Disaster in Space

    It was April 11, 1970, at Florida’s Kennedy Space Center. Three astronauts were strapped inside their small spacecraft, Apollo 13.

    Apollo 13 sat atop a 360-foot-tall rocket packed with millions of pounds of fuel. When the fuel was ignited, the rocket would thrust Apollo 13 into space.

    The countdown began. 

    Five, four, three, two, one . . .

    With a roar, the rocket shot into the sky. It streaked through the air at 24,000 miles per hour—14 times the speed of a bullet. 

    The force stretched back the skin on the astronauts’ faces. It seemed as if the skin would rip from their skulls. The men felt as though their bones might shatter. 

    But this was normal. In fact, the launch was nearly perfect. Commander Jim Lovell and officers Fred Haise and Jack Swigert were on their way to the moon. 

    It was April 11, 1970, at Florida’s Kennedy Space Center. Three astronauts were strapped inside their small spacecraft, called Apollo 13.

    Apollo 13 sat on top of a 360-foot-tall rocket. The rocket was packed with millions of pounds of fuel. When the fuel was ignited, the rocket would thrust Apollo 13 into space.

    The countdown began. 

    Five. Four. Three. Two. One . . .

    With a roar, the rocket shot into the sky. It streaked through the air at 24,000 miles per hour. 

    The force stretched back the skin on the astronauts’ faces. It seemed as if the skin would rip from their skulls. The men felt as though their bones might shatter. 

    But this was normal. In fact, the launch was nearly perfect. The team was led by Commander Jim Lovell. The officers were Fred Haise and Jack Swigert. They were on their way to the moon. 

    It was April 11, 1970, at Florida’s Kennedy Space Center. Three astronauts were strapped inside their small spacecraft, Apollo 13.

    Apollo 13 sat atop a 360-foot-tall rocket packed with millions of pounds of fuel. When the fuel was ignited, the rocket would thrust Apollo 13 into space.

    The countdown began. 

    Five, four, three, two, one . . .

    With a roar, the rocket shot into the sky and streaked through the air at 24,000 miles per hour—14 times the speed of a bullet. 

    The force stretched back the skin on the astronauts’ faces. It seemed as if the skin would rip from their skulls—and as if their bones might shatter. 

    But this was normal. Indeed, the launch was practically perfect. Commander Jim Lovell and officers Fred Haise and Jack Swigert were on their way to the moon. 

    The astronauts sped toward the moon. Their job was to gather samples of sandy dirt and 4-billion-year-old rocks. The 240,000-mile journey would take three days.

    Apollo 13 was made up of three modules (see page 24). The car-sized command module in the middle was called Odyssey. It was where the men lived and slept. 

    The lunar module, or LM, was attached to Odyssey on one end. It was the smaller spacecraft built to carry the men from Odyssey to the moon and back. 

    On the other end, a service module held most of the ship’s electrical power and oxygen tanks.

    The astronauts were crammed into Odyssey. They ate pouches of dried food mixed with water. There were no showers, sinks, or toilets. 

    And there was no gravity to hold anything down. The men floated in their jumpsuits. They looked like big fish stuck in a tiny tank. 

    But the astronauts never complained. They were honored to be on this flight. 

    Why were these men going to the moon? They had work to do. They would gather samples of sandy dirt. They would collect 4-billion-year-old rocks. It was a 240,000-mile journey. The trip would take three days.

    Apollo 13 was made up of three modules (see page 24). There was a car-sized command module. It was in the middle. It was called Odyssey. The men lived and slept there. 

    There was also the lunar module, or LM. It was attached to Odyssey on one end. It was a smaller spacecraft. It was built to carry the men from Odyssey
 to the moon and back. 

    On the other end, there was a service module. It held most of the ship’s electrical power. It also held the oxygen tanks.

    The astronauts were crammed into Odyssey. They ate dried food mixed with water. There were no showers, sinks, or toilets. There was no gravity. The men floated around. They looked like big fish in a tiny tank.

    But the astronauts did not complain. They were honored to be on this flight.

    The astronauts sped toward the moon. Their job was to gather samples of sandy dirt and 4-billion-year-old rocks. The 240,000-mile journey would take three days.

    Apollo 13 consisted of three modules (see page 24). The car-sized command module in the middle, called Odyssey, was where the astronauts lived and slept. 

The lunar module, or LM, was attached to Odyssey on one end. It was a smaller spacecraft built to carry the men from Odyssey to the moon and back. 

    On the other end, a service module held most of the ship’s electrical power and oxygen tanks.

    The astronauts were crammed into Odyssey. They ate pouches of dried food, which they prepared by adding warm water and kneading for three minutes. They did without showers, sinks, or toilets, and there was no gravity to hold anything down. Floating in their jumpsuits, the astronauts looked like big fish stuck in a tiny tank. 

    But the astronauts never complained, because they were honored to be on this mission.

    On April 13, Lovell, Haise, and Swigert prepared for the moon landing. 

    The astronauts were in constant contact with a team of engineers at Mission Control in Houston, Texas. Mission Control asked them to check Apollo 13’s oxygen tanks. 

    Swigert flipped a switch. There was a loud bang. The spacecraft moaned and shook. “Houston, we’ve had a problem,” Lovell said. 

    In fact, it was a catastrophe. 

    At first, nobody knew what had happened. Lovell thought they had been hit by a meteoroid. But it was an explosion in an oxygen tank.

    The ship was badly damaged. Within hours, Odyssey would run out of oxygen and power. The men could no longer continue to the moon. Instead, they would need to find a way home. 

    The astronauts aboard Apollo 13 had spent thousands of hours training for this trip. They knew rule number one in an emergency: Focus on the problem. Panic does not get you closer to a solution. And so they got to work.

    On April 13, Lovell, Haise, and Swigert prepared for the moon landing. 

    The astronauts were in constant contact with a team of engineers at Mission Control in Houston, Texas. The team asked the astronauts to check the ship’s oxygen tanks. Swigert flipped a switch. There was a loud bang. The spacecraft moaned and shook. “Houston, we’ve had a problem,” Lovell said. 

    In fact, it was a catastrophe. 

    No one knew what had happened. Lovell thought they had been hit by a space rock. But it was an explosion in an oxygen tank. Within hours, Odyssey would run out of oxygen. It would have no power. The men could not go to the moon. Instead, they would need to find a way home. 

    The Apollo 13 astronauts had trained for thousands of hours. They did not panic. Instead, they got to work on finding a solution.

    On April 13, Lovell, Haise, and Swigert began to prepare for the moon landing. 

    The astronauts were in constant contact with a team of engineers at Mission Control in Houston, Texas. Mission Control asked them to check Apollo 13’s oxygen tanks. 

    Swigert flipped a switch. There was a loud bang, and the spacecraft moaned and shook.

    “Houston, we’ve had a problem,” Lovell said. 

    In fact, it was a catastrophe. 

    Initially, nobody knew what had happened. Lovell thought they had been hit by a meteoroid, but, in fact, it was an explosion in an oxygen tank.

    The ship was severely damaged. Within hours, Odyssey would run out of oxygen and power. The men could no longer continue to the moon; they would need to find a way home. 

    The astronauts aboard Apollo 13 had spent thousands of hours training for this trip. They knew rule number one in an emergency: Focus on the problem. Panic does not get you closer to a solution—so they got to work.

    At Mission Control in Houston, flight director Gene Kranz gathered his engineers. Kranz’s team and the astronauts came up with the same idea: to use the LM as a lifeboat. 

    The LM had its own power, oxygen, and water. The astronauts would be safe in it until they got close to Earth. But then they would have to scramble back into Odyssey as they passed through Earth’s atmosphere.

    During that part of the trip, the ship would heat up to 5,000 degrees. The LM would burn up immediately at that temperature. But Odyssey had a heat shield to protect the astronauts. 

    The astronauts settled in for the four-day trip back to Earth. The men needed to save power in the LM—so they shut off the heat. It was 280 degrees below zero outside. The men shivered in their spacesuits.

    People on Earth scanned the sky, wondering if the astronauts would make it home.

    At Mission Control, flight director Gene Kranz gathered his engineers. Kranz’s team and the astronauts agreed on a plan. The astronauts would use the LM as a lifeboat. 

    The LM had its own power, oxygen, and water. The men would be safe in it until they got close to Earth. But they would have to get back into Odyssey as they passed through Earth’s atmosphere. 

    That’s when the ship would heat up to 5,000 degrees. The LM would burn up. But Odyssey had a heat shield to protect the men. 

    The trip back to Earth would take four days. To save power, the men shut off the heat. It was 280 degrees below zero outside. They shivered in their spacesuits.

    People on Earth scanned the sky. They wondered if the astronauts would get home.

    At Mission Control in Houston, flight director Gene Kranz gathered his engineers. Kranz’s team and the astronauts came up with the same idea: to use the LM as a lifeboat. 

    The LM had its own power, oxygen, and water, and the astronauts would be safe in it until they got close to Earth. But then they would have to scramble back into Odyssey as they passed through Earth’s atmosphere.

    During that part of the trip, the ship would heat up to 5,000 degrees. The LM would burn up immediately at that temperature, but Odyssey had a heat shield to protect the astronauts. 

    The astronauts settled in for the four-day trip back to Earth. They needed to conserve power in the LM—so they shut off the heat. It was 280 degrees below zero outside, and the men shivered in their spacesuits.

    People on Earth scanned the sky, wondering if the astronauts would make it home.

    On the morning of April 17, the astronauts got ready for the ship’s final plunge. 

    They climbed into Odyssey. But they did not know if the explosion had damaged the parachutes they needed to land safely. 

    And what about the heat shield? If it didn’t work, the ship would burn up. “Gentlemen,” Lovell said. “I suggest you get ready for a ride.”

    The men tightened their seat belts for the 25,000 mile per hour free fall to Earth. Through the windows, all they could see was fiery red. 

    For four minutes, Odyssey and Mission Control would be unable to talk to each other.

Mission Control was packed with people. The room was completely silent.

    It was the morning of April 17. The astronauts climbed into Odyssey. No one knew for sure what would happen. The parachutes they needed to land safely might have been damaged. 

    And what about the heat shield? If it didn’t work, the ship would burn up. “Gentlemen,” Lovell said. “I suggest you get ready for a ride.”

    The men tightened their seat belts. It would be a 25,000 mile per hour free fall to Earth. 

    For four minutes, Odyssey and Mission Control would be unable to talk to each other.

    Mission Control was packed with people. The room was silent.

    On the morning of April 17, the astronauts got ready for the ship’s final plunge. 

    They climbed into Odyssey, but they didn’t know if the explosion had damaged the parachutes they needed to land safely. 

    And what about the heat shield? If it didn’t work, the ship would burn up. “Gentlemen,” Lovell said, “I suggest you get ready for a ride.”

    The men tightened their seat belts for the 25,000 mile per hour free fall to Earth. Through the windows, all they could see was fiery red. 

    For four minutes, Odyssey and Mission Control would be unable to communicate with each other.

    Although Mission Control was packed with people, the room was completely silent. Nobody spoke.

    The minutes ticked by with agonizing slowness. One minute. Two minutes. Three minutes. Four minutes . . . 

    NASA’s Joe Kerwin tried to make contact. There was no response.

    “Try again,” Kranz barked.

    Still nothing. 

    Five minutes. 

    Some engineers fought back tears. 

    Then a voice crackled over the radio. 

    “OK, Joe,” said Swigert.

    At Mission Control, joy and relief flooded the room. Kranz pumped his fist. 

    Inside Odyssey, the astronauts watched the sky outside the windows. It turned from angry red to soft pink and finally to blue. 

    Pop!

    Odyssey’s parachutes opened. 

    The ship floated to Earth, feather-like. It landed in the warm waters of the Pacific Ocean. 

    The Apollo 13 mission was over. It was a failed mission that would go down in history as one of NASA’s greatest successes. 

    Lovell looked at Haise and Swigert. “Fellows,” he said, “we’re home.” 

    In Houston, the minutes ticked by with agonizing slowness. One minute. Two minutes. Three minutes. Four minutes . . . 

    NASA’s Joe Kerwin tried to make contact. There was no response.

    “Try again,” Kranz barked.

    Still nothing. 

    Five minutes. 

    Some engineers fought back tears. 

    Then a voice crackled over the radio. 

    “OK, Joe,” said Swigert.

    At Mission Control, joy and relief flooded the room. Kranz pumped his fist. 

    Odyssey’s parachutes opened. 

    The ship floated to Earth, feather-like. It landed in the warm waters of the Pacific Ocean. 

    The Apollo 13 mission was over. It was a failed mission. But it would go down in history as one of NASA’s greatest successes. 

    Lovell looked at Haise and Swigert. “Fellows,” he said, “we’re home.”

    The minutes ticked by with agonizing slowness. One minute, then two, then three. Four minutes . . . 

    NASA’s Joe Kerwin tried to make contact but received no response.

    “Try again,” Kranz barked.

    Still nothing. 

    Five minutes. 

    Some engineers fought back tears. 

    Then a voice crackled over the radio. 

    “OK, Joe,” said Swigert.

    At Mission Control, joy and relief flooded the room, and Kranz pumped his fist. 

    Inside Odyssey, the astronauts watched the sky outside the windows turn from angry red to soft pink and finally to blue. 

    Pop!

    Odyssey’s parachutes opened. 

    The ship floated to Earth, feather-like, and landed in the warm waters of the Pacific Ocean.

    The Apollo 13 mission was over. It was a failed mission that would go down in history as one of NASA’s greatest successes. 

    Lovell looked at Haise and Swigert. “Fellows,” he said, “we’re home.”