The Tranquility Node (aka Node 3) is the last major piece being added to the International Space Station. It is big – 21 feet long and 14 feet in diameter. Its main purpose is to act as work/recreation/life-support area, so it will have an exercise area, a toilet, a work area for the robotic arm, etc. as explained here:

Space Station’s Tranquility

The pressurized section will provide additional room for crew members and many of the space station’s life support and environmental control systems already on board. These systems include air revitalization, oxygen generation and water recycling. A waste and hygiene compartment and a treadmill also will be relocated from other areas of the station.

The “already on board” part means that the equipment (e.g. the treadmill) is already there and already being used – it will be moved into the Tranquility Node after it arrives. This video shows you what the Tranquility Node looks like and some of the stuff that will be moving:

The name of the video is “Expedition 22″. This is STS-130 for the space shuttle, meaning that it is the 130th shuttle flight. An expedition is a crew change on the space station. You can find a list of all the expeditions here.

Tomorrow we will look at the cupola in more detail.

[[[Jump to - The STS-130 Shuttle Mission #1 – Shuttle Endeavor rolls out to the launch pad]]]