![]() ![]() Among the myriad leftover parts was a fully functional Saturn V lunar rocket, which was capable of putting 310,000 pounds of payload into low Earth orbit. This led NASA to create the Apollo Applications Program (AAP), allowing them to make good use of some remaining Apollo hardware. But scrapping these missions meant that some already manufactured equipment, including unused Apollo rockets and rockets stages, would go to waste. Partly due to waning public interest, the Apollo program wound down by the early 1970s, leading to the cancellation of Apollo missions 18, 19, and 20. But did it really happen? Repurposing Apollo parts for Skylab During this time, the astronauts reportedly lounged around, often staring out the window at an endless black void encasing the bountiful blue marble below them. A cursory search turns up dozens of references to the event, with many sources claiming the astronauts went on strike, purposefully turning off their radios and refusing to talk to ground control for periods ranging from 90 minutes to a full day. Rumors of a “mutiny” that took place aboard the Skylab space station in the 1970s have persisted for nearly half of a century. ![]()
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