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What problems will the "International Space Station" face when it is about to be decommissioned?
How is the U.S. responding to these issues?
According to the information released by NASA, in order to ensure the safe retirement of the "International Space Station", NASA plans to develop a "US deorbit carrier of the International Space Station" through the private enterprise SpaceX.
The decision cost $843 million and took six years to build the object, but what are the technical challenges for the deorbiting carrier of the US space station?
Why did the United States develop an orbiter, and what did it want to show?
1. The U.S. space station program.
On April 12, 1961, the Soviet cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin successfully made a flight around the Earth, the world's first manned flight, and in 1971, the United States also achieved a manned flight on Apollo 10.
In the face of the space race between the former Soviet Union and the United States, the mainland was also full of ambition and decided to march into space.
On November 26, 1970, the mainland's first carrier celestial body "Dongfanghong No. 1" was successfully launched, and it was also the first satellite of the mainland, which was also the beginning of the mainland's space exploration.
With the continuous efforts of the mainland, the mainland participated in the construction of the International Space Station in 2003, completed the first manned mission in 2005, and successfully launched the first manned spacecraft "Shenzhou VII" in 2008.
When the manned spacecraft returns, it indicates that the mainland can carry out manned flights, and the continent's aerospace will enter a new era.
The docking of manned spacecraft and Tiangong has been realized on the mainland, and the mainland's aerospace strength has been greatly improved at this time, and not only that, but the unmanned aerial vehicles of the mainland have also been greatly improved.
The International Space Station is a worldwide property, and the continent itself belongs to the entire human race, and the research and development of a space station is very expensive, so cooperation is very important.
However, the goal of cooperation at every stage is very high, and now while the mainland's aerospace industry is booming, it is also providing strong support for the space science and technology in the future.
In the development of the mainland's aerospace, there are many people who continue to pay for the broad road of the mainland's aerospace industry, and although there is still a long way to go in space exploration technology, we will continue to work hard to move forward.
The International Space Station, as a stage of exploration, is also a testament to the continent's contribution in this regard.
Similarly, the International Space Station can be recycled, but it will be used until 2024 at the latest, after which it will have to be cleaned up and maintained.
NASA plans to haul the U.S. module into low-Earth orbit and have NASA astronauts repair it before returning the station to Earth.
Burned out in the Earth's atmosphere, but the deorbiting carrier of the American space station also faces a lot of problems.
2. What will happen to the deorbiting carrier of the "International Space Station"?
The United States has a large number of satellites in orbit, but many have crashed in the Pacific Ocean, and what will happen to the deorbiting carrier of the ISS?
That's the size of a car, and if NASA doesn't deal with it in a timely manner, it could lead to unintended consequences.
So NASA focused on this issue, and in order to ensure the safe retirement of the ISS, NASA made precise calculations on its orbital flight status, and when it entered the Earth's atmosphere, hoping to reduce its impact on the Earth.
But to do all this, the close cooperation of the transport compartment is particularly important.
If there is a problem with the deorbit carrier in the United States, this will increase NASA's worries, so NASA recommends keeping the deorbit carrier 3mm thick to prevent things from leaking.
And the thickness of the three millimeters is also high for the transport compartment, it is necessary to install a protective kit on the bulkhead to make the skin of the cabin thicker, and the bulkhead in the cabin will improve the airtightness, but this will increase the transportation cost and store more materials inside, but this will only make the bulkhead heavier.
These bulkheads will then return to Earth's atmosphere at a speed of 27,000 kilometers per hour, and under the action of atmospheric drag, the bulkheads will burn and eventually burn out.
And the larger parts will fall into the South Pacific Ocean to reduce their threat to humanity.
3. Problems with the U.S. space station.
One of the main reasons for the support for the U.S. plan for the International Space Station is that the U.S. position in the space field is being challenged.
For example, China's "Tiangong" space station plan is of great significance because it will be a "sustainable" project for the continental space station.
In order to support the "sustainable development" of the space station, China has specially developed the "Shenzhou 10" manned spacecraft, which is only the first step in building the space station, but also an important mission.
However, the United States has gradually lagged behind the mainland in the aerospace industry, on the one hand, because the industrial production capacity of the United States is no longer as good as it was in the past, and most of it has moved its production lines abroad.
On the other hand, the construction of the aerospace industry chain has not reached the most perfect point, so the United States is also lagging behind in this regard.
The "Apollo" manned spacecraft developed by the United States has stopped in front of the public, and the "Space Shuttle" has also been grounded.
Unable to transport to the ISS, the United States became urgent, because it had not developed such a space shuttle before, but could only rely on the Soyuz spacecraft to transport it to the ISS.
Although the United States is leading the way in space exploration, why is it under a little pressure at this time?
It all goes back to 2020, when the mainland's Tianwen-1 was launched on July 23, 2020, marking another step towards the Mars rover.
It is also a "milestone" in the development of space exploration on the continent at this stage.
"Tianwen-1" also successfully entered the orbit of Mars, which undoubtedly put pressure on the United States, and the American "Exploration" rover also successfully landed on the surface of Mars on the 20th, and also sent back pictures to Earth.
The "Discovery" rover is a major discovery by American scientists, and this discovery has undoubtedly further sublimated the US space industry.
However, from the perspective of the United States, it is also constantly marching into deep space exploration, and the "Chang'e" probe on the mainland has successfully landed on the moon many times, and the Mars probe and other projects.
The mainland's aerospace industry has gradually begun to form a competitive advantage.
Fourth, the purpose of the United States in developing orbiters.
The United States spends a lot of money on the construction of the International Space Station, but why did the United States develop it, is it just to "throw away" this giant?
The United States has its own "calculations" in this regard, first, to ensure the safe whereabouts of spacecraft, and second, to occupy a dominant position in the space competition and at the same time to make a wave of economy.
The construction of the International Space Station in the United States began in 1988, which took a short time, from discussion to project approval, to the completion of the construction lasted three years, including a lot of scientific research equipment, as well as human wisdom in it.
But with the rise of the continent, American spacecraft are also facing retirement, and at this time it will "come in handy" here in the United States, and the ISS is no longer a new thing, but the United States has a lot of experience at this stage.
At the same time, for the mainland, the construction of the International Space Station is very important, and the international space is to allow all countries to cooperate in operations, so it is very normal for the United States to seek to maximize its interests in this regard.
The same is true of the continent, which will not let the ISS be used as a "bargaining chip" in its hands, and cooperation between the two countries requires mutual trust.
The United States is also a relatively well-developed country in the direction of space exploration, and China's space industry is constantly developing.
In this process, many people in the mainland are paying for it, and for the vigorous development of the country, it is also for each of us to have a good development.
But the U.S. use of the Russian Soyuz spacecraft to transport astronauts and supplies is a fulfillment of the agreement between the United States and Russia, as well as a contribution to the International Space Station.
Without such an agreement, the United States would have to re-develop its own manned spacecraft, but this would undoubtedly cost capital and time.
Now that the International Space Station is about to retire, this "aftermath" is dealt with, and the United States can independently carry out space exploration and so on, and in the context of the depression of the International Space Station, the American space station is under construction.
This is conducive to the United States' manned space technology, which will be able to occupy a more advantageous position in the future space competition.
epilogue
The deorbit carrier of the US International Space Station, every "detail" of it, has been measured innumerable, which will have a great impact on the future international space competition.
But behind this action is the wisdom of American scientists, the cooperation of various countries, the consensus of peace, the vigorous youth, and the exploration of the future.