recommended Videos

Hosting the first astronauts in 2000, the initial pair of arrays were installed the same year, followed by three more pairs in 2006, 2007, and 2009.

But the panels are getting a little old now and losing their effectiveness, so NASA is planning to add new ones starting this year.

The incoming arrays will be provided by Boeing (NASA’s prime contractor for space station operations), its subsidiary Spectrolab, and major supplier Deployable Space Systems.

“The combination of the eight original, larger arrays, and the smaller, more efficient new arrays will restore the power generation of each augmented array to approximately the amount generated when the original arrays were first installed, providing a 20% to 30% increase in power for space station research and operations,” NASA said this week.

The new arrays, which will be positioned in front of six of the current arrays, will link to the same power system to boost the existing supply. Once they’ve all been added, the setup will look like this:

Boeing

They’ll be delivered to the space station in pairs in the unpressurized trunk of SpaceX’s Cargo Dragon spacecraft in three separate resupply missions starting this year.

“The installation of each solar array will require two spacewalks,” the space agency said, “One to prepare the worksite with a modification kit and another to install the new solar array.”

Still keen to use the orbiting laboratory to test advanced technologies for the upcoming Artemis missions, as well as human exploration of deep space and a future mission to Mars, NASA is intent on keeping the ISS fully operational until at least 2028. Adding the new solar arrays helps the agency toward this goal.

To find out more about everyday life on the ISS, check out these videos made by astronauts over the years during their stays on the modular station. If you’ve never seen it pass overhead, then this article tells you all you need to know about spotting it in the sky — no binoculars or telescope needed!

Trevor Mogg
Contributing Editor
Not so many moons ago, Trevor moved from one tea-loving island nation that drives on the left (Britain) to another (Japan)…
NASA reveals new launch plan for SpaceX’s Crew-10 — here’s how to watch
The crew of NASA’s SpaceX Crew-10 mission.

[UPDATE: SpaceX and NASA scrubbed Wednesday's launch attempt due to a technical issue on the ground. The article below has been updated to include details on the new launch target.]

SpaceX and NASA called off the launch of Crew-10 to the space station on Wednesday evening. They're now targeting 7:03 p.m. ET on Friday, March 14, for the launch of Crew-10 from Launch Complex 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Read on for full details on how to watch a livestream of the event.

Read more
SpaceX just launched two major NASA missions at once — watch the highlights
A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket carrying NASA's SPHEREx and PUNCH missions to orbit.

Following a scrubbed launch attempt 24 hours earlier due to weather conditions and a technical issue, NASA and SpaceX successfully launched two missions — SPHEREx and PUNCH — from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California on Tuesday night.

SPHEREx is a space telescope that will map our cosmos, while PUNCH comprises four small satellites that will study our sun’s outer layer and solar winds. Both were carried to orbit by SpaceX’s workhorse Falcon 9 rocket.

Read more
Watch how astronauts train for the space station’s microgravity
ESA's aircraft for astronaut training.

The main difference between life on the International Space Station (ISS) and life here on terra firma is microgravity, which forces you to float around rather than walk.

To prepare newbie astronauts for such conditions, NASA, or in this case, the European Space Agency (ESA), takes new astronauts on special flights that are able to imitate -- albeit briefly -- the space station's microgravity environment. The important training enables the astronauts to get used to moving, working, and even jumping in microgravity. If they get really good, they'll be able to dance, too.

Read more