Science in Space: Five Agencies Operating in Zero Gravity

The International Space Station is the technological and scientific achievement of the U.S., Russian, European, Japanese, and Canadian space agencies. Constructed over the past 12 years, the onboard laboratories fly 275-460 km above the planet conducting experiments in a near-weightless environment. The space station’s research is making advances in vaccine development, cancer treatment, water purification, and fundamental physics, and providing lessons for future multi-national missions.