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Most of the time, the International Space Station (ISS) is orbiting the Earth at an altitude of approximately 220 miles (354 km), which places it in low Earth orbit (LEO). This distance can change, however, and has varied from 205 miles (330 km) to a planned maximum of 248 miles (400 km).
The International Space Station (ISS) is a research facility that is being built in low orbit around the Earth. The space station is so large that it can actually be seen with the naked eye and is the largest space station built to date.