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Life in Space Station

The International Space Station must provide astronauts with an environment which is similar to the Earth. So the life support in ISS is similar to that in a space shuttle. You can refer to Life in Space Shuttle.
Here we will discuss the living and working in the ISS.

Sleeping
Sleeping in space is different from sleeping on the Earth. Astronauts have a wall-mounted sleeping bag that they slip into and zip up instead of sleeping in a bed. The bag is also equipped with arm restraints to prevent the arms from floating above the head while sleeping.

Bathing
Most astronauts have to take sponge baths using washcloths or moistened towelettes in order to reduce the amount of water used.

Eating
The food on the ISS will be mainly frozen, dehydrated or heat-stabilized and drinks will be dehydrated. Astronauts collect food trays and utensils, locate their individually packaged meal from a storage compartment, prepare the items and then heat the items, then place them in the tray and finally eat. After the meal, they will place the used items in a trash compactor, and clean and store the utensils and trays.

Exercising
In a condition of microgravity, the body loses bone and muscle mass (see the section How Astronauts Feel in Mircogravity). Astronauts will have to exercise daily for the purpose of counter the losses. The service module, where the astronauts live, is equipped with a treadmill and a stationary bicycle for their activities. Of course, astronauts must strap themselves onto the devices so that they do not fload away during the exercise.

Working
When the ISS is completed, work will involve maintaining the station (e.g. fixing broken equipment, repairing structures) and conducting scientific experiments and observations. There will be six scientific laboratories. The equipment is held by closet-sized racks along the walls of the laboratory module, footholds and restraints are used so astronauts won't float away while working. Remote video and data links and used in the experiment racks so that scientists on the ground will be able to monitor the experiments on-board the ISS continuously.

Moving Around on the ISS
Walking in microgravity is very different from that in the Earth. As astronauts float, they have to use handholds mounted on the walls to keep themselves stable when moving around.

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Photo Courtesy NASA