Spacecraft Materials in the Space Flight Environment: International Space Station—May 2002 to May 2008

The performance of ISS spacecraft materials and systems on prolonged exposure to the low‐Earth orbit (LEO) space flight are reported in this paper. In‐flight data, flight crew observations, and the results of ground‐based test and analysis directly supporting programmatic and operational decision‐making are described. The space flight environments definitions (both natural and induced) used for ISS design, material selection, and verification testing are shown, in most cases, to be more severe than the actual flight environment accounting, in part, for the outstanding performance of ISS as a long mission duration spacecraft. No significant ISS material or system failures have been attributed to spacecraft‐environments interactions. Nonetheless, ISS materials and systems performance data is contributing to our understanding of spacecraft material interactions with the spaceflight environment so as to reduce cost and risk for future spaceflight projects and programs.