JSC2003-E-40264 (30 May 2003) --- The International Space Station U.S. Node 2 module is hoisted into an Airbus Beluga heavy-lift aircraft. The aircraft departed May 30 from Turin, Italy and arrived at the Kennedy Space Center June 1 with Node 2. Under contract of the Italian Space Agency (ASI), Alenia Spazio led a consortium of European sub-contractors to build Node 2. The module was built for NASA under a barter agreement with the European Space Agency (ESA) in exchange for the launch of the European Columbus Laboratory by the space shuttle to the International Space Station. Node 2 will provide a passageway between four International Space Station science experiment modules the U.S. Destiny Laboratory, the Kibo Japanese Experiment Module, the European Columbus Laboratory and the Centrifuge Accommodation Module. The addition of Node 2 to the station will signify the U.S. Core Complete stage of assembly, at which time the station can support the addition of international laboratories f