Skylab

A Note on Skylab Mission Numbering

The official numbering of Skylab missions has the launch of the orbital workshop (i.e. Skylab itself) as Skylab 1; and the three subsequent crew launches are designated Skylab 2, 3, and 4. A parallel, "unofficial" numbering scheme denotes the three crew launches as Skylabs 1, 2 and 3, leaving the OWS launch undesignated. The crew patches follow the unofficial numbering scheme. This site uses a compromise scheme: like the International Space Station flights, "Expedition" numbers are used. Thus Skylab 2 is referred to as "Skylab Expedition 1", and so on.

Skylab 1
During the launch phase of the Skylab Orbital Workshop the meteoroid shield was torn off by aerodynamic loads, culminating in the loss of one of the two main solar arrays, and the jamming of the other. Since the meteroid shield was designed to provide passive thermal control by shading the workshop from direct solar radiation, this resulted in both the overheating of the workshop, and a severe electrical power shortage.

Skylab Expedition 1
The Skylab 2 crew rescued the damaged Orbital Workshop by erecting a giant parasol to shade the station from the sun, and by freeing the stuck solar panel. They were then able to complete their 28-day science mission -- doubling the previous US record of 14 days set by the Gemini 7 crew.

Skylab Expedition 2
The Skylab 3 crew successfully carried out a 59-day mission, which included installing a replacement sun shade during a 6-1/2 hour space walk; test flight of an astronaut maneuvering unit inside the workshop (an AMU was flown during Gemini, but never tested) and numerous scientific studies.

Skylab Expedition 3
At 84 days, Skylab 4 was the longest US crewed space flight until the first expedition to the International Space Station in 2000. Physiological and psychological aspects of long-duration missions were tested, and observations of Comet Kohoutek were made, in addition to an ambitious set of scientific investigations.