Skylabn.
/ˈskʌɪlab/, U.S. /ˈskaɪˌlæb/ Now historical.
A space laboratory launched into earth orbit by the United States in 1973 and used for experiments involving zero gravity and astrophysical studies. Frequently (and in earliest use) attributive.The launch of the laboratory is sometimes referred to as Skylab 1, after subsequent missions to ferry crew to it were called Skylab 2, 3, and 4. Skylab was last manned in 1974 and disintegrated on re-entry into the earth's atmosphere in 1979 following orbital decay.
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society > travel > air or space travel > a means of conveyance through the air > spacecraft > [noun] > laboratories and observatories
space probe1949
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moon probe1958
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Skylab1969
1969 Materials Res. for Shuttle & Space Station (NASA Techn. Memorandum X-64521) (front matter) Skylab program office.
1970 Sci. News 14 Mar. 264/3 The President..also mentioned Skylab—the orbiting workshop of 1972—which will house several three-man crews for periods up to 56 days.
1979 Guardian 12 July 1/8 Skylab fell to earth last night... Its debris scattered into the sea and on to a sparsely inhabited Australian desert.
1995 Boys' Life July 23 Three crews of three astronauts took turns on Skylab, staying up to 84 days.
2006 J. C. Buckley Space Physiol. i. 11 Urine samples that had been saved from the Skylab missions were examined recently using newer markers for bone resorption.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, March 2017; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
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n.1969