Model, Skylab, 1:48

This 1:48 scale model of the U.S. space station Skylab shows how it was stacked atop a Saturn V rocket for its launch into Earth orbit in May 1973. The cutaways reveal features of the orbital workshop living quarters (made from the third stage of a Saturn V launch vehicle). They also reveal portions of the elements stowed under the shroud at the top of the rocket: the airlock module, the multiple docking adapter with docking ports for the crews' spacecraft, and the Apollo telescope mount observatory for solar research.

No people were aboard Skylab during its launch; the crews arrived later on separate missions. Three successive three-man crews occupied Skylab on missions during 1973-1974; the longest stay lasted almost three months.

NASA transferred this model to the Museum in 1976.