Expedition 1

Background

The first ISS component, the Zarya module, launched uncrewed on 20 November 1998. Between then and Expedition 1, five crewed Space Shuttle missions and two uncrewed Russian flights expanded the station. STS-88 delivered the Unity module in December 1998; Krikalev, later a flight engineer on Expedition 1, was among the first to enter Unity and Zarya. STS-96 in May 1999 delivered 3,567 lb of pressurized cargo and 84 lb of water.

STS-101 in May 2000 delivered 3,300 lb of pressurized cargo and boosted the station's orbit by 26 miles. The Zvezda module, the crew's living quarters, launched on 12 July 2000 and docked autonomously on 26 July. Progress M1-3 docked on 8 August. STS-106 in September 2000 connected Zvezda to Zarya, delivered 6,000 lb of cargo including all food for Expedition 1, and the crew spent nearly five and a half days unloading and setting up.

STS-92 in October 2000 delivered the first piece of the Integrated Truss Structure and an additional Pressurized Mating Adapter. Prior to Expedition 1, Krikalev expected the ISS to be very similar to his experience on Mir due to physical similarities.

Crew

The commander, Bill Shepherd, was a former Navy SEAL whose previous spaceflights were shuttle missions totaling about two weeks. The Russian space agency had questioned his selection due to this lack of experience.

Flight engineer Sergei Krikalev had spent over a year in orbit, mostly on Mir, and had been among the first to enter the Zarya module in 1998. Yuri Gidzenko, commander and pilot of the Soyuz mission, had one prior spaceflight: a 180-day stay on Mir. Shepherd was the second U.S. astronaut launched on a Russian spacecraft, after Norman Thagard in 1995.

Mission highlights

The crew launched on 31 October 2000 at 07:52 UTC from Gagarin's Start at Baikonur, aboard Soyuz TM-31. After 33 orbits and rendezvous maneuvers by Gidzenko, they docked to the aft port of Zvezda on 2 November at 09:21 UTC. Ninety minutes later, Shepherd opened the hatch and the crew entered.

Shepherd requested the radio call sign Alpha, which he and Krikalev preferred; it was authorized for Expedition 1. Shepherd had advocated the name, referencing naval tradition. Yuriy Semenov, President of Russian Space Corporation Energia, disapproved, preferring Beta or Mir 2.

In the first weeks, the crew activated life support and computer systems and unpacked supplies. The station lacked enough electricity to heat all three modules, so Unity was left unheated. The expedition ended when Discovery undocked on 18 March 2001.

Daily activities

Each day typically began with an electronic wake-up tone around 05:00 UTC, though actual wake-up was usually between 06:00 and 07:00 UTC. After cleaning up, breakfast, and reading uplinked e-mail, the crew worked until a midday lunch break. The day ended with a planning session for the next day. Most days included watching a movie for crew bonding and psychological well-being; after watching 2010, Shepherd remarked on the strangeness of watching a space expedition movie while on one.

Exercise was a key part of the schedule, using a stationary bicycle, a treadmill (TVIS), and a resistance device (IRED). The bicycle malfunctioned in mid-December and was not fixed until March. The treadmill, designed with bungee cords to reduce vibrations, malfunctioned near the end of February but was repaired within a week.