Blog

Build your own International Space Station

Jasmine Fellows

17 August, 2012

Get ready to build your own paper model of the International Space Station (ISS).

You will need

scissors
craft glue
sticky tape
pencil
International Space Station paper model
instructions
thread

What to do

Follow the instructions you have downloaded and you will have your very own model of the International Space Station! You can also play the video below to see the steps involved.

What’s happening?

The International Space Station is the largest and most complicated spacecraft ever built. It is being constructed by a collaboration of one hundred thousand people, hundreds of companies, and sixteen nations spread over four continents.

The space station is in a low Earth orbit and can be seen from Earth with the unaided eye. It orbits at an altitude of about 350 kilometres above the Earth and travels at an average speed of 27 700 kilometres per hour, orbiting the Earth 16 times a day!

If you’re after more science news for kids, subscribe to Double Helix magazine!

Categories:

Earth and space sciences, Hands-on

Tags:

astronomical and space sciences, craft, International Space Station, ISS, make, model, paper, physics

47 responses

Marry

20 March, 2016

But what if u cant download the paper thing

Reply
1. Alfonso X Moreno
  
  11 June, 2016
  
  The ISS link is above where it says “You will need” and then click International Space Station paper model.
  
  Reply
Rena Huntington

17 June, 2016

Did you just use regular paper, or cardstock?

Reply
1. David
  
  17 June, 2016
  
  Hi Rena,
  I’m not sure what we used – this activity is originally from 2009. However, given the shininess in the video, it might have been photo paper. If using card, I’d make it quite thin – you need to make some pretty tight rolls to make the cylindrical modules.
  
  Sorry I couldn’t help more,
  David
  
  Reply
2. Alfonso X Moreno
  
  18 June, 2016
  
  Cardstock is preferred. You can use 165 gm (90 lb of weight) cardstock. The model on the video is the actual printout that was included in the CSIRO magazine as a pullout template. You can use glossy cardstock, too.
  
  Reply
  1. Rena Huntington
    
    20 June, 2016
    
    Thank you, Alfonso! This is going to be a fun entry event for my PBLU on Astronomy! -Rena
    
    Reply
    1. Alfonso X Moreno
      
      30 June, 2016
      
      You’re welcome, Rena. Have fun!
      
      Reply
Phoebe

20 July, 2016

Hey!
I was wondering is i can make it with regular paper?

Reply
1. Phoebe
  
  20 July, 2016
  
  I was wondering *IF* I can make it with regular paper?
  
  Reply
  1. Alfonso X Moreno
    
    28 July, 2016
    
    Hi,
    You can use regular paper but card stock is preferred. With regular paper the model will be to weak, too flimsy.
    
    Reply
    1. nightshade
      
      3 November, 2016
      
      would it still work tho?
      
      Reply
      1. Alfonso X Moreno
        
        9 November, 2016
        
        Yes.
2. David
  
  28 July, 2016
  
  Hi Phoebe,
  Yup, you can use regular paper if you want. You will have to be a bit more careful though!
  
  Reply
kayla

3 September, 2016

How big is the model?

Reply
1. Alfonso X Moreno
  
  18 September, 2016
  
  It’s 11.5 in by 8 in (inches)
  
  Reply
nightshade

3 November, 2016

i like it

Reply
Nandan

20 November, 2016

Can you use Elmers glue?

Reply
1. David
  
  21 November, 2016
  
  Hi Nandan,
  Elmers glue (or any other PVA based glue) will definitely hold, but it might take a while to dry. Just be careful and you’ll be okay.
  
  Good luck!
  
  Reply
2. Alfonso X Moreno
  
  21 November, 2016
  
  Yes, Elmer’s glue can be used.
  
  Reply
T L

14 December, 2016

My husband isn’t super keen on Christmas and is a very science/astronomy based kinda guy… to get him feeling in the Christmas spirit I’m going to print this out tomorrow eve and make it with him to put on top of our Christmas tree. Compromise at its best 😉

Reply
Patrick

12 March, 2017

The video does not show where and how to glue the last component, the Airlock “O”, to the model. It does not show which way to orient the tabs or whether to bend them.

Reply
1. David
  
  14 March, 2017
  
  The sticking out lumps are part of the airlock and not tabs for gluing:
  https://www.nasa.gov/images/content/554263main_s134e009307_hires.jpg
  The airlock goes on the Unity module – you can find the right spot by matching the symbols.
  This might help with orientation:
  https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/structure/iss_assembly_7a.html
  
  Reply
  1. Alfonso X Moreno
    
    14 March, 2017
    
    Patrick,
    I can send you a photo of the model showing the area in detail. Contact me at
    axmpssm@gmail.com so I can send you the photo.
    
    Reply
    1. Caroline
      
      23 March, 2017
      
      Hi Alphonso. Can you send me a photo of the model as well. Send it to piquita@gmail.com.
      
      Reply
Babe correno

24 September, 2017

This is not helping me at all I cant even print it out properly can u help?

Reply
1. David
  
  27 September, 2017
  
  Hi there,
  Do you live somewhere in the Americas? these print outs are designed for A4 sized paper, which is slightly taller and thinner than the letter sized paper used in the US, Canada and Mexico.
  You could try printing the images slightly smaller to fit on the page, or go to a print shop and ask them for help.
  
  Hope this helps,
  David
  
  Reply
Will Turner

23 October, 2017

What is the scale of this model?

Reply
1. David
  
  23 October, 2017
  
  Hi Will,
  I did a quick back-of-the-envelope calculation… The truss that holds the solar panels and radiators is a bit over 300 mm long in the model. In real life, it’s a hair over 100 metres long. So I’d guess the scale is about 300:1, give or take.
  
  Cheers,
  David
  
  Reply
  1. Will Turner
    
    23 October, 2017
    
    Wow, thanks for the speedy reply David! I was hoping to use this for a science project at school, thanks.
    
    Reply
georgie

11 March, 2018

oof just print it at office works guys 😛

Reply
georgie

11 March, 2018

😛

😛
😀
🙂

Reply
georgie

11 March, 2018

guys if you do what i said you will be having an ez go at it ;-; ._. .-.

Reply
Siti Fatimah

25 August, 2018

tq … very useful =)

Reply
Naomi

30 May, 2019

What is the time frame that it takes to build this?

Reply
1. David
  
  30 May, 2019
  
  Hi Naomi,
  It’s not super quick, but not super long. Maybe an hour or two? You need to make quite a few little bits.
  
  You can watch the video to get an idea of how many steps are involved.
  
  Reply
SciFiKid

18 August, 2019

can you also use tape to stick it down?

Reply
1. David
  
  19 August, 2019
  
  You can!
  
  Before you start, test your paper and tape on a bit of the printout that you don’t need. It’s important that the tape sticks firmly and doesn’t take the ink off the top of your paper!
  
  Reply
James

3 June, 2020

This is a great project, but why is the background that is essentially trash such a dark color? This is a huge waste of ink when printing.

All flash, no practicality…

Reply
a

19 June, 2020

How to make a paper space shuttle.

Reply
1. David
  
  19 June, 2020
  
  Hi a,
  The designer of this model has a website with several other spaceship models. I’m pretty sure there’s a space shuttle there.
  
  http://www.axmpaperspacescalemodels.com/
  
  Reply
Eni

20 June, 2020

How can I make it without the printouts

Reply
David

20 June, 2020

I guess you can eyeball it, but printing out the pieces is really the only way to do this activity. If you don’t have a printer, you might be able to print it at your local library? or if you go to school, you could ask a teacher or librarian to help you print it out.

Reply
M Hathaway

29 March, 2021

I’m putting together your model for a school Library display to go along with this years NSS book, Give me Space. It is going together very well and I have found that using a large texta has helped with the rounded parts of the model.
Looking forward to hanging it up. Thank You.

Reply
Laurence

6 May, 2021

Un très grand merci pour mes élèves !!!
Thank you very much !

Reply
Shaun

7 January, 2023

I use normal paper on large rocket models

Reply
jake

12 January, 2023

can we print the thing for the ISS and then trace it with cardstock and then glue it on together and then assemble it

Reply
1. Jasmine Fellows
  
  12 January, 2023
  
  Yes, you can. I think it would be best with a lighter weight cardstock to prevent it from getting too thick.
  
  Reply