Harmony Hub Transformed Space Station Into Five-Bedroom Home

NASA’s space shuttle Discovery delivered the Harmony module to the International Space Station on October 23, 2007. The module arrived during the STS-120 mission. It served as a central hub for future station growth.

Harmony measures 14 feet wide and 24 feet long. It is roughly the length of a minibus. The module was built by Thales Alenia Space in Italy for NASA. It was originally named Node 2. It followed Unity, which was the first NASA-led hub module.

Before this delivery, the station’s last new addition was the Russian Pirs docking module in 2001. Pirs was later removed. The arrival of Harmony changed the station's scale. The complex went from the size of a three-bedroom house to that of a five-bedroom house.

Astronauts initially attached Harmony to the Unity node. They used this temporary position while the shuttle was docked. After the shuttle left, the crew used the station's robotic arm. They moved the shuttle docking port at the Destiny module out of the way.

This action cleared space for Harmony to move to its permanent location. The crew berthed it at the forward port of the Destiny laboratory. From this position, Harmony connects to two major international modules. It links to the European Space Agency's Columbus module on the starboard side. It also connects to Japan's Kibo laboratory on the port side.

The module features five common berthing mechanisms. These act as connection points for other modules. Some ports have hosted visiting cargo ships. A docking port on the roof allows other vehicles to park there. Inside, Harmony contains eight payload racks. Four of these are for avionics. The other four hold stowage or crew quarters.

NASA's American astronauts use the module for sleeping quarters. The name Harmony came from a public naming contest run by NASA. The STS-120 flight lasted about two weeks. The delivery established the physical framework for the station's current layout.