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Unity (ISS module)

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Unity
Unity as pictured by Space Shuttle Endeavour shortly after it was berthed to Zarya in December 1998
Module statistics
COSPAR ID1998-069F
Part ofInternational Space Station
Launch date4 December 1998, 08:35:34 UTC
Launch vehicleSpace Shuttle Endeavour
Berthed6 December 1998 (Zarya forward)
Mass11,612 kg (25,600 lb)
Length5.47 m (17.9 ft)
Diameter4.57 m (15.0 ft)

Unity, also known as Node 1, is the first U.S.-built component of the International Space Station (ISS). This cylindrical module, constructed of steel by Boeing for NASA, serves as the critical link between the orbiting laboratory's Russian Orbital Segment and US Orbital Segment.

Unity was launched on 4 December 1998, aboard the Space Shuttle Endeavour on STS-88. Two days later it was berthed to the previously launched Zarya module, marking the first connection between ISS components. Its six Common Berthing Mechanism (CBM) locations (forward, aft, port, starboard, zenith, and nadir) facilitate connections to other modules. At launch, two CBM locations were fitted with Pressurized Mating Adapters (PMA), one of which enabled the mating with Zarya.

Measuring 4.57 metres (15.0 ft) in diameter and 5.47 metres (17.9 ft) in length, Unity was built at NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center. It is the first of three connecting modules, joined by Harmony and Tranquility.

Launch and initial berthing

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Unity (with its two attached PMAs) was carried into orbit as the primary cargo of the Space Shuttle Endeavour (OV 105) on STS-88, the first Space Shuttle mission dedicated to assembly of the station. On 6 December 1998, the STS-88 crew mated the docking port of the PMA on the aft berthing port of Unity with the forward hatch of the already orbiting Zarya module. (Zarya was a mixed Russian-U.S. funded and Russian-built component launched a few days before aboard a Russian Proton launch vehicle from Baikonur, Kazakhstan.) This was the first connection made between two station modules.

Connecting modules and visiting vehicles

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Unity has two axial and four radial Common Berthing Mechanism (CBM) ports. In addition to connecting to the Zarya module, Unity connects to the U.S. Destiny Laboratory Module (added on STS-98), the Z1 truss (an early exterior framework for the station added on STS-92), the PMA-3 (also added on STS-92), and the Quest Joint Airlock (added on STS-104). During STS-120 the Harmony module was temporarily berthed to the port-side hatch of Unity. Tranquility, with its multi-windowed cupola, was attached to Unity's port side during the STS-130 mission, and Leonardo was added to the nadir hatch during STS-133.

In addition, the Leonardo and Raffaello Multi-Purpose Logistics Modules were each berthed to Unity on multiple missions.

Nadir
Spacecraft Docking (UTC) Undocking (UTC)
STS-97 2 December 2000, 19:59 9 December 2000, 19:13
STS-98 9 February 2001, 16:51 16 February 2001, 14:05
Leonardo PMM 2011 2015
CRS OA-4 9 December 2015, 14:26 19 February 2016, 10:38
CRS OA-6 26 March 2016, 10:51 14 June 2016, 11:43
CRS OA-5 17 October 2016, 23:45 27 November 2016, 23:36
CRS OA-7 22 April 2017, 12:39 4 June 2017, 11:05
CRS OA-8E 14 November 2017, 12:15 5 December 2017, 17:52
CRS OA-9E 24 May 2018, 12:13 15 July 2018, 10:20
CRS NG-10 19 November 2018, 12:31 8 February 2019, 14:37
CRS NG-11 19 April 2019, 11:31 6 August 2019, 13:30
CRS NG-12 4 November 2019, 11:21 31 January 2020, 13:10
CRS NG-13 18 February 2020, 11:16 11 May 2020, 13:00
CRS NG-14 5 October 2020, 12:01 26 January 2020, 20:23
CRS NG-15 20 February 2021, 17:36 29 June 2021, 16:32
CRS NG-16 12 August 2021, 13:42 15 December 2021, 06:25
CRS NG-17 21 February 2022, 12:02 28 June 2022, 07:00
CRS NG-18 9 November 2022, 13:05 21 April 2023, 08:37
CRS NG-19 4 August 2023, 12:28 22 December 2023, 10:00
CRS NG-20 1 February 2024, 12:14 12 July 2024, 08:00
CRS NG-21 6 August 2024, 09:33 TBD
Forward

via PMA-2

Spacecraft Docking Undocking
STS-96 27 May 1999, 10:49 6 June 1999, 02:02
STS-101 20 May 2000, 04:30 26 May 2000, 23:03
STS-106 8 September 2000, 12:45 19 September 2000, 07:56
STS-92 11 October 2000, 23:17 24 October 2000, 20:59
Aft
Starboard
Port
Zenith

Details

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Interior of Node 1 (As of 2005)

Essential space station resources such as fluids, environmental control and life support systems, electrical and data systems are routed through Unity to supply work and living areas of the station. More than 50,000 mechanical items, 216 lines to carry fluids and gases, and 121 internal and external electrical cables using six miles of wire were installed in the Unity node.[2] The primary structure of Unity is constructed of aluminium.[3]

During the space station construction, a crew member placed two speed limit signs on the hatch (leading into the FGB) in 2003, noting the orbital velocity in mph and km/h.[4]

Prior to its launch aboard Endeavour, conical Pressurized Mating Adapters (PMAs) were attached to the aft and forward berthing mechanisms of Unity. Unity and the two mating adapters together weighed about 11,600 kg (25,600 lb). The adapters allow the docking systems used by the Space Shuttle and by Russian modules to attach to the node's hatches and berthing mechanisms.[2] PMA-1 now permanently attaches Unity to Zarya, while PMA-2 provided a Shuttle docking port. Attached to the exterior of PMA-1 are computers, or multiplexer-demultiplexers (MDMs), which provided early command and control of Unity. Unity also is outfitted with an early communications system that allows data, voice and low data rate video with Mission Control Houston, to supplement Russian communications systems during the early station assembly activities. PMA-3 was attached to Unity's nadir berthing mechanism by the crew of STS-92.

Other nodes

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Node 3 (Tranquility) in space

The two remaining station connecting modules, or nodes, were manufactured in Italy by Alenia Aerospazio, as part of an agreement between NASA and the European Space Agency (ESA). Harmony (also known as Node 2) and Tranquility (also known as Node 3) are slightly longer than Unity, measuring almost 6.4 m (21 ft) long in total. In addition to their six berthing ports, each can hold eight International Standard Payload Racks (ISPRs). Unity, in comparison, holds just four ISPRs. ESA built Nodes 2 and 3 as partial payment for the launch aboard the Shuttle of the Columbus laboratory module, and other ESA equipment.

References

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  1. ^ "NASA - PMA-2 Move Readies Station for Harmony Relocation". nasa.gov. Archived from the original on 14 October 2021. Retrieved 24 January 2021. Public Domain This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
  2. ^ a b "Unity Node". NASA. Archived from the original on 14 June 2014. Retrieved 8 November 2013. Public Domain This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
  3. ^ "NASA Facts: Unity Connecting Module: cornerstone for a Home in Orbit" (PDF). NASA. January 1999. Archived from the original (PDF) on 17 August 2000. Public Domain This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
  4. ^ "Space Station Science Picture of the Day: Speed Limit". www.spaceref.com. Retrieved 6 May 2022.[permanent dead link]
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