Apollo 13 was the third manned mission by NASA that was intended to land on the moon, but a mid-mission technical malfunction forced the lunar landing to be aborted. The crew members were commander James A. Lovell, command module pilot John L. "Jack" Swigert, and lunar module pilot Fred W. Haise.
The mission launched on April 11, 1970 at 13:13 CST. Two days later, while the mission was en route to the moon, a fault in the electrical system of one...
more
Apollo 13 was the third manned mission by NASA that was intended to land on the moon, but a mid-mission technical malfunction forced the lunar landing to be aborted. The crew members were commander James A. Lovell, command module pilot John L. "Jack" Swigert, and lunar module pilot Fred W. Haise.
The mission launched on April 11, 1970 at 13:13 CST. Two days later, while the mission was en route to the moon, a fault in the electrical system of one of the Service Module's oxygen tanks produced an explosion which caused a loss of electrical power and failure of both oxygen tanks. The command module remained functional on its own batteries and oxygen tank, which were only designed to support the vehicle during the last hours of flight. The crew shut down the Command Module and used the Lunar Module as a "lifeboat" during the return trip to earth. Despite great hardship caused by limited power, loss of cabin heat, and a shortage of potable water, the crew returned safely to Earth, and the...
less
