On 11 February 2008, ESA's Columbus laboratory was attached to the starboard hatch of the Harmony module during space shuttle mission STS-122. All the following Space Shuttle missions would dock at this location. The combined PMA-2/ Harmony unit was subsequently berthed to its final destination at the forward end of Destiny on 14 November 2007. The Expedition 16 crew moved the Pressurized Mating Adapter (PMA-2) on 12 November 2007 from Destiny to the forward berth of Harmony. Harmony was the first permanent living space enlargement to the ISS after the Pirs docking compartment was added in 2001. Harmony inside the payload bay of Space Shuttle Discovery while on its way to the ISS. Paolo Nespoli, an ESA astronaut born in Milan, Italy, accompanied the Harmony module aboard STS-120 as a mission specialist. The handover of Harmony completed a major element of the barter agreement, between ESA and NASA, that was signed in Turin, Italy on 8 October 1997. From there, ESA formally transferred ownership of Harmony to NASA on 18 June 2003, taking place in the Space Station Processing Facility (SSPF) of the Kennedy Space Center. Following post transportation inspection, the Italian Space Agency (ASI) formally handed over Harmony to the European Space Agency (ESA). Harmony arrived on 1 June 2003 at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida after its flight in an Airbus Beluga oversize cargo vehicle. In an agreement between NASA and the European Space Agency, the company Thales Alenia Space, built Harmony at its facility in Turin, Italy. After the cancellation of the Habitation Module, Harmony was chosen to house the American Crew Quarters. The first two were delivered on STS-126 and the second two on STS-128. Harmony is equipped with eight International Standard Payload Racks: four avionics racks and four for stowage or crew quarters. The Space Station robotic arm, Canadarm2, is able to operate from a powered grapple fixture on the exterior of Harmony. Its deployment expanded the Space Station, allowing it to grow from the size of a three-bedroom house, to the space equivalent of a typical five-bedroom house, once the Japanese Kibō and European Columbus laboratories are attached. Harmony is managed by NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama. There are six CBMs on Harmony: the aft CBM that connects it to Destiny is passive the rest are active. The design is based on the existing Multi-Purpose Logistics Module, as well as the European Space Agency's Columbus module (both of which have only one passive Common Berthing Mechanism ). It is protected from micrometeoroids by 98 panels, each made from a composite sandwich of stainless steel and 6061-T6 aluminium alloy, and a secondary barrier of Kevlar/ resin. It is composed of a cylindrical, 5.1 cm (2.0 in) thick 2219-T851 aluminium alloy pressure shell with two endcones and is thermally insulated by a goldised Kapton blanket. Harmony is the second of three node modules on the United States Orbital Segment (USOS). Harmony during assembly at the Space Station Processing Facility Its successful installation meant that from NASA's perspective, the station was considered to be "U.S. After temporarily being attached to the port side of the Unity module, it was moved to its permanent location on the forward end of the Destiny module on 14 November 2007. ![]() Harmony was successfully launched into space aboard Space Shuttle flight STS-120 on 23 October 2007. ![]() Sleeping cabins for four of the crew are housed here. It connects the laboratory modules of the United States, Europe and Japan, as well as providing electrical power and electronic data. Harmony, also known as Node 2, is the "utility hub" of the International Space Station. Harmony shown connected to Columbus, Kibō, and Destiny.
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