Credit: NASA/JSC

Astronauts installed the main piece of Japan's laboratory module, Kibo, aboard the International Space Station last week.

At 11 metres long, Kibo, delivered by the space shuttle Discovery and opened by Japanese astronaut Akihiko Hoshide (pictured), is the largest pressurized research facility in space. Its final section, for work in unpressurized environments, is slated to be flown up next year. Astronauts also tested Kibo's robotic arm, which will be used to manipulate experiments on that final section when installed.

The station's malfunctioning toilet was also fixed during the trip.