Space Station: Difference between revisions

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An artificial structure in space, where people live and work. Unlike the [[Cool Starship]], the Space Station is usually fixed in orbit around a planet or at a particular point in space. It also allows for the construction of a standing studio set and avoids expensive location shoots.
 
Real-world space stations have existed since 1971 (Salyut 1). Five of them, the incomplete but still functional International Space Station, the Chinese Tiangong-21 and Tiangong-2, and the privately-owned Genesis I & II are in orbit as of mid-September 2016; all but the ISS are unmanned. These are all much smaller than what one is used to in sci-fi shows. The list for the interested can be seen below.
 
Space stations in fiction have a tendency to be very large, sometimes housing an entire city. Many have adopted a wheel design for a centrifuge-based system of gravity (unless [[Artificial Gravity]] is employed), but this is not obligatory. If sufficiently large to support a sizeable permanent population, a space-station may be referred to as an "orbital habitat" or "space colony". [[Colony Drop|Don't drop it!]] The problem of gas exchange and food production is often solved by incorporating a closed ecosystem and green plants onboard, sometimes in dirt, sometimes hydroponics, sometimes algae aquaculture.
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** ''[[Stargate Atlantis]]'' also featured a moon base.
* ''[[Kamen Rider Fourze]]'' has the M-BUS, the headquarters for the Anti Zodiarts Union. It fires a beam of Cosmic Energy that enables [[Second Rider|Kamen Rider Meteor]] to transform.
* Many space stations of various shapes and sizes are shown in ''[[Andromeda]]''. The largest one is the Arcology, a massive space habitat filled with [[Technical Pacifist|Technical Pacifists]]. The Arcology does have a [[Faster-Than-Light Travel|slipdrive]], although it's ancient (almost [[Steampunk]]-like) and non-functional.
 
== [[Tabletop Games]] ==
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* Polyus<ref>"Pole"</ref> (1987): A planned Almaz station, carrying a CO<sub>2</sub> laser designed for anti-satellite warfare. Launched upside down due to space restrictions in the Energia, the intention was to yaw the station 180 degrees before firing rockets to place it in permanent orbit, but a failure in the inertial guidance system caused the maneuvering jets to rotate the craft 360 degrees, sending it careening into the atmosphere over the South Pacific.
 
=== USUSA ===
* [[wikipedia:Manned Orbital Laboratory|Manned Orbital Laboratory]] (1963-1969) A proposed all-military station that was essentially to be a manned spy satellite. Test vehicles were launched and astronauts were trained, but [[What Could Have Been|the project was cancelled]] due to cost overruns and the fact that unmanned satellites had become cheaper and more reliable. Several of the MOL astronauts transferred to the NASA astronaut program and flew in the [[Space Shuttle]].
* Skylab (1973–79): NASA's only self-launched and operated space station, operated from 1973-1974. During its launch one of its main solar wings and the main sunshade was torn off, and the second wing was jammed against the side of the hull by a metal strap, resulting in a loss of power and dangerously high internal temperatures. The first crew sent there was able to release the remaining wing and erect a sunshade that brought temperatures back to survivable levels. Plans were floated to bring Skylab back into functional status for several years, but NASA was ultimately convinced that the Shuttle would not be operational in time to return to Skylab before its orbit decayed too far to recover. Deorbited in 1979, it was replaced by the Spacelab attachment for the Shuttle Orbiter. Debris from the station landed in the Shire of Esperance, Australia, which responded by issuing a [[Refuge in Audacity|$400 fine for littering]] to the US government.
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=== International ===
* ISS (1998–present): Biggest one yet built and not yet finished. Core consists of components from the planned Russian station Mir-2 (Zarya FGB and Zvezda Service Module) and American station Freedom (Integrated Truss Structure). [[Europe|ESA]], [[Japan|JAXA]], and [[Canada|CSA]] have all contributed components.
** [http://heavens-above.com/ If you want to see where it currently is, go here]