International Space Station Cupola Video Released

quaith writes "With the Space Shuttle Endeavour scheduled to launch at 4:39 AM EST on Sunday for a trip to the International Space Station, the European Space Agency has released a video that shows how the modules it's carrying — Node-3 ('Tranquility') and Cupola — are going to get attached. Node-3 is a connecting module. Cupola has six trapezoidal windows and circular roof designed to provide a unique vantage-point for observing Earth. The video animations show how the station's robotic arm will be used initially to put the modules in place as a single unit, and then to detach Cupola from the end of Node-3 and reattach it on the Earth-facing side. With this addition, the ISS will start to look like something that Jules Verne would have wanted to visit."

Comments

Two astronauts...

[nacturation]

... one cupola?

I want a room with a view

[v1]

and that looks like it delivers. Interesting idea to forge the frame from a single piece of aluminum... definitely saved some weight on a bunch more seals...

Re:I want a room with a view

[argent]

Seals are so heavy, They would have saved a bunch of weight by using sea otters holding hands.

Market

[NonSequor]

This is going to do wonders for their resale value when the market turns around.

Well, they may call it "Tranquility"

[portforward]

but I know it my heart it should be "Colbert."

Is this the Frances Ford Cupola?

[trout007]

I think it was a partnership between France and Ford. I could be wrong.

Re:Is this the Frances Ford Cupola?

[mwvdlee]

The robotic arm's seal broke after just five hours of use and, wait, is that wine spilling out?

Hydraulics, alcoholics... it's all pretty much the same thing.

Designed for what?

[Shag]

Cupola has six trapezoidal windows and circular roof designed to provide a unique vantage-point for observing Earth.

I think you meant to say "designed for monitoring dockings, robotic-arm operations and spacewalks."

But I'm sure the residents of the station will be begging command to let them open the aluminum shutters that protect those windows from space junk and meteorites, since the windows coincidentally would provide a unique vantage-point for observing Earth and space, too. :)

As well as anything else that might be outside... glass elevators, vermicious knids, etc.

Re:Designed for what?

[Rexdude]

As well as anything else that might be outside... glass elevators, vermicious knids, etc.

For those who didn't know, that's a Roald Dahl reference, from 'Charlie and the Great Glass Elevator'

grammatically challenged scientists announce

[byrdfl3w]

they're gonna put a cupola new bits on the ISS..

Imagine the view

[kerskine]

What I would give to spend 8 hours in that cupola

Re:Imagine the view

[Hurricane78]

What I would give, to spend 8 hours with (first) a really great meal and (then) a naked and willing $favoriteHotGirl in that Cupola.

And how I wish that I would have the skill to make HER want to give (whatever she would give) to do this with me. :D

Re:"We want a window!"

[khallow]

and cancel the Aries rocket and manned space exploration.

We can always do manned space exploration with the Delta IV Heavy and Atlas V Heavy. And since NASA will be using commercial vehicles, they'll help the US develop space instead of being the usual obstacle.

Cool

[FleaPlus]

Sure, the international cooperation on the ISS was done pretty suboptimally (e.g. over-reliance on the delay-prone and costly Space Shuttle), but there's still something really inspirational about a European-built observatory module being launched on an American rocket, so that astronauts can (among other things) effectively control a Canada-built robotic construction arm, powered by US and Russian solar panels. Also, the robotic Canadarm and Cupola will be used to install the Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer in a few months, one of the space station's most promising scientific instruments.

Some more info on the Cupola over at wiki (of course): http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cupola_(ISS)

www.esa.int

[hey]

I like the use of the .int top-level-domain.

Re:www.esa.int

[Anonymous Coward]

Quick! Somebody snatch short.int, long.int, and long.long.int.

Re:www.esa.int

[Trapezium Artist]

I completely agree with you, it's very cool in a Joe-90, Thunderbirds kind of way. Then again, what else could we use for an international organisation with 18 member states? .org possibly, but it's a bit bland.

(Yes, I work for ESA and very much like my @esa.int mail address :-)

Re:"We want a window!"

[sznupi]

Exercise equipment is essential for keeping the crew healthy; Cupola is a useful observation deck for EVA and Canadarm activities as well as basic Earth observation - that it also provides a very nice view is a good thing, if only because of possible benefits in keeping the crew functioning nicely, all around.

Speaking of hauling equipment - the view of Shuttle on the launchpad with cargo visible was really depressing; so much barely needed structure, so much waste in launched mass...

"Video animation" ?

[rpetre]

Maybe it's because I'm not a native English speaker, but this sounds very much like redundancy (I think the correct grammatical term is "tautology"), probably induced by some so-called SEO expert: "screw common sense, just toss in the keyword 'video' as much as possible".

too bad only four US astronauts a year will use it

[peter303]

At its maximum capacity the Soyuz could supply 18 astronauts a year to the space station via six annual launches. But Soyuz has never operated at that high capacity. Four launches would be considered more likely. The US quota is 2 of the 6 ISS astronauts, Russia another two, and the remaining two more for Japan, ESA, and Canada. More likely there will be 4-5 at a time and four launched, hence the four US astronaut estimate. Contrast this to the 25-30 in recent years to build the ISS.