Skylab Program
America’s first space station and the first crewed research laboratory in space
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Launched on Saturn V from Cape Canaveral FL
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The Skylab complex consisted of four major components: the Orbital Workshop (OWS), the Airlock Module (AM), the Multiple Docking Adapter (MDA), and the Apollo Telescope Mount (ATM)
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The complex weighed 170,000 pounds
Saturn V Skylab I Launch
Launched May 1973 from Launch Complex 39A
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Saturn V’s S-II second stage entered orbit, as planned, becoming the largest single object placed into orbit
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The second stage then made an uncontrolled, and mainly unpublicized, reentry over the Indian Ocean on Jan. 11, 1975.
Skylab Solar Array
A thermal meteoroid shield was ripped off during Skylab’s ascent. The first crew deployed an improvised “parasol” sunshade to prevent overheating
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Solar array system wing (beam) 2 was destroyed and caused solar array system wing (beam) 1 to malfunction on deployment
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Skylab 2 crew initiated extravehicular activity to fully deploy the beam 1 solar array.
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It took eight attempts to hard dock with the OWS, causing the crew to work 22 hours
Skylab
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3 crews for 28, 59 and 84 days each set a new endurance record while conducting experiments on the Skylab
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Increased solar activity caused the Skylab's orbit to degrade faster than expected
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Skylab made a highly publicized reentry when it broke up, and scattered debris over the Indian Ocean and Australia on July 11, 1979.
