A research laboratory in space

The current status of the Space Station program is briefly reviewed. A three-year definition and preliminary design study, now completed, has produced the Revised Baseline Configuration featuring a 110-m-long horizontal boom with four pressurized models attached that are connected by resource nodes outfitted with Station subsystems. One of the modules is a habitat; the other three are laboratories provided by the U.S., Europe, and Japan. The main components and systems of the Revised Baseline Configuration are characterized, and some aspects of project management and international cooperation are discussed.