This week in 1973, Skylab’s third and final crewed mission, launched to America’s first space station. This image of Skylab in orbit was taken as the crew departed the space station after 84 days in the station. NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center provided the Saturn launch vehicles for the four Skylab missions and directed many of the space station’s experiments. Today Marshall’s Payload Operations Integration Center serves as “science central” for the International Space Station, working 24/7, 365 days a year in support of the orbiting laboratory’s scientific experiments. The NASA History Program is responsible for generating, disseminating, and preserving NASA’s remarkable history and providing a comprehensive understanding of the institutional, cultural, social, political, economic, technological, and scientific aspects of NASA’s activities in aeronautics and space. For more pictures like this one and to connect to NASA’s history, visit the History Program’s webpage.
Image credit: NASA