The International Space Station is the closest thing we humans currently have to a space colony. It orbits around the Earth 15 times a day hovering about 250 miles above us. It is upsetting that over 99.99% of humans will never have the opportunity to actually be in the space station. Instead, we get to see a live feed on our computers, which is still nice. You can see what the space station is seeing right here. Space Dashboard also shows the path of the station’s orbit, who is on the station currently, and plenty of cool (but not very understandable) data.
The ISS is not only fascinating for its revolutionary science and innovation but also for its cooperation among countries. Martin Luther King Jr. famously stated, “We’ve learned to fly the air like birds, we’ve learned to swim the seas like fish, and yet we haven’t learned to walk the Earth as brothers and sisters.” The quote still has relevance today because while the Earth is much more peaceful than it was during the Cold War and racism of King's era, there still are major tensions and conflicts between countries.
The ISS represents an effort to achieve something greater through the cooperation of nations rather than competition. Near the end of the Cold War, the space race began. It primarily featured the USSR and the US competing for dominance in the heavens. When the USSR dissolved, the space race did as well and exploring the final frontier became a cooperative effort. The ISS was born from that cooperative effort and has served to the benefit of the entire world.
The most practical application of having a space station is the opportunity for research. The ISS allows us to investigate the properties of fluids, proteins, and other materials in microgravity. The results of these studies benefit all of humanity as universal access to this information allows us earthly humans to make further advances in science and technology. The ISS represents the future not only for its technology but also for facilitating cooperation among humanity’s nations.
