Skylab's Apollo telescope mount

Abstract

A large part of the scientific knowledge provided by the Skylab mission was obtained from high resolution observations of the structure and behavior of the sun utilizing scientific instruments mounted in the Apollo Telescope Mount (ATM). The Skylab Attitude and Pointing Control System (APCS) provided three-axis attitude stabilization and maneuvering capability for the Skylab cluster as well as pointing control of the ATM experiment canister with the Experiment Pointing Control System. Based on an analysis of flight data, it can be concluded that the Skylab APCS successfully performed within design specifications and met or exceeded all imposed requirements.