Skylab Program

Skylab was NASA's first space-station program, developed from Apollo Applications to investigate long-duration human spaceflight, the Sun, Earth, and other scientific questions. A Saturn V launched its orbital workshop in May 1973; launch damage required the first crew to deploy a sunshade and restore electrical power. Three Apollo-Saturn IB crew flights then supported progressively longer expeditions, ending with an 84-day stay in February 1974. The program demonstrated sustained living and work in orbit, extensive scientific operations, and the value of astronaut repairs. The unoccupied station reentered Earth's atmosphere in July 1979.