Modularized space station

Space stations are structures designed to allow hiunans to live in space. There are two basic types monohthic and modular. Monolithic space stations are one-piece structures. They are launched into space as single units. The U.S. Skylab was a monolithic space station. Modular space stations are launched into space as separate sections and then assembled in outer space. The International Space Station (Figure 12-24) is a modular unit. 

Compare and contrast the advantages of a monolithic space station compared to a modular space station. 

Modularized Space Station Space station whose overall structure is created by connecting modules and other operational pieces in orbit. 

The design of space stations evolved since the first space station missions of the early 1970 s. The space stations of the Salyut and other programs were monolithic structures, so called because they were designed as centralized spacecraft. Later space stations favored modular designs that allow diverse elements to be added as needed. For example, the ISS is made up of several modules added over several years. The most common uses of space stations by scientists are as laboratories for experiments in a range of life and material sciences. 

Architecture. Manned space stations are designed to be used as semipermanent habitats and laboratories. Therefore, they are roomier and have more advanced life-support systems and are technologically more complex than other space vehicles. The ISS exemplifies this design consideration It is 240 feet long and 356 feet wide, with more than 12,000 square feet of room in which to live and work. It is also modular, with solar arrays, pressurized living and research modules, connector nodes, storage modules, and other pieces all connected around a central truss system. Each piece of the ISS is launched into space (either aboard a shuttle craft or rocket) and locked into place. The last component of the ISS was scheduled to be added in 2011. 

---