photo #7634509

The first stage of the Saturn V rocket, known as the S-1C, was a massive engineering marvel, photographed in 1965 at Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama. This enormous structure, 33 feet in diameter and 138 feet high, housed two major propellant tanks holding RP-1 fuel and liquid oxygen (LOX), totaling nearly 4.6 million pounds of propellant. Its five powerful F-1 engines—four of which were movable—allowed for critical maneuverability during launch, enabling the guidance system to control direction and stabilize the rocket’s ascent.