space capsule

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

• noun A vehicle or compartment of a vehicle designed to transport, protect, and support humans or animals in outer space or at very high altitudes in Earth's atmosphere.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

• noun A vehicle (or a compartment of a vehicle) designed to transport, and provide life support for people in space, and during reentry through the Earth's atmosphere

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

• noun a spacecraft designed to transport people and support human life in outer space