View of the International Space Station (ISS). From centre to right is the Node-3 module, with the Cupola viewing module sitting on top of it. This viewing structure, launched in February 2010, is designed to provide the ISS crew with panoramic views of both the exterior of the ISS and of the Earth. The Cupola was constructed by an Italian contractor for the European Space Agency (ESA). The ISS, which orbits some 330 kilometres above the Earth, has been continuously inhabited since November 2000.