In the Space Station Processing Facility, Russ Romanella (left), director of International Space Station and Spacecraft Processing, presides over a ceremony to unveil the new name of NASA's Node 2 module, Harmony. With him are Mission STS-120 Commander Pam Melroy and Pilot George Zamka. The name, Harmony, was chosen from an academic competition involving thousands of students in kindergarten through high school. The Node 2 Challenge required students to learn about the International Space Station, build a scale model of the module, and write an essay explaining their proposed name. This will be the first U.S. piece of the space station named by someone other than a NASA official. Node 2 is a pressurized module that will act as a connecting port and passageway to additional international science labs and supply spacecraft. It also will be a work platform for the station's robotic arm. The module is scheduled to fly on mission STS-120 aboard Space Shuttle Atlantis targeted for later this year. Photo credit: NASA/Jim Grossmann
Details