On May 14, 1973, America’s first space station, Skylab, launched into Earth’s orbit on a modified Saturn V rocket from Florida’s Kennedy Space Center. This marked the last time the Saturn V rocket was used in spaceflight. The launch of Skylab was not without complications, as technical problems developed due to vibrations during liftoff, causing a critical meteoroid shield to rip off and one of the solar panels to not deploy. Engineers had to “roll” Skylab to lower the temperature of the workshop to prevent dangerously hot temperatures for future crew members due to the missing shield.
Skylab 2, the mission that sent Skylab its first crew, was delayed for 10 days to teach the astronauts how to mitigate the damage the space station received on liftoff. The first three-man crew consisting of Commander Charles “Pete” Conrad, pilot Paul J. Weitz, and science pilot Joseph P. Kerwin arrived on Skylab on May 25, 1973, staying aboard for a 28-day mission. During their trip to space, the crew made history multiple times, including the first-ever “repair spacewalk” conducted by astronauts Conrad and Kerwin on June 7, 1973.
The spacewalk involved the astronauts setting up a cable cutter tool to release a stuck solar panel. By slicing through a metal strap, the solar wing partially opened, but its hinge had frozen, preventing full extension. Conrad and Kerwin successfully overcame the frozen hinge by pulling on a rope, making the wing fully open. This repair spacewalk, lasting three hours and 25 minutes, set a record for its duration. When the crew returned to Earth after 28 days, they had set a new record for the longest human space flight and were the first astronauts to return alive from a mission to a space station.
Skylab remained in space until July 11, 1979, when it disintegrated in Earth’s atmosphere, with parts found in Australia and the Indian Ocean. The unoccupied space station had been in orbit since 1974 when the crew of Skylab 4 departed back to Earth. Currently, the International Space Station (ISS) orbits Earth at an average altitude of 248 miles, circling the globe every 90 minutes. The ISS is a partnership of five space agencies from 15 countries that contributed various parts to it, visible from Earth at night as a luminous moving point of light.
The ISS contains parts provided by the United States, Russia, Japan, Canada, and the countries comprising the European Space Agency. The partnership allows for collaborative space exploration and research, including experiments in various scientific fields. The ISS’s orbiting nature allows for constant observation of Earth and the universe, serving as a platform for scientific discoveries and technological advancements. The station’s visibility from Earth at night, rivaling the brightness of planet Venus, provides a glimpse into humanity’s achievements in space exploration and international cooperation.
