Skylab: America’s First Orbiting Laboratory
Imagine living inside a giant science laboratory floating hundreds of miles above Earth. In the early 1970s, this idea became a reality for the United States. While the Soviet Union had already launched the world's first space station, Salyut 1, in 1971, American engineers wanted to build their own long-term workshop in orbit. That station was named Skylab. Instead of making quick trips to space like earlier astronauts had done, crews on Skylab would live and work above Earth for weeks at a time.
Skylab was built inside a modified stage of a massive Saturn V rocket. On May 14, 1973, the station blasted off from Florida into low Earth orbit. The station launched completely uncrewed, meaning no astronauts were inside during liftoff. Flight controllers planned to send the first three-person crew up the very next day. However, serious trouble began just sixty-three seconds after launch. Strong aerodynamic forces tore away a vital micrometeoroid shield, which protected the station from orbital debris and shaded it from the blazing heat of the sun. Even worse, the tearing shield jammed one of the main solar panels and ripped another one completely off.
- orbit:
- The curved path an object takes as it travels around a planet or star in space.
- aerodynamic:
- Relating to the forces of air moving against a solid object.
- micrometeoroid:
- A tiny piece of rock or metal traveling through space at high speed.
- spacewalks:
- Periods of physical activity done by astronauts outside their spacecraft in open space.
- airlock:
- An airtight room with two doors that lets astronauts exit and enter a spacecraft without losing air pressure.
- microgravity:
- A condition in space where gravity seems very weak and objects appear weightless.
- solar flares:
- Brief, powerful eruptions of intense energy and light from the surface of the sun.
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Preview questions from this passageShowHide
- 1What main goal did American engineers have when they designed Skylab?
- 2Why was Skylab launched without any astronauts inside?
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About this explanatory article passage for Upper Elementary
“Skylab: America’s First Orbiting Laboratory” is a explanatory article reading passage about Skylab, written for Upper Elementary. It takes about 3 minutes to read (465 words) and comes with an interactive quiz and a printable worksheet with comprehension questions and an answer key.