INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION: ORBITING DIPLOMATIC OUTPOST.

The article presents the history of the International Space Station (ISS). The original space station program known as Freedom started in 1988 with the U.S., Japan, Canada and Europe. In 1993, Russia was invited to participate in the program. With 15 countries cooperating to assemble the ISS, the orbiting outpost is both a diplomatic achievement and an engineering wonder. The ISS is the largest and most complicated spacecraft ever built with scientists using its facilities to make life on earth better for people of all nations.