Today, Tuesday, July 29, 2003 marks the 1000th consecutive day that a human presence has been aboard the International Space Station (ISS).

Despite tragedy and drawbacks, the station continues to thrive, at present under the watch of  Russian Commander Yuri Malenchenko and Science Officer Ed Lu, the Expedition 7 crew.

During this time, there have been a series of firsts, the seven Expedition crews, 10 Americans and 10 Russians, have conducted 12 spacewalks from the ISS, welcomed 11 visiting space shuttles, 10 Russian Progress cargo vehicles and four Soyuz taxi crews. There has even been a couple of tourists, Dennis Tito and Mark Shuttleworth.

Additions to the Station include solar arrays of unprecedented size; the first space railway, stretching more than 130 feet; and a science facility, more sophisticated than any ever previously flown in space, the U.S. Destiny Lab. Canada provided a new generation of space robotics with the unmatched capabilities of the Canadarm2. Dual Russian and U.S. airlocks are functional and support  spacewalks.

Against the blackness of space and Earth’s horizon, the ISS was photographed through an aft flight deck window following separation from the Space Shuttle Atlantis at 8:13 a.m. (CDT) on October 16, 2002.

This picture captures the station for what it means to humanity, it is a beacon of hope in world often devoid of any, a symbol of the future, a fragile human home alone in the night. The story continues ...