space station

noun

1. an orbiting manned structure that can be used for a variety of purposes, as to assemble or service satellites, refuel spacecraft, etc.

space station

noun

1. any large manned artificial satellite designed to orbit the earth during a long period of time thus providing a base for scientific and medical research in space and a construction site, launch pad, and docking arrangements for spacecraft Also calledspace platformspace laboratory

space station

1. A structure being assembled in space by an international partnership led by NASA . The space station will be a permanent habitat at which scientific and technological work can be carried out. Building a space station is considered the next step in the development and exploration of space, although there is controversy concerning its cost and the value of the research that will be carried out there.

Other Words From

• space-station adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of space station¹

First recorded in 1940–45

Example Sentences

He recalls watching one of China’s first space station missions as a 13-year-old with “excitement and awe”.

From BBC

The orbit of the American space station Skylab is deteriorating; history tells us that parts of it came down in … Western Australia, in 1979.

From Los Angeles Times

The pair's mission at the space station had only been expected to last about eight days but after a fault was found on the new Boeing Starliner it returned to Earth empty as a precaution.

From BBC

But that spacewalk can introduce something novel to the space station - the metallic “space smell”.

From BBC

Since the mission is not docking with the space station and has limited supplies, weather conditions need to be good for both the launch and splashdown off the Florida coast.

From Los Angeles Times