This artist’s concept from 1972 is a cutaway illustration of Skylab with the Command/Service Module docked to the Multiple Docking Adapter. Established in 1970, the Skylab Program’s goals were to enrich our scientific knowledge of the Earth, the sun, the stars and cosmic space; to study the effects of weightlessness on living organisms; to study the effects of the processing and manufacturing of materials utilizing the absence of gravity; and, to conduct Earth-resource observations. Plans were afoot by NASA before a single lunar landing to extend the use of Apollo for further applications, a great benefit to Skylab, which used a Saturn rocket to launch the station into orbit. Established in 1965, NASA’s Apollo Applications Program was to include long-duration Earth orbital missions, during which astronauts would carry out scientific, technological and engineering experiments in space by utilizing modified Saturn launch vehicles and the Apollo spacecraft.Image Credit: NASA