{"id":609777,"date":"2024-02-07T13:31:00","date_gmt":"2024-02-07T18:31:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/?p=609777"},"modified":"2024-02-07T13:31:02","modified_gmt":"2024-02-07T18:31:02","slug":"50-years-ago-skylab-4-astronauts-return-from-record-breaking-spaceflight","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/history\/50-years-ago-skylab-4-astronauts-return-from-record-breaking-spaceflight\/","title":{"rendered":"50 Years Ago: Skylab 4 Astronauts Return From Record-Breaking Spaceflight"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>The longest spaceflight up to that time ended on Feb. 8, 1974, when Skylab 4 astronauts <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/01\/carr_gerald.pdf?emrc=a5476f\">Gerald P. Carr<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/01\/gibson_edward.pdf?emrc=ffe4d1\">Edward G. Gibson<\/a>, and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/01\/pogue_william.pdf?emrc=ffae3d\">William R. Pogue<\/a> splashed down in the Pacific Ocean after their 84-day mission aboard Skylab, America\u2019s first space station. During their stay, they carried out a challenging research program, including biomedical investigations on the effects of long-duration space flight on the human body, Earth observations using the Earth Resources Experiment Package, and solar observations with instruments mounted in the Apollo Telescope Mount (ATM). To study newly discovered Comet Kohoutek, scientists added cometary observations to the crew\u2019s already busy schedule, including adding a far ultraviolet camera to Skylab\u2019s instrument suite. The astronauts conducted four spacewalks, a then-record for a single Earth orbital mission.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-609778\" width=\"208\" height=\"221\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-1-sl4-143-4661.jpg\" alt=\"View from the Skylab 4 Command and Service Module\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-1-sl4-143-4661.jpg 3910w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-1-sl4-143-4661.jpg?resize=283,300 283w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-1-sl4-143-4661.jpg?resize=768,813 768w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-1-sl4-143-4661.jpg?resize=967,1024 967w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-1-sl4-143-4661.jpg?resize=1451,1536 1451w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-1-sl4-143-4661.jpg?resize=1934,2048 1934w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-1-sl4-143-4661.jpg?resize=378,400 378w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-1-sl4-143-4661.jpg?resize=567,600 567w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-1-sl4-143-4661.jpg?resize=850,900 850w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-1-sl4-143-4661.jpg?resize=1133,1200 1133w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-1-sl4-143-4661.jpg?resize=1889,2000 1889w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 208px) 100vw, 208px\" \/> <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-609779\" width=\"221\" height=\"221\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-2-sl04-143-4690.jpg\" alt=\"Skylab during the final fly around\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-2-sl04-143-4690.jpg 2992w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-2-sl04-143-4690.jpg?resize=150,150 150w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-2-sl04-143-4690.jpg?resize=300,300 300w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-2-sl04-143-4690.jpg?resize=768,768 768w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-2-sl04-143-4690.jpg?resize=1024,1024 1024w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-2-sl04-143-4690.jpg?resize=1536,1536 1536w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-2-sl04-143-4690.jpg?resize=2048,2048 2048w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-2-sl04-143-4690.jpg?resize=50,50 50w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-2-sl04-143-4690.jpg?resize=100,100 100w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-2-sl04-143-4690.jpg?resize=200,200 200w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-2-sl04-143-4690.jpg?resize=400,400 400w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-2-sl04-143-4690.jpg?resize=600,600 600w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-2-sl04-143-4690.jpg?resize=900,900 900w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-2-sl04-143-4690.jpg?resize=1200,1200 1200w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-2-sl04-143-4690.jpg?resize=2000,2000 2000w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 221px) 100vw, 221px\" \/> <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-609780\" width=\"220\" height=\"221\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-3-sl4-143-4706.jpg\" alt=\"Distant view of Skylab\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-3-sl4-143-4706.jpg 3856w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-3-sl4-143-4706.jpg?resize=150,150 150w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-3-sl4-143-4706.jpg?resize=300,300 300w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-3-sl4-143-4706.jpg?resize=768,771 768w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-3-sl4-143-4706.jpg?resize=1020,1024 1020w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-3-sl4-143-4706.jpg?resize=1530,1536 1530w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-3-sl4-143-4706.jpg?resize=2041,2048 2041w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-3-sl4-143-4706.jpg?resize=50,50 50w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-3-sl4-143-4706.jpg?resize=100,100 100w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-3-sl4-143-4706.jpg?resize=200,200 200w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-3-sl4-143-4706.jpg?resize=400,400 400w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-3-sl4-143-4706.jpg?resize=598,600 598w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-3-sl4-143-4706.jpg?resize=897,900 897w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-3-sl4-143-4706.jpg?resize=1196,1200 1196w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-3-sl4-143-4706.jpg?resize=1993,2000 1993w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 220px) 100vw, 220px\" \/><br><em>Left: View from the Skylab 4 Command and Service Module (CSM) shortly after undocking from Skylab. Middle: Skylab during the final fly around, with the CSM\u2019s shadow visible on the solar array. Right: Distant view of Skylab as the crew departed.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Carr, Gibson, and Pogue spent the first week of February 1974 finishing up their experiments, preparing the station for uncrewed operations, and packing their Command Module (CM) with science samples and other items for return to Earth. On Feb. 8, they closed all the hatches to Skylab and undocked their CM. Carr flew a complete loop around Skylab, the crew inspecting the station, noting the discoloration caused by solar irradiation. The sunshade installed by the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/history\/50-years-ago-second-skylab-crew-begins-record-breaking-mission\/\">Skylab 3<\/a> crew appeared to be in good condition. Finally, Carr fired the spacecraft\u2019s thrusters to separate from the station. Three and a half hours after undocking, they received the go for the deorbit burn and fired the Service Module\u2019s (SM) main engine. After 84 days in weightlessness, the burn felt like \u201ca kick in the pants\u201d to the astronauts. They separated the CM from the SM, but when Carr tried to reorient it with its heat shield forward for reentry, nothing happened! Carr switched to a backup system and corrected the problem, caused by an inadvertent flipping of the wrong circuit breakers. Reentry took place without incident, the two drogue parachutes opened at 24,000 feet to slow and stabilize the spacecraft, followed by the three main parachutes at 10,000 feet to slow the descent until splashdown.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-609781\" width=\"319\" height=\"230\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-4-s74-17741.jpg\" alt=\"Splashdown of Skylab 4\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-4-s74-17741.jpg 4441w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-4-s74-17741.jpg?resize=300,217 300w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-4-s74-17741.jpg?resize=768,555 768w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-4-s74-17741.jpg?resize=1024,740 1024w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-4-s74-17741.jpg?resize=1536,1110 1536w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-4-s74-17741.jpg?resize=2048,1479 2048w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-4-s74-17741.jpg?resize=400,289 400w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-4-s74-17741.jpg?resize=600,433 600w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-4-s74-17741.jpg?resize=900,650 900w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-4-s74-17741.jpg?resize=1200,867 1200w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-4-s74-17741.jpg?resize=2000,1445 2000w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 319px) 100vw, 319px\" \/> <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-609782\" width=\"323\" height=\"230\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-5-s74-17742.jpg\" alt=\"The Skylab 4 Command Module in the apex down or Stable II position\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-5-s74-17742.jpg 4432w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-5-s74-17742.jpg?resize=300,214 300w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-5-s74-17742.jpg?resize=768,549 768w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-5-s74-17742.jpg?resize=1024,731 1024w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-5-s74-17742.jpg?resize=1536,1097 1536w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-5-s74-17742.jpg?resize=2048,1463 2048w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-5-s74-17742.jpg?resize=400,286 400w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-5-s74-17742.jpg?resize=600,429 600w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-5-s74-17742.jpg?resize=900,643 900w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-5-s74-17742.jpg?resize=1200,857 1200w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-5-s74-17742.jpg?resize=2000,1429 2000w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 323px) 100vw, 323px\" \/><br><em>Left: Splashdown of Skylab 4, ending the longest crewed mission to that time. Right: The Skylab 4 Command Module in the apex down or Stable II position.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Splashdown of Skylab 4 took place 176 miles from San Diego and three miles from the prime recovery ship the helicopter carrier U.S.S. New Orleans (LPH-11). The mission of 84 days 1 hour 16 minutes set a human spaceflight duration record for that time. Carr, Gibson, and Pogue had orbited the Earth 1,214 times and traveled 70.5 million miles. The CM first assumed a Stable II or apex down orientation in the water. Balloons at the top of the spacecraft inflated within minutes to right it to the Stable I or apex up position. In Mission Control at NASA\u2019s Johnson Space Center (JSC) in Houston, flight controllers met the splashdown with mixed feelings \u2013 elation at the conclusion of the longest and highly successful mission and sadness at the end of the Skylab program with an upcoming prolonged hiatus in human spaceflights until the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/history\/45-years-ago-soyuz-and-apollo-launch\/\">Apollo-Soyuz Test Project<\/a> in July 1975. The three major television networks chose not to carry the splashdown live, the first American splashdown not covered live since the capability began with the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/history\/55-years-ago-the-spirit-of-76-the-first-rendezvous-in-space\/\">Gemini VI<\/a> mission in 1965. The networks deemed the event not newsworthy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-609783\" width=\"624\" height=\"262\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-6-mcc-after-splashdown-s74-19164.jpg\" alt=\"Mission Control at the NASA Johnson Space Center in Houston shortly after the Skylab 4 splashdown\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-6-mcc-after-splashdown-s74-19164.jpg 4190w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-6-mcc-after-splashdown-s74-19164.jpg?resize=300,126 300w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-6-mcc-after-splashdown-s74-19164.jpg?resize=768,323 768w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-6-mcc-after-splashdown-s74-19164.jpg?resize=1024,430 1024w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-6-mcc-after-splashdown-s74-19164.jpg?resize=1536,646 1536w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-6-mcc-after-splashdown-s74-19164.jpg?resize=2048,861 2048w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-6-mcc-after-splashdown-s74-19164.jpg?resize=400,168 400w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-6-mcc-after-splashdown-s74-19164.jpg?resize=600,252 600w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-6-mcc-after-splashdown-s74-19164.jpg?resize=900,378 900w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-6-mcc-after-splashdown-s74-19164.jpg?resize=1200,504 1200w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-6-mcc-after-splashdown-s74-19164.jpg?resize=2000,841 2000w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 624px) 100vw, 624px\" \/><br><em>Mission Control at the NASA Johnson Space Center in Houston shortly after the Skylab 4 splashdown.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-609784\" width=\"209\" height=\"144\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-7-helo-dropping-swimmers-sl4-74hc-50.jpg\" alt=\"Recovery helicopter from the U.S.S. New Orleans about to drop swimmers into the water\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-7-helo-dropping-swimmers-sl4-74hc-50.jpg 2673w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-7-helo-dropping-swimmers-sl4-74hc-50.jpg?resize=300,206 300w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-7-helo-dropping-swimmers-sl4-74hc-50.jpg?resize=768,528 768w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-7-helo-dropping-swimmers-sl4-74hc-50.jpg?resize=1024,704 1024w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-7-helo-dropping-swimmers-sl4-74hc-50.jpg?resize=1536,1056 1536w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-7-helo-dropping-swimmers-sl4-74hc-50.jpg?resize=2048,1407 2048w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-7-helo-dropping-swimmers-sl4-74hc-50.jpg?resize=400,275 400w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-7-helo-dropping-swimmers-sl4-74hc-50.jpg?resize=600,412 600w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-7-helo-dropping-swimmers-sl4-74hc-50.jpg?resize=900,619 900w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-7-helo-dropping-swimmers-sl4-74hc-50.jpg?resize=1200,825 1200w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-7-helo-dropping-swimmers-sl4-74hc-50.jpg?resize=2000,1374 2000w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 209px) 100vw, 209px\" \/> <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-609785\" width=\"227\" height=\"144\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-8-swimmers-attaching-collars-sl4-74hc-57.jpg\" alt=\"Swimmers attach an inflatable collar around the Skylab 4 Command Module (CM)\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-8-swimmers-attaching-collars-sl4-74hc-57.jpg 3488w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-8-swimmers-attaching-collars-sl4-74hc-57.jpg?resize=300,191 300w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-8-swimmers-attaching-collars-sl4-74hc-57.jpg?resize=768,488 768w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-8-swimmers-attaching-collars-sl4-74hc-57.jpg?resize=1024,651 1024w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-8-swimmers-attaching-collars-sl4-74hc-57.jpg?resize=1536,977 1536w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-8-swimmers-attaching-collars-sl4-74hc-57.jpg?resize=2048,1302 2048w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-8-swimmers-attaching-collars-sl4-74hc-57.jpg?resize=400,254 400w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-8-swimmers-attaching-collars-sl4-74hc-57.jpg?resize=600,382 600w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-8-swimmers-attaching-collars-sl4-74hc-57.jpg?resize=900,572 900w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-8-swimmers-attaching-collars-sl4-74hc-57.jpg?resize=1200,763 1200w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-8-swimmers-attaching-collars-sl4-74hc-57.jpg?resize=2000,1272 2000w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 227px) 100vw, 227px\" \/> <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-609786\" width=\"223\" height=\"144\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-9-hoisting-aboard-new-orleans-sl4-74hc-52.jpg\" alt=\"Sailors lift the CM onto an elevator deck on the New Orleans\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-9-hoisting-aboard-new-orleans-sl4-74hc-52.jpg 2660w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-9-hoisting-aboard-new-orleans-sl4-74hc-52.jpg?resize=300,194 300w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-9-hoisting-aboard-new-orleans-sl4-74hc-52.jpg?resize=768,498 768w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-9-hoisting-aboard-new-orleans-sl4-74hc-52.jpg?resize=1024,664 1024w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-9-hoisting-aboard-new-orleans-sl4-74hc-52.jpg?resize=1536,996 1536w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-9-hoisting-aboard-new-orleans-sl4-74hc-52.jpg?resize=2048,1327 2048w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-9-hoisting-aboard-new-orleans-sl4-74hc-52.jpg?resize=400,259 400w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-9-hoisting-aboard-new-orleans-sl4-74hc-52.jpg?resize=600,389 600w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-9-hoisting-aboard-new-orleans-sl4-74hc-52.jpg?resize=900,583 900w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-9-hoisting-aboard-new-orleans-sl4-74hc-52.jpg?resize=1200,778 1200w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-9-hoisting-aboard-new-orleans-sl4-74hc-52.jpg?resize=2000,1296 2000w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 223px) 100vw, 223px\" \/><br><em>Left: Recovery helicopter from the U.S.S. New Orleans about to drop swimmers into the water. Middle: Swimmers attach an inflatable collar around the Skylab 4 Command Module (CM). Right: Sailors lift the CM onto an elevator deck on the New Orleans.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Within 40 minutes of splashdown, recovery teams had placed an inflatable collar around the spacecraft and lifted it aboard the New Orleans. Seven minutes later, they had the hatch open and flight surgeons quickly examined the three astronauts, declaring them to be healthy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-609787\" width=\"283\" height=\"192\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-10-gibson-emereging-sl4-74hc-55.jpg\" alt=\"Edward G. Gibson emerges first from the Skylab 4 Command Module (CM)\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-10-gibson-emereging-sl4-74hc-55.jpg 2719w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-10-gibson-emereging-sl4-74hc-55.jpg?resize=300,204 300w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-10-gibson-emereging-sl4-74hc-55.jpg?resize=768,521 768w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-10-gibson-emereging-sl4-74hc-55.jpg?resize=1024,695 1024w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-10-gibson-emereging-sl4-74hc-55.jpg?resize=1536,1043 1536w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-10-gibson-emereging-sl4-74hc-55.jpg?resize=2048,1390 2048w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-10-gibson-emereging-sl4-74hc-55.jpg?resize=400,272 400w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-10-gibson-emereging-sl4-74hc-55.jpg?resize=600,407 600w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-10-gibson-emereging-sl4-74hc-55.jpg?resize=900,611 900w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-10-gibson-emereging-sl4-74hc-55.jpg?resize=1200,815 1200w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-10-gibson-emereging-sl4-74hc-55.jpg?resize=2000,1358 2000w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 283px) 100vw, 283px\" \/> <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-609788\" width=\"192\" height=\"192\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-11-pogue-standing-next-to-cm-74-17018-feb-8-1974.jpg\" alt=\"William R. Pogue stands after emerging from the Command Module\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-11-pogue-standing-next-to-cm-74-17018-feb-8-1974.jpg 5124w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-11-pogue-standing-next-to-cm-74-17018-feb-8-1974.jpg?resize=150,150 150w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-11-pogue-standing-next-to-cm-74-17018-feb-8-1974.jpg?resize=300,300 300w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-11-pogue-standing-next-to-cm-74-17018-feb-8-1974.jpg?resize=768,768 768w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-11-pogue-standing-next-to-cm-74-17018-feb-8-1974.jpg?resize=1024,1024 1024w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-11-pogue-standing-next-to-cm-74-17018-feb-8-1974.jpg?resize=1536,1536 1536w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-11-pogue-standing-next-to-cm-74-17018-feb-8-1974.jpg?resize=2048,2048 2048w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-11-pogue-standing-next-to-cm-74-17018-feb-8-1974.jpg?resize=50,50 50w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-11-pogue-standing-next-to-cm-74-17018-feb-8-1974.jpg?resize=100,100 100w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-11-pogue-standing-next-to-cm-74-17018-feb-8-1974.jpg?resize=200,200 200w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-11-pogue-standing-next-to-cm-74-17018-feb-8-1974.jpg?resize=400,400 400w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-11-pogue-standing-next-to-cm-74-17018-feb-8-1974.jpg?resize=600,600 600w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-11-pogue-standing-next-to-cm-74-17018-feb-8-1974.jpg?resize=900,900 900w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-11-pogue-standing-next-to-cm-74-17018-feb-8-1974.jpg?resize=1200,1200 1200w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-11-pogue-standing-next-to-cm-74-17018-feb-8-1974.jpg?resize=2000,2000 2000w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 192px) 100vw, 192px\" \/> <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-609789\" width=\"192\" height=\"192\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-12-crew-on-platform-s74-17148.jpg\" alt=\"Skylab 4 crew members Gibson, left, Pogue, and Gerald P. Carr seated on a forklift platform after emerging from the CM and on their way to the medical facility\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-12-crew-on-platform-s74-17148.jpg 5398w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-12-crew-on-platform-s74-17148.jpg?resize=150,150 150w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-12-crew-on-platform-s74-17148.jpg?resize=300,300 300w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-12-crew-on-platform-s74-17148.jpg?resize=768,768 768w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-12-crew-on-platform-s74-17148.jpg?resize=1024,1024 1024w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-12-crew-on-platform-s74-17148.jpg?resize=1536,1536 1536w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-12-crew-on-platform-s74-17148.jpg?resize=2048,2048 2048w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-12-crew-on-platform-s74-17148.jpg?resize=50,50 50w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-12-crew-on-platform-s74-17148.jpg?resize=100,100 100w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-12-crew-on-platform-s74-17148.jpg?resize=200,200 200w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-12-crew-on-platform-s74-17148.jpg?resize=400,400 400w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-12-crew-on-platform-s74-17148.jpg?resize=600,600 600w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-12-crew-on-platform-s74-17148.jpg?resize=900,900 900w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-12-crew-on-platform-s74-17148.jpg?resize=1200,1200 1200w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-12-crew-on-platform-s74-17148.jpg?resize=2000,2000 2000w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 192px) 100vw, 192px\" \/><br><em>Left: Aboard the U.S.S. New Orleans, Edward G. Gibson emerges first from the Skylab 4 Command Module (CM). Middle: William R. Pogue stands after emerging from the CM. Right: Skylab 4 crew members Gibson, left, Pogue, and Gerald P. Carr seated on a forklift platform after emerging from the CM and on their way to the medical facility.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Gibson, riding in the spacecraft\u2019s center seat, emerged first, followed by Pogue. Carr exited last, befitting his role as commander. They walked the few steps to a platform where they could sit and wave to the cheering sailors. A forklift picked up the entire platform with the astronauts, and transported them to the Skylab mobile medical facilities aboard the carrier. Extensive medical examinations of the astronauts continued throughout landing day while the carrier sailed toward San Diego.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-609790\" width=\"296\" height=\"240\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-13-carr-in-med-facility-w-coffee-s74-17000.jpg\" alt=\"Skylab 4 Commander Gerald P. Carr enjoys a cup of coffee during medical testing aboard the U.S.S. New Orleans\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-13-carr-in-med-facility-w-coffee-s74-17000.jpg 3149w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-13-carr-in-med-facility-w-coffee-s74-17000.jpg?resize=300,243 300w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-13-carr-in-med-facility-w-coffee-s74-17000.jpg?resize=768,623 768w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-13-carr-in-med-facility-w-coffee-s74-17000.jpg?resize=1024,830 1024w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-13-carr-in-med-facility-w-coffee-s74-17000.jpg?resize=1536,1245 1536w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-13-carr-in-med-facility-w-coffee-s74-17000.jpg?resize=2048,1660 2048w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-13-carr-in-med-facility-w-coffee-s74-17000.jpg?resize=400,324 400w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-13-carr-in-med-facility-w-coffee-s74-17000.jpg?resize=600,486 600w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-13-carr-in-med-facility-w-coffee-s74-17000.jpg?resize=900,730 900w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-13-carr-in-med-facility-w-coffee-s74-17000.jpg?resize=1200,973 1200w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-13-carr-in-med-facility-w-coffee-s74-17000.jpg?resize=2000,1621 2000w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 296px) 100vw, 296px\" \/> <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-609791\" width=\"342\" height=\"240\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-14-crew-mingling-on-new-orleans-sl4-74hc-80.jpg\" alt=\"Skylab 4 astronauts mingle with some of the crew aboard the New Orleans\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-14-crew-mingling-on-new-orleans-sl4-74hc-80.jpg 3614w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-14-crew-mingling-on-new-orleans-sl4-74hc-80.jpg?resize=300,210 300w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-14-crew-mingling-on-new-orleans-sl4-74hc-80.jpg?resize=768,538 768w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-14-crew-mingling-on-new-orleans-sl4-74hc-80.jpg?resize=1024,717 1024w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-14-crew-mingling-on-new-orleans-sl4-74hc-80.jpg?resize=1536,1076 1536w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-14-crew-mingling-on-new-orleans-sl4-74hc-80.jpg?resize=2048,1434 2048w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-14-crew-mingling-on-new-orleans-sl4-74hc-80.jpg?resize=400,280 400w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-14-crew-mingling-on-new-orleans-sl4-74hc-80.jpg?resize=600,420 600w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-14-crew-mingling-on-new-orleans-sl4-74hc-80.jpg?resize=900,630 900w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-14-crew-mingling-on-new-orleans-sl4-74hc-80.jpg?resize=1200,840 1200w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-14-crew-mingling-on-new-orleans-sl4-74hc-80.jpg?resize=2000,1401 2000w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 342px) 100vw, 342px\" \/><br><em>Left: Skylab 4 Commander Gerald P. Carr enjoys a cup of coffee during medical testing aboard the U.S.S. New Orleans. Right: During a break from medial testing, the Skylab 4 astronauts mingle with some of the crew aboard the New Orleans.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Medical exams revealed Carr, Gibson, and Pogue to have withstood the rigors of weightlessness better than the previous two Skylab crews despite having spent more time in space. They attributed this to their increased exercise regimen, including the use of the Thornton treadmill, and better nutrition, an assertion backed up by flight surgeons and scientists. While on board ship, they had limited contact with the staff, all of whom wore protective masks when in close proximity to the crew to maintain the strict postflight medical quarantine.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-609792\" width=\"208\" height=\"154\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-15-on-carrier-at-north-island-nas-san-diego-addressing-crowd-feb-9-1974.jpg\" alt=\"From aboard the U.S.S. New Orleans, Skylab 4 astronauts Gerald P. Carr, left, Edward G. Gibson, and William R. Pogue wave to the crowd assembled dockside at North Island Naval Air Station (NAS) in San Diego\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-15-on-carrier-at-north-island-nas-san-diego-addressing-crowd-feb-9-1974.jpg 313w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-15-on-carrier-at-north-island-nas-san-diego-addressing-crowd-feb-9-1974.jpg?resize=300,221 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 208px) 100vw, 208px\" \/> <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-609793\" width=\"207\" height=\"154\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-16-leaving-north-island-nas-san-diego-feb-10-1974.jpg\" alt=\"Carr, top, Gibson, and Pogue board a U.S. Air Force transport jet at North Island NAS that flew them to Houston\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-16-leaving-north-island-nas-san-diego-feb-10-1974.jpg 315w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-16-leaving-north-island-nas-san-diego-feb-10-1974.jpg?resize=300,222 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 207px) 100vw, 207px\" \/> <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-609794\" width=\"238\" height=\"154\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-17-on-plane-to-houston-feb-10-1974-img-2553.jpg\" alt=\"Carr, Gibson, and Pogue aboard the transport jet on their way to Houston\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-17-on-plane-to-houston-feb-10-1974-img-2553.jpg 1539w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-17-on-plane-to-houston-feb-10-1974-img-2553.jpg?resize=300,194 300w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-17-on-plane-to-houston-feb-10-1974-img-2553.jpg?resize=768,496 768w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-17-on-plane-to-houston-feb-10-1974-img-2553.jpg?resize=1024,661 1024w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-17-on-plane-to-houston-feb-10-1974-img-2553.jpg?resize=1536,991 1536w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-17-on-plane-to-houston-feb-10-1974-img-2553.jpg?resize=400,258 400w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-17-on-plane-to-houston-feb-10-1974-img-2553.jpg?resize=600,387 600w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-17-on-plane-to-houston-feb-10-1974-img-2553.jpg?resize=900,581 900w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-17-on-plane-to-houston-feb-10-1974-img-2553.jpg?resize=1200,774 1200w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 238px) 100vw, 238px\" \/><br><em>Left: From aboard the U.S.S. New Orleans, Skylab 4 astronauts Gerald P. Carr, left, Edward G. Gibson, and William R. Pogue wave to the crowd assembled dockside at North Island Naval Air Station (NAS) in San Diego. Middle: Carr, top, Gibson, and Pogue board a U.S. Air Force transport jet at North Island NAS that flew them to Houston. Right: Carr, Gibson, and Pogue aboard the transport jet on their way to Houston.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Carr, Gibson, and Pogue remained aboard the New Orleans until completion of the landing plus 2-day medical exams. The ship had arrived at North Island Naval Air Station in San Diego the morning of Feb. 9, and the astronauts participated in a dockside welcoming ceremony while remaining on the carrier. The next day, the trio left the carrier and boarded a U.S. Air Force transport jet that flew them to Ellington Air Force Base in Houston.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-609796\" width=\"218\" height=\"163\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-18-arrival-at-ellington-feb-10-1974.jpg\" alt=\"Skylab 4 astronauts Gerald P. Carr, bottom, Edward G. Gibson, and William R. Pogue descend the steps from the U.S. Air Force jet that had flown them from San Diego\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-18-arrival-at-ellington-feb-10-1974.jpg 939w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-18-arrival-at-ellington-feb-10-1974.jpg?resize=300,225 300w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-18-arrival-at-ellington-feb-10-1974.jpg?resize=768,576 768w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-18-arrival-at-ellington-feb-10-1974.jpg?resize=400,300 400w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-18-arrival-at-ellington-feb-10-1974.jpg?resize=600,450 600w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-18-arrival-at-ellington-feb-10-1974.jpg?resize=900,675 900w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 218px) 100vw, 218px\" \/> <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-609797\" width=\"219\" height=\"163\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-19-arrival-at-ellington-hugging-wives-feb-10-1974.jpg\" alt=\"Pogue, left, Gibson, and Carr hug their wives for the first time in more than three months\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-19-arrival-at-ellington-hugging-wives-feb-10-1974.jpg 935w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-19-arrival-at-ellington-hugging-wives-feb-10-1974.jpg?resize=300,224 300w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-19-arrival-at-ellington-hugging-wives-feb-10-1974.jpg?resize=768,573 768w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-19-arrival-at-ellington-hugging-wives-feb-10-1974.jpg?resize=400,299 400w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-19-arrival-at-ellington-hugging-wives-feb-10-1974.jpg?resize=600,448 600w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-19-arrival-at-ellington-hugging-wives-feb-10-1974.jpg?resize=900,672 900w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 219px) 100vw, 219px\" \/> <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-609798\" width=\"218\" height=\"163\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-20-at-ellington-on-podium-feb-10-1974.jpg\" alt=\"On the podium at Ellington, Carr, left, Gibson, and Pogue address the welcoming crowd\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-20-at-ellington-on-podium-feb-10-1974.jpg 937w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-20-at-ellington-on-podium-feb-10-1974.jpg?resize=300,224 300w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-20-at-ellington-on-podium-feb-10-1974.jpg?resize=768,575 768w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-20-at-ellington-on-podium-feb-10-1974.jpg?resize=400,299 400w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-20-at-ellington-on-podium-feb-10-1974.jpg?resize=600,449 600w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-20-at-ellington-on-podium-feb-10-1974.jpg?resize=900,673 900w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 218px) 100vw, 218px\" \/><br><em>Left: At Ellington Air Force Base in Houston, Skylab 4 astronauts Gerald P. Carr, bottom, Edward G. Gibson, and William R. Pogue descend the steps from the U.S. Air Force jet that had flown them from San Diego. Middle: Pogue, left, Gibson, and Carr hug their wives for the first time in more than three months. Right: On the podium at Ellington, Carr, left, Gibson, and Pogue address the welcoming crowd.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Upon deplaning at Ellington, Carr, Gibson, and Pogue reunited with their wives, JoAnn, Julia, and Helen, respectively, whom they had not seen in three months. Director of JSC <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/centers-and-facilities\/johnson\/building-on-a-mission-the-project-management-building-home-to-the-centers-directors-part-2\/\">Christopher C. Kraft<\/a> introduced them to the several hundred well-wishers who turned out to welcome the astronauts back to Houston.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-609803\" width=\"211\" height=\"163\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-21-postflight-presser-feb-22-1974-oblique.jpg\" alt=\"Gerald P. Carr, left, Edward G. Gibson, and William R. Pogue address reporters at their postflight press conference on Feb. 22\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-21-postflight-presser-feb-22-1974-oblique.jpg 910w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-21-postflight-presser-feb-22-1974-oblique.jpg?resize=300,231 300w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-21-postflight-presser-feb-22-1974-oblique.jpg?resize=768,592 768w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-21-postflight-presser-feb-22-1974-oblique.jpg?resize=400,309 400w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-21-postflight-presser-feb-22-1974-oblique.jpg?resize=600,463 600w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-21-postflight-presser-feb-22-1974-oblique.jpg?resize=900,694 900w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 211px) 100vw, 211px\" \/> <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-609804\" width=\"252\" height=\"163\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-22-nixon-visit-to-jsc-mar-20-1974-s74-19540.jpg\" alt=\"President Richard M. Nixon speaks to the assembled crowd at NASA\u2019s Johnson Space Center in Houston during the ceremony where he presented the Skylab 4 astronauts\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-22-nixon-visit-to-jsc-mar-20-1974-s74-19540.jpg 4296w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-22-nixon-visit-to-jsc-mar-20-1974-s74-19540.jpg?resize=300,195 300w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-22-nixon-visit-to-jsc-mar-20-1974-s74-19540.jpg?resize=768,499 768w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-22-nixon-visit-to-jsc-mar-20-1974-s74-19540.jpg?resize=1024,666 1024w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-22-nixon-visit-to-jsc-mar-20-1974-s74-19540.jpg?resize=1536,998 1536w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-22-nixon-visit-to-jsc-mar-20-1974-s74-19540.jpg?resize=2048,1331 2048w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-22-nixon-visit-to-jsc-mar-20-1974-s74-19540.jpg?resize=400,260 400w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-22-nixon-visit-to-jsc-mar-20-1974-s74-19540.jpg?resize=600,390 600w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-22-nixon-visit-to-jsc-mar-20-1974-s74-19540.jpg?resize=900,585 900w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-22-nixon-visit-to-jsc-mar-20-1974-s74-19540.jpg?resize=1200,780 1200w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-22-nixon-visit-to-jsc-mar-20-1974-s74-19540.jpg?resize=2000,1300 2000w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 252px) 100vw, 252px\" \/> <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-609805\" width=\"202\" height=\"163\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-23-crew-at-ksc-apr-1974.jpg\" alt=\"In April 1974, the Skylab 4 astronauts address the assembled employees in the Vehicle Assembly Building at NASA\u2019s Kennedy Space Center in Florida\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-23-crew-at-ksc-apr-1974.jpg 590w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-23-crew-at-ksc-apr-1974.jpg?resize=300,244 300w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-23-crew-at-ksc-apr-1974.jpg?resize=400,325 400w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 202px) 100vw, 202px\" \/><br><em>Left: Gerald P. Carr, left, Edward G. Gibson, and William R. Pogue address reporters at their postflight press conference on Feb. 22. Middle: President Richard M. Nixon speaks to the assembled crowd at NASA\u2019s Johnson Space Center in Houston during the ceremony where he presented the Skylab 4 astronauts, sitting on the podium with their wives, with the Distinguished Service Medal on March 20, 1974. Right: In April 1974, the Skylab 4 astronauts address the assembled employees in the Vehicle Assembly Building at NASA\u2019s Kennedy Space Center in Florida.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The astronauts soon returned to work at JSC for a series of debriefings about their mission. During a press conference on Feb. 22, they showed a film of their experiences aboard Skylab and answered reporters\u2019 questions. During a visit to Texas, on March 20, President Richard M. Nixon stopped at JSC to award Carr, Gibson, and Pogue the Distinguished Service Medal in a ceremony attended by thousands of employees and visitors.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-609808\" width=\"341\" height=\"221\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-24-csm-at-oklahoma-history-museum.jpg\" alt=\"The Skylab 4 Command Module on display at the Oklahoma History Center in Oklahoma City\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-24-csm-at-oklahoma-history-museum.jpg 600w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-24-csm-at-oklahoma-history-museum.jpg?resize=300,195 300w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-24-csm-at-oklahoma-history-museum.jpg?resize=400,259 400w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 341px) 100vw, 341px\" \/> <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-609809\" width=\"333\" height=\"221\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-25-crew-1-talks-to-gibson-feb-7-2021-news-020821j-lg.jpg\" alt=\"The Crew-1 astronauts aboard the space station talk with Skylab-4 astronaut Edward G. Gibson\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-25-crew-1-talks-to-gibson-feb-7-2021-news-020821j-lg.jpg 1280w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-25-crew-1-talks-to-gibson-feb-7-2021-news-020821j-lg.jpg?resize=300,199 300w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-25-crew-1-talks-to-gibson-feb-7-2021-news-020821j-lg.jpg?resize=768,509 768w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-25-crew-1-talks-to-gibson-feb-7-2021-news-020821j-lg.jpg?resize=1024,678 1024w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-25-crew-1-talks-to-gibson-feb-7-2021-news-020821j-lg.jpg?resize=400,265 400w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-25-crew-1-talks-to-gibson-feb-7-2021-news-020821j-lg.jpg?resize=600,398 600w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-25-crew-1-talks-to-gibson-feb-7-2021-news-020821j-lg.jpg?resize=900,596 900w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-25-crew-1-talks-to-gibson-feb-7-2021-news-020821j-lg.jpg?resize=1200,795 1200w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 333px) 100vw, 333px\" \/><br><em>Left: The Skylab 4 Command Module on display at the Oklahoma History Center in Oklahoma City. <strong>Image credit: courtesy Oklahoma History Center.<\/strong> Right: The Crew-1 astronauts aboard the space station talk with Skylab-4 astronaut Edward G. Gibson.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Following splashdown, the U.S.S. New Orleans delivered the CM to San Diego, from where workers trucked it to its manufacturer, the Rockwell International facility in Downey, California, for postflight inspection. NASA transferred the Skylab 4 CM to the <a href=\"https:\/\/airandspace.si.edu\/\" rel=\"noopener\">National Air and Space Museum\u00a0<\/a>in 1975, where it went on display the following year when the Smithsonian Institution inaugurated its new building. After more than 40 years (1976 to 2018) on display there, in 2020, the NASM loaned the spacecraft to the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.okhistory.org\/historycenter\/\" rel=\"noopener\">Oklahoma History Center\u00a0<\/a>in Oklahoma City. The Skylab 4 CM held the record for the longest single flight for an American spacecraft for 47 years until Feb. 7, 2021, when the Crew Dragon Resilience\u00a0flying the\u00a0SpaceX Crew-1\u00a0mission to the International Space Station broke it. To commemorate the event, the four-person crew of Crew-1 held a video conference with Gibson from the\u00a0space station.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-609810\" width=\"229\" height=\"182\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-26-74c-151-rescue-rollback-feb-14-1974.jpg\" alt=\"The Skylab 4 rescue vehicle returns to the Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB) at NASA\u2019s Kennedy Space Center (KSC) in Florida on Feb. 14, 1974\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-26-74c-151-rescue-rollback-feb-14-1974.jpg 3443w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-26-74c-151-rescue-rollback-feb-14-1974.jpg?resize=300,238 300w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-26-74c-151-rescue-rollback-feb-14-1974.jpg?resize=768,610 768w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-26-74c-151-rescue-rollback-feb-14-1974.jpg?resize=1024,813 1024w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-26-74c-151-rescue-rollback-feb-14-1974.jpg?resize=1536,1220 1536w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-26-74c-151-rescue-rollback-feb-14-1974.jpg?resize=2048,1626 2048w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-26-74c-151-rescue-rollback-feb-14-1974.jpg?resize=400,318 400w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-26-74c-151-rescue-rollback-feb-14-1974.jpg?resize=600,476 600w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-26-74c-151-rescue-rollback-feb-14-1974.jpg?resize=900,715 900w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-26-74c-151-rescue-rollback-feb-14-1974.jpg?resize=1200,953 1200w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-26-74c-151-rescue-rollback-feb-14-1974.jpg?resize=2000,1588 2000w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 229px) 100vw, 229px\" \/> <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-609811\" width=\"147\" height=\"182\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-27-74p-25-de-mate-rescue-veh.jpg\" alt=\"Workers in the VAB destack the Skylab rescue spacecraft Command and Service Module-119 (CSM-119) from the SA-209 Saturn IB rocket\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-27-74p-25-de-mate-rescue-veh.jpg 2363w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-27-74p-25-de-mate-rescue-veh.jpg?resize=241,300 241w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-27-74p-25-de-mate-rescue-veh.jpg?resize=768,956 768w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-27-74p-25-de-mate-rescue-veh.jpg?resize=823,1024 823w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-27-74p-25-de-mate-rescue-veh.jpg?resize=1235,1536 1235w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-27-74p-25-de-mate-rescue-veh.jpg?resize=1646,2048 1646w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-27-74p-25-de-mate-rescue-veh.jpg?resize=321,400 321w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-27-74p-25-de-mate-rescue-veh.jpg?resize=482,600 482w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-27-74p-25-de-mate-rescue-veh.jpg?resize=723,900 723w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-27-74p-25-de-mate-rescue-veh.jpg?resize=964,1200 964w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-27-74p-25-de-mate-rescue-veh.jpg?resize=1607,2000 1607w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 147px) 100vw, 147px\" \/> <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-609812\" width=\"276\" height=\"182\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-28-csm-119-at-nasm-a19771284000-dsh04.jpg\" alt=\"The Skylab 4 CSM-119 rescue spacecraft on display in the KSC Apollo\/Saturn V Center\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-28-csm-119-at-nasm-a19771284000-dsh04.jpg 899w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-28-csm-119-at-nasm-a19771284000-dsh04.jpg?resize=300,198 300w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-28-csm-119-at-nasm-a19771284000-dsh04.jpg?resize=768,507 768w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-28-csm-119-at-nasm-a19771284000-dsh04.jpg?resize=400,264 400w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-28-csm-119-at-nasm-a19771284000-dsh04.jpg?resize=600,396 600w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 276px) 100vw, 276px\" \/><br><em>Left: The Skylab 4 rescue vehicle returns to the Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB) at NASA\u2019s Kennedy Space Center (KSC) in Florida on Feb. 14, 1974. Middle: Workers in the VAB destack the Skylab rescue spacecraft Command and Service Module-119 (CSM-119) from the SA-209 Saturn IB rocket. Right: The Skylab 4 CSM-119 rescue spacecraft on display in the KSC Apollo\/Saturn V Center.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-609814\" width=\"624\" height=\"201\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-29-sa-209-saturn-ib-at-ksc.jpg\" alt=\"The Skylab 4 SA-209 Saturn IB rocket on display at the Visitor Center\u2019s Rocket Garden at NASA\u2019s Kennedy Space Center in Florida\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-29-sa-209-saturn-ib-at-ksc.jpg 3008w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-29-sa-209-saturn-ib-at-ksc.jpg?resize=300,97 300w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-29-sa-209-saturn-ib-at-ksc.jpg?resize=768,248 768w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-29-sa-209-saturn-ib-at-ksc.jpg?resize=1024,330 1024w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-29-sa-209-saturn-ib-at-ksc.jpg?resize=1536,495 1536w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-29-sa-209-saturn-ib-at-ksc.jpg?resize=2048,660 2048w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-29-sa-209-saturn-ib-at-ksc.jpg?resize=400,129 400w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-29-sa-209-saturn-ib-at-ksc.jpg?resize=600,193 600w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-29-sa-209-saturn-ib-at-ksc.jpg?resize=900,290 900w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-29-sa-209-saturn-ib-at-ksc.jpg?resize=1200,387 1200w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-29-sa-209-saturn-ib-at-ksc.jpg?resize=2000,645 2000w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 624px) 100vw, 624px\" \/><br><em>The Skylab 4 SA-209 Saturn IB rocket on display at the Visitor Center\u2019s Rocket Garden at NASA\u2019s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The rocket is topped with the Facility Verification Vehicle Apollo Command and Service Module.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/history\/50-years-ago-launch-of-skylab-4-the-final-mission-to-skylab\/\">Skylab Rescue Vehicle\u2019s<\/a> rocket (SA-209) and spacecraft (CSM-119), on Launch Pad 39B since Dec. 3, 1973, returned to the Vehicle Assembly Building on Feb. 14, 1974. Workers destacked the vehicle, keeping the components in storage at KSC. Managers designated SA-209 and CSM-119 as the backup vehicle for the July 1975 Apollo-Soyuz Test Project. Engineers used the spacecraft to conduct lightning sensitivity testing in KSC\u2019s Manned Spacecraft Operations Building\u2019s high bay in September 1974. Following ASTP, NASA retired both the rocket and spacecraft, eventually putting them on display. Visitors can view the SA-209 Saturn IB in the Rocket Garden of KSC\u2019s Visitor Center and the CSM-119 in the Apollo\/Saturn V Center at KSC.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-609815\" width=\"220\" height=\"173\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-30-boost-mission-painting-1978-s78-23630.jpg\" alt=\"Illustration of a possible Skylab reboost mission by a space shuttle\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-30-boost-mission-painting-1978-s78-23630.jpg 4608w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-30-boost-mission-painting-1978-s78-23630.jpg?resize=300,235 300w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-30-boost-mission-painting-1978-s78-23630.jpg?resize=768,603 768w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-30-boost-mission-painting-1978-s78-23630.jpg?resize=1024,804 1024w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-30-boost-mission-painting-1978-s78-23630.jpg?resize=1536,1205 1536w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-30-boost-mission-painting-1978-s78-23630.jpg?resize=2048,1607 2048w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-30-boost-mission-painting-1978-s78-23630.jpg?resize=400,314 400w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-30-boost-mission-painting-1978-s78-23630.jpg?resize=600,471 600w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-30-boost-mission-painting-1978-s78-23630.jpg?resize=900,706 900w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-30-boost-mission-painting-1978-s78-23630.jpg?resize=1200,942 1200w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-30-boost-mission-painting-1978-s78-23630.jpg?resize=2000,1569 2000w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 220px) 100vw, 220px\" \/> <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-609816\" width=\"198\" height=\"173\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-31-skylab-reentry-impact-map.png\" alt=\"Track of Skylab\u2019s reentry over Australia\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-31-skylab-reentry-impact-map.png 768w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-31-skylab-reentry-impact-map.png?resize=300,263 300w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-31-skylab-reentry-impact-map.png?resize=400,350 400w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-31-skylab-reentry-impact-map.png?resize=600,525 600w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 198px) 100vw, 198px\" \/> <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-609817\" width=\"264\" height=\"173\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-32-reentry-mcc-jul-11-1979-s79-34355.jpg\" alt=\"Managers, flight directors, and astronauts monitor Skylab\u2019s reentry from Mission Control at NASA\u2019s Johnson Space Center in Houston\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-32-reentry-mcc-jul-11-1979-s79-34355.jpg 3678w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-32-reentry-mcc-jul-11-1979-s79-34355.jpg?resize=300,196 300w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-32-reentry-mcc-jul-11-1979-s79-34355.jpg?resize=768,503 768w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-32-reentry-mcc-jul-11-1979-s79-34355.jpg?resize=1024,670 1024w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-32-reentry-mcc-jul-11-1979-s79-34355.jpg?resize=1536,1006 1536w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-32-reentry-mcc-jul-11-1979-s79-34355.jpg?resize=2048,1341 2048w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-32-reentry-mcc-jul-11-1979-s79-34355.jpg?resize=400,262 400w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-32-reentry-mcc-jul-11-1979-s79-34355.jpg?resize=600,393 600w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-32-reentry-mcc-jul-11-1979-s79-34355.jpg?resize=900,589 900w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-32-reentry-mcc-jul-11-1979-s79-34355.jpg?resize=1200,786 1200w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-32-reentry-mcc-jul-11-1979-s79-34355.jpg?resize=2000,1309 2000w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 264px) 100vw, 264px\" \/><br><em>Left: Illustration of a possible Skylab reboost mission by a space shuttle. Middle: Track of Skylab\u2019s reentry over Australia. Right: Managers, flight directors, and astronauts monitor Skylab\u2019s reentry from Mission Control at NASA\u2019s Johnson Space Center in Houston.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Two days before leaving Skylab, the Skylab 4 crew boosted the station into a higher 269-by-283-mile orbit, assuming it would remain in space until 1983. By then, NASA hoped that space shuttle astronauts could attach a rocket to the station to either boost it to a higher orbit or safely deorbit it over the Pacific Ocean. But delays in the shuttle program and higher than expected solar activity resulting in increased atmospheric drag on the station ultimately thwarted those plans. It became apparent that Skylab would reenter in mid-1979, forcing NASA to devise plans to control its entry point as much as possible by adjusting the station\u2019s attitude to influence atmospheric drag. On <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/history\/40-years-ago-skylab-reenters-earths-atmosphere\/\">July 11, 1979<\/a>, during its 34,981<sup>st<\/sup> orbit around the Earth, engineers in JSC\u2019s Mission Control sent the final command to Skylab to turn off its control moment gyros, sending it into a slow tumble in an effort to ensure that Skylab would not reenter over a populated area. Skylab\u2019s breakup resulted in most of the debris that survived reentry falling into the Indian Ocean, with some pieces falling over sparsely populated areas of southern Western Australia.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-609822\" width=\"337\" height=\"211\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-33-postage-stamp-smithsonian-national-postal-museum-npm-1980-2493-5975z.jpg\" alt=\"The Skylab postage stamp issued by the U.S. Postal Service\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-33-postage-stamp-smithsonian-national-postal-museum-npm-1980-2493-5975z.jpg 637w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-33-postage-stamp-smithsonian-national-postal-museum-npm-1980-2493-5975z.jpg?resize=300,188 300w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-33-postage-stamp-smithsonian-national-postal-museum-npm-1980-2493-5975z.jpg?resize=400,251 400w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-33-postage-stamp-smithsonian-national-postal-museum-npm-1980-2493-5975z.jpg?resize=600,377 600w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 337px) 100vw, 337px\" \/> <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-609823\" width=\"320\" height=\"211\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-34-crew-receiving-collier-jun-4-1974-img-2865.jpg\" alt=\"Skylab 2 Commander Charles \u201cPete\u201d Conrad, center, accepts the Collier Trophy from Vice President Gerald R. Ford, right, as Skylab 4 Commander Gerald P. Carr, left, and Skylab 3 Commander Alan L. Bean look on\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-34-crew-receiving-collier-jun-4-1974-img-2865.jpg 3230w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-34-crew-receiving-collier-jun-4-1974-img-2865.jpg?resize=300,198 300w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-34-crew-receiving-collier-jun-4-1974-img-2865.jpg?resize=768,507 768w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-34-crew-receiving-collier-jun-4-1974-img-2865.jpg?resize=1024,676 1024w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-34-crew-receiving-collier-jun-4-1974-img-2865.jpg?resize=1536,1014 1536w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-34-crew-receiving-collier-jun-4-1974-img-2865.jpg?resize=2048,1352 2048w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-34-crew-receiving-collier-jun-4-1974-img-2865.jpg?resize=400,264 400w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-34-crew-receiving-collier-jun-4-1974-img-2865.jpg?resize=600,396 600w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-34-crew-receiving-collier-jun-4-1974-img-2865.jpg?resize=900,594 900w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-34-crew-receiving-collier-jun-4-1974-img-2865.jpg?resize=1200,792 1200w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-34-crew-receiving-collier-jun-4-1974-img-2865.jpg?resize=2000,1321 2000w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 320px) 100vw, 320px\" \/><br><em>Left: The Skylab postage stamp issued by the U.S. Postal Service. <strong>Image credit: courtesy Smithsonian National Postal Museum.<\/strong> Right: Skylab 2 Commander Charles \u201cPete\u201d Conrad, center, accepts the Collier Trophy from Vice President Gerald R. Ford, right, as Skylab 4 Commander Gerald P. Carr, left, and Skylab 3 Commander Alan L. Bean look on.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The scientific results returned during the 171 days of human occupancy aboard Skylab remain some of the most significant in the history of spaceflight. The <a href=\"https:\/\/ntrs.nasa.gov\/citations\/19770026836\" rel=\"noopener\">medical studies<\/a> on the astronauts represent the first comprehensive look at the human body\u2019s response to long-duration spaceflight. The <a href=\"https:\/\/www.hq.nasa.gov\/pao\/History\/SP-402\/contents.htm\" rel=\"noopener\">ATM solar telescopes<\/a> took more than 170,000 images for astronomers, while <a href=\"https:\/\/ntrs.nasa.gov\/api\/citations\/19790009108\/downloads\/19790009108.pdf\" rel=\"noopener\">Earth scientists<\/a> received 46,000 photographs. The Skylab program received many accolades. The U.S. Postal Service honored it by releasing a stamp in the program\u2019s honor on May 14, 1974, the 1-year anniversary of Skylab\u2019s launch. The National Aviation Association awarded its prestigious Robert J. Collier Trophy to the nine Skylab astronauts and to Skylab Program Director William C. Schneider for \u201cproving beyond question the value of man in future explorations of space and the production of data of benefit to all the people on Earth.\u201d Vice President Gerald R. Ford presented the award on June 4, 1974.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-609824\" width=\"234\" height=\"317\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-35-skylab-b-in-nasm-w-2009-106.jpg\" alt=\"The Skylab backup flight unit on display at the Smithsonian Institution\u2019s National Air and Space Museum in Washington, D.C\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-35-skylab-b-in-nasm-w-2009-106.jpg 676w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-35-skylab-b-in-nasm-w-2009-106.jpg?resize=221,300 221w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-35-skylab-b-in-nasm-w-2009-106.jpg?resize=295,400 295w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-35-skylab-b-in-nasm-w-2009-106.jpg?resize=443,600 443w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-35-skylab-b-in-nasm-w-2009-106.jpg?resize=664,900 664w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 234px) 100vw, 234px\" \/> <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-609825\" width=\"408\" height=\"317\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-36-sch-skylab-trainer.png\" alt=\"The Skylab trainer on display at Space Center Houston\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-36-sch-skylab-trainer.png 1128w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-36-sch-skylab-trainer.png?resize=300,233 300w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-36-sch-skylab-trainer.png?resize=768,596 768w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-36-sch-skylab-trainer.png?resize=1024,794 1024w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-36-sch-skylab-trainer.png?resize=400,310 400w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-36-sch-skylab-trainer.png?resize=600,465 600w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-36-sch-skylab-trainer.png?resize=900,698 900w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 408px) 100vw, 408px\" \/><br><em>Left: The Skylab backup flight unit on display at the Smithsonian Institution\u2019s National Air and Space Museum in Washington, D.C. <strong>Image credit: courtesy NASM.<\/strong> Right: The Skylab trainer on display at Space Center Houston.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Possible plans for launching the Skylab backup flight unit never materialized due to budget constraints. That unit is on display at the Smithsonian Institution\u2019s National Air and Space Museum in Washington, D.C. The <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/history\/building-on-a-mission-astronaut-training-facilities\/\">training units<\/a> of the various Skylab modules are on display at Space Center Houston, JSC\u2019s official visitors center.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-609831\" width=\"316\" height=\"221\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-37-grechko-romanenko-new-year-message-1978.jpg\" alt=\"Soviet cosmonauts Georgi M. Grechko, left, and Yuri V. Romanenko during their record-breaking 96-day mission aboard Salyut 6\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-37-grechko-romanenko-new-year-message-1978.jpg 965w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-37-grechko-romanenko-new-year-message-1978.jpg?resize=300,210 300w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-37-grechko-romanenko-new-year-message-1978.jpg?resize=768,536 768w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-37-grechko-romanenko-new-year-message-1978.jpg?resize=400,279 400w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-37-grechko-romanenko-new-year-message-1978.jpg?resize=600,419 600w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-37-grechko-romanenko-new-year-message-1978.jpg?resize=900,629 900w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 316px) 100vw, 316px\" \/> <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-609832\" width=\"335\" height=\"221\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-38-thagard-on-mir-nm18-303-032.jpg\" alt=\"NASA astronaut Norman E. Thagard during his American record-breaking 115-day flight aboard Mir\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-38-thagard-on-mir-nm18-303-032.jpg 3925w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-38-thagard-on-mir-nm18-303-032.jpg?resize=300,198 300w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-38-thagard-on-mir-nm18-303-032.jpg?resize=768,506 768w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-38-thagard-on-mir-nm18-303-032.jpg?resize=1024,674 1024w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-38-thagard-on-mir-nm18-303-032.jpg?resize=1536,1011 1536w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-38-thagard-on-mir-nm18-303-032.jpg?resize=2048,1348 2048w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-38-thagard-on-mir-nm18-303-032.jpg?resize=400,263 400w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-38-thagard-on-mir-nm18-303-032.jpg?resize=600,395 600w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-38-thagard-on-mir-nm18-303-032.jpg?resize=900,593 900w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-38-thagard-on-mir-nm18-303-032.jpg?resize=1200,790 1200w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-38-thagard-on-mir-nm18-303-032.jpg?resize=2000,1317 2000w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 335px) 100vw, 335px\" \/><br><em>Left: Soviet cosmonauts Georgi M. Grechko, left, and Yuri V. Romanenko during their record-breaking 96-day mission aboard Salyut 6. Right: NASA astronaut Norman E. Thagard during his American record-breaking 115-day flight aboard Mir.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>As for the record for longest spaceflight, Skylab 4\u2019s 84-day mark held for four years, when Soviet cosmonauts Yuri V. Romanenko and Georgi M. Grechko surpassed it, spending 96 days aboard the Salyut 6 space station from December 1977 to March 1978. As an American record it held up longer, broken by NASA astronaut <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/01\/thagard_norman.pdf?emrc=666f6b12a5eba\">Norman E. Thagard<\/a> during his <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/history\/space-station-20th-launch-of-mir-18-crew\/\">115-day flight<\/a> aboard the Russian space station Mir between March and July 1995. Operational lessons learned from Skylab proved invaluable for the Shuttle-Mir and International Space Station programs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>For more insight into the Skylab 4 mission, read <a href=\"https:\/\/historycollection.jsc.nasa.gov\/JSCHistoryPortal\/history\/oral_histories\/CarrGP\/carrgp.htm\" rel=\"noopener\">Carr<\/a>\u2019s, <a href=\"https:\/\/historycollection.jsc.nasa.gov\/JSCHistoryPortal\/history\/oral_histories\/GibsonEG\/gibsoneg.htm\" rel=\"noopener\">Gibson<\/a>\u2019s, and <a href=\"https:\/\/historycollection.jsc.nasa.gov\/JSCHistoryPortal\/history\/oral_histories\/PogueWR\/poguewr.htm\" rel=\"noopener\">Pogue<\/a>\u2019s oral histories with the <a href=\"https:\/\/historycollection.jsc.nasa.gov\/JSCHistoryPortal\/history\/\" rel=\"noopener\">JSC History Office<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>With special thanks to Ed Hengeveld for his expert contributions on Skylab imagery.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:30px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n<div id=\"\" class=\"nasa-gb-align-full width-full maxw-full padding-x-3 padding-y-0 hds-module hds-module-full wp-block-nasa-blocks-related-articles\">\t\t<section class=\"hds-related-articles padding-x-0 padding-y-3 desktop:padding-top-7 desktop:padding-bottom-9\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"w-100 grid-row grid-container maxw-widescreen padding-0 text-align-left\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"margin-bottom-4\"><h2 style=\"max-width: 100%;\" class=\"width-full w-full maxw-full\">Explore More<\/h2><\/div>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t<div class=\"grid-row grid-container maxw-widescreen padding-0\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"grid-col-12 desktop:grid-col-4 margin-bottom-4 desktop:margin-bottom-0 desktop:padding-right-3\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/history\/flag-day-2024-one-small-flags-incredible-journey\/\" class=\"color-carbon-black\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"margin-bottom-2\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"hds-cover-wrapper cover-hover-zoom bg-carbon-black minh-mobile\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<figure class=\"hds-media-background  \"><img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"300\" height=\"225\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/flag-day-2024-11-us-flag-after-demo-2-mission-arrival-1.jpg?w=300\" class=\"attachment-medium size-medium\" alt=\"\" style=\"transform: scale(1); transform-origin: 50% 50%; object-position: 50% 50%; object-fit: cover;\" block_context=\"nasa-block\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/flag-day-2024-11-us-flag-after-demo-2-mission-arrival-1.jpg 1000w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/flag-day-2024-11-us-flag-after-demo-2-mission-arrival-1.jpg?resize=300,225 300w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/flag-day-2024-11-us-flag-after-demo-2-mission-arrival-1.jpg?resize=768,576 768w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/flag-day-2024-11-us-flag-after-demo-2-mission-arrival-1.jpg?resize=400,300 400w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/flag-day-2024-11-us-flag-after-demo-2-mission-arrival-1.jpg?resize=600,450 600w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/flag-day-2024-11-us-flag-after-demo-2-mission-arrival-1.jpg?resize=900,675 900w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" loading=\"eager\" \/><\/figure>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"padding-right-0 desktop:padding-right-10\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"subheading margin-bottom-1\">7 min read<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"margin-bottom-1\"><h3 class=\"related-article-title\">Flag Day 2024 \u2013 One Small Flag\u2019s Incredible Journey<\/h3><\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"display-flex flex-align-center label related-article-label margin-bottom-1 color-carbon-60\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"display-flex flex-align-center margin-right-2\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<svg version=\"1.1\" class=\"square-2 margin-right-1\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" xmlns:xlink=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/1999\/xlink\" x=\"0px\" y=\"0px\" width=\"16px\" height=\"16px\" viewBox=\"0 0 16 16\" style=\"enable-background:new 0 0 16 16;\" xml:space=\"preserve\"><g><g><path d=\"M8,0C3.5,0-0.1,3.7,0,8.2C0.1,12.5,3.6,16,8,16c4.4,0,8-3.6,8-8C16,3.5,12.4,0,8,0z M8,15.2 C4,15.2,0.8,12,0.8,8C0.8,4,4,0.8,8,0.8c3.9,0,7.2,3.2,7.2,7.1C15.2,11.9,12,15.2,8,15.2z\"\/><path d=\"M5.6,12c0.8-0.8,1.6-1.6,2.4-2.4c0.8,0.8,1.6,1.6,2.4,2.4c0-2.7,0-5.3,0-8C8.8,4,7.2,4,5.6,4 C5.6,6.7,5.6,9.3,5.6,12z\"\/><\/g><\/g><\/svg>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span>Article<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t3 days ago\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"grid-col-12 desktop:grid-col-4 margin-bottom-4 desktop:margin-bottom-0 desktop:padding-right-3\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/history\/55-years-ago-manned-orbiting-laboratory-cancellation\/\" class=\"color-carbon-black\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"margin-bottom-2\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"hds-cover-wrapper cover-hover-zoom bg-carbon-black minh-mobile\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<figure class=\"hds-media-background  \"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"300\" height=\"212\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/mol-cancellation-4-mol-group-1-astronauts.jpg?w=300\" class=\"attachment-medium size-medium\" alt=\"\" style=\"transform: scale(1); transform-origin: 50% 50%; object-position: 50% 50%; object-fit: cover;\" block_context=\"nasa-block\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/mol-cancellation-4-mol-group-1-astronauts.jpg 424w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/mol-cancellation-4-mol-group-1-astronauts.jpg?resize=300,212 300w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/mol-cancellation-4-mol-group-1-astronauts.jpg?resize=400,283 400w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/figure>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"padding-right-0 desktop:padding-right-10\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"subheading margin-bottom-1\">10 min read<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"margin-bottom-1\"><h3 class=\"related-article-title\">55 Years Ago: Manned Orbiting Laboratory Cancellation<\/h3><\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"display-flex flex-align-center label related-article-label margin-bottom-1 color-carbon-60\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"display-flex flex-align-center margin-right-2\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<svg version=\"1.1\" class=\"square-2 margin-right-1\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" xmlns:xlink=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/1999\/xlink\" x=\"0px\" y=\"0px\" width=\"16px\" height=\"16px\" viewBox=\"0 0 16 16\" style=\"enable-background:new 0 0 16 16;\" xml:space=\"preserve\"><g><g><path d=\"M8,0C3.5,0-0.1,3.7,0,8.2C0.1,12.5,3.6,16,8,16c4.4,0,8-3.6,8-8C16,3.5,12.4,0,8,0z M8,15.2 C4,15.2,0.8,12,0.8,8C0.8,4,4,0.8,8,0.8c3.9,0,7.2,3.2,7.2,7.1C15.2,11.9,12,15.2,8,15.2z\"\/><path d=\"M5.6,12c0.8-0.8,1.6-1.6,2.4-2.4c0.8,0.8,1.6,1.6,2.4,2.4c0-2.7,0-5.3,0-8C8.8,4,7.2,4,5.6,4 C5.6,6.7,5.6,9.3,5.6,12z\"\/><\/g><\/g><\/svg>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span>Article<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t5 days ago\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"grid-col-12 desktop:grid-col-4 margin-bottom-4 desktop:margin-bottom-0 desktop:padding-right-3\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/history\/55-years-ago-star-trek-final-episode-airs-relationship-with-nasa-endures\/\" class=\"color-carbon-black\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"margin-bottom-2\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"hds-cover-wrapper cover-hover-zoom bg-carbon-black minh-mobile\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<figure class=\"hds-media-background  \"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"300\" height=\"217\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/star-trek-final-episode-13-armstrong-at-doohan-farewell-anne-cusack-la-times-2004.jpg?w=300\" class=\"attachment-medium size-medium\" alt=\"\" style=\"transform: scale(1); transform-origin: 50% 50%; object-position: 50% 50%; object-fit: cover;\" block_context=\"nasa-block\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/star-trek-final-episode-13-armstrong-at-doohan-farewell-anne-cusack-la-times-2004.jpg 800w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/star-trek-final-episode-13-armstrong-at-doohan-farewell-anne-cusack-la-times-2004.jpg?resize=300,217 300w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/star-trek-final-episode-13-armstrong-at-doohan-farewell-anne-cusack-la-times-2004.jpg?resize=768,555 768w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/star-trek-final-episode-13-armstrong-at-doohan-farewell-anne-cusack-la-times-2004.jpg?resize=400,289 400w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/star-trek-final-episode-13-armstrong-at-doohan-farewell-anne-cusack-la-times-2004.jpg?resize=600,434 600w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/figure>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"padding-right-0 desktop:padding-right-10\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"subheading margin-bottom-1\">15 min read<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"margin-bottom-1\"><h3 class=\"related-article-title\">55 Years Ago: Star Trek Final Episode Airs, Relationship with NASA Endures<\/h3><\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"display-flex flex-align-center label related-article-label margin-bottom-1 color-carbon-60\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"display-flex flex-align-center margin-right-2\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<svg version=\"1.1\" class=\"square-2 margin-right-1\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" xmlns:xlink=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/1999\/xlink\" x=\"0px\" y=\"0px\" width=\"16px\" height=\"16px\" viewBox=\"0 0 16 16\" style=\"enable-background:new 0 0 16 16;\" xml:space=\"preserve\"><g><g><path d=\"M8,0C3.5,0-0.1,3.7,0,8.2C0.1,12.5,3.6,16,8,16c4.4,0,8-3.6,8-8C16,3.5,12.4,0,8,0z M8,15.2 C4,15.2,0.8,12,0.8,8C0.8,4,4,0.8,8,0.8c3.9,0,7.2,3.2,7.2,7.1C15.2,11.9,12,15.2,8,15.2z\"\/><path d=\"M5.6,12c0.8-0.8,1.6-1.6,2.4-2.4c0.8,0.8,1.6,1.6,2.4,2.4c0-2.7,0-5.3,0-8C8.8,4,7.2,4,5.6,4 C5.6,6.7,5.6,9.3,5.6,12z\"\/><\/g><\/g><\/svg>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span>Article<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t2 weeks ago\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The longest spaceflight up to that time ended on Feb. 8, 1974, when Skylab 4 astronauts Gerald P. Carr, Edward G. Gibson, and William R. Pogue splashed down in the Pacific Ocean after their 84-day mission aboard Skylab, America\u2019s first space station. During their stay, they carried out a challenging research program, including biomedical investigations […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":74,"featured_media":609792,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"nasa_hds_core_meta_l10n":"en-US","nasa_hds_core_meta_article_editor":"","nasa_hds_core_meta_article_contacts":[],"nasa_hds_core_meta_article_topic":"","nasa_hds_core_meta_linked_locations":[],"nasa_hds_core_meta_article_related_articles":[],"hds_migrate_meta_pr_release_id":"","hds_migrate_meta_pr_release_type":"","nasa_hds_core_meta_location_x":"","nasa_hds_core_meta_location_y":"","nasa_hds_core_meta_gallery_images":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[2671,2724],"news-tags":[],"internal-terms":[12664],"coauthors":[11996],"parsely":{"version":"1.1.0","meta":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","headline":"50 Years Ago: Skylab 4 Astronauts Return From Record-Breaking Spaceflight","url":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/history\/50-years-ago-skylab-4-astronauts-return-from-record-breaking-spaceflight\/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/history\/50-years-ago-skylab-4-astronauts-return-from-record-breaking-spaceflight\/"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-15-on-carrier-at-north-island-nas-san-diego-addressing-crowd-feb-9-1974.jpg?w=150&h=150&crop=1","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-15-on-carrier-at-north-island-nas-san-diego-addressing-crowd-feb-9-1974.jpg"},"articleSection":"NASA History","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"John Uri"}],"creator":["John Uri"],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"NASA","logo":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/themes\/nasa\/assets\/images\/nasa-logo.svg"},"keywords":["Missions","Skylab","NASA History"],"dateCreated":"2024-02-07T18:31:00Z","datePublished":"2024-02-07T18:31:00Z","dateModified":"2024-02-07T18:31:02Z"},"rendered":"<meta name=\"parsely-title\" content=\"50 Years Ago: Skylab 4 Astronauts Return From Record-Breaking Spaceflight\" \/>\n<meta name=\"parsely-link\" content=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/history\/50-years-ago-skylab-4-astronauts-return-from-record-breaking-spaceflight\/\" \/>\n<meta name=\"parsely-type\" content=\"post\" \/>\n<meta name=\"parsely-image-url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-15-on-carrier-at-north-island-nas-san-diego-addressing-crowd-feb-9-1974.jpg?w=150&h=150&crop=1\" \/>\n<meta name=\"parsely-pub-date\" content=\"2024-02-07T18:31:00Z\" \/>\n<meta name=\"parsely-section\" content=\"NASA History\" \/>\n<meta name=\"parsely-tags\" content=\"Missions,Skylab,NASA History\" \/>\n<meta name=\"parsely-author\" content=\"John Uri\" \/>","tracker_url":"https:\/\/cdn.parsely.com\/keys\/nasa.gov\/p.js"},"read_time":13,"time_ago":"4 months","featured_image":{"id":609792,"file":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/skylab-4-splashdown-15-on-carrier-at-north-island-nas-san-diego-addressing-crowd-feb-9-1974.jpg","title":"skylab-4-splashdown-15-on-carrier-at-north-island-nas-san-diego-addressing-crowd-feb-9-1974","alt":"From aboard the U.S.S. New Orleans, Skylab 4 astronauts Gerald P. Carr, left, Edward G. Gibson, and William R. Pogue wave to the crowd assembled dockside at North Island Naval Air Station (NAS) in San Diego","caption":"From aboard the U.S.S. New Orleans, Skylab 4 astronauts Gerald P. Carr, left, Edward G. Gibson, and William R. 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