Living on a space station — Astronomy, 4–6 years
A space station is a large spacecraft where people can live and work for a while. It travels around Earth, so everything inside must be carried up and carefully managed.
A home that flies
A space station is like a collection of rooms joined inside one spacecraft. People sleep, eat, exercise and do experiments there while the station travels around Earth.
Why build a station?
A short visit gives only a little time for careful experiments. A station gives researchers a place to return to, so different people can study how living and working in space affects things over many days.
A day of supplies
A station has four people and receives two boxes of food. First count what is already there: four people. Then add the visitors’ supplies: two boxes. The crew must plan so the food lasts for everyone.
A common mix-up
People often think astronauts float because there is no gravity in space. Gravity is still pulling on the station; they float because the station and everything inside it are falling around Earth together.
Stations outside school
On a space station, researchers test plants, materials and tools in unusual conditions. The results can improve life-support systems and teach us how living things cope with long journeys away from Earth.
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