Space Exploration 2012

As of August 2011, there have been 135 launches to the space station since the launch of the first module, Zarya, at 1:40 a.m. EST on Nov. 20, 1998: 74 Russian vehicles, 37 space shuttles, two European and two Japanese vehicles. The final space shuttle mission July 8-21 by Atlantis delivered 4 1/2 tons of supplies in the Raffaello logistics module.

A total of 161 spacewalks have been conducted in support of space station assembly totaling more than 1,015 hours.

The space station, including its large solar arrays, spans the area of a U.S. football field, including the end zones, and weighs 861,804 pounds, not including visiting vehicles. The complex now has more livable room than a conventional five-bedroom house, and has two bathrooms, a gymnasium and a 360-degree bay window.

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