Lovell • Swigert • Haise

Commander Jim Lovell's words initiated heroic efforts by the crew and mission control to salvage the crippled Apollo 13 spacecraft and return it safely to Earth. Apollo 13 is remembered primarily for the effort to bring it home. On the second day of the flight, a power-producing oxygen tank exploded, badly damaging the service module and forcing the Moon landing to be aborted. With the spacecraft nearly dead, the cancellation quickly paled beside the need to save the astronauts. As mission control radioed emergency strategies around the clock, the astronauts converted the lunar module into a lifeboat and overcame each crisis by jury-rigging damaged equipment with the meager resources onboard. After an anxious pass behind the Moon to gain lunar sling-shot momentum for the long journey back to Earth, Apollo 13 limped home before a worldwide television audience. The astronauts' safe return despite enormous challenges became cause for great celebration and earned the crippled mission the label of a successful failure.

Huntsville, Alabama · United States