The ISS consists of Canada, Japan, the Russian Federation, the United States, and eleven Member States of the European Space Agency (Belgium, Denmark, France, Germany, Italy, The Netherlands, Norway, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland and the United Kingdom).The International Space Station (ISS) is a space station, or a habitable artificial satellite, in low Earth orbit. Its first component launched into orbit in 1998, and the ISS is now the largest artificial body in orbit and can often be seen with the naked eye from Earth.^[7][8] The ISS consists of pressurised modules, external trusses, solar arrays and other components. ISS components have been launched by Russian Proton and Soyuz rockets as well as American Space Shuttles.Astronauts and cosmonauts on the space station stay busy. There’s lots of work to operate the many science experiments on board. The crew also has to make sure that the station is in top shape, so they clean, check equipment, maintain and repair or replace broken equipment. Crew members also must exercise two hours each day to stay fit and keep their bones and muscles strong. Sometimes we need to do a spacewalk to work outside the station in our space suit. It’s a tough and dangerous job but the view is terrific. The extra-vehicular activities, or EVAs, help keep the space station running. The International Space Station is a large spacecraft in orbit around Earth. It serves as a home where crews of astronauts and cosmonauts live. The space station is also a unique science laboratory. Several nations worked together to build and use the space station.During the past 50 years we frequently heard about the many amazing spinoffs from the human spaceflight program – everything from personal computers to solar energy. Now, we are also seeing direct tangible benefits from the research being conducted on the International Space Station (ISS).The ISS provides a unique environment for scientific discovery that simply cannot be duplicated anywhere on Earth. Research on this orbiting laboratory is not only enabling humans to explore the solar system, it is leading to countless improvements for life on Earth. For example, space based science offers an environment to foster new materials, better medicines, improved methods to provide clean water, and better ways to grow enough food to feed our increasing global population. Studying astronauts living and working in space also enhances our understanding of the human body, resulting in innovative ways to protect all humans from many different ailments. The list of benefits is endless.