Apollo 13: America's Greatest Space Triumph

Fifty-four years ago this week Americans held their collective breaths as news spread about a catastrophe aboard the moon-bound Apollo 13 spacecraft.  Over the next four days, a life-and-death drama would play out on the nation's television screens as the world prayed for the crew's safe return.

On the evening of April 13, 1970, three-American astronauts were speeding toward the moon when an explosion shuddered the entire spacecraft.  From 200,000 miles above Earth, command module pilot Jim Swigert radioed Mission Control: "Houston, we've had a problem."

Alarm lights flashed in the Odyssey space module as oxygen pressure nosedived in the craft and the power fluttered. Instruments indicated that two of Apollo's 13's three fuel cells had been loss. Another blinking light showed that one oxygen tank was completely empty.

The second oxygen tank was gradually oozing air.  With warning lights winking throughout the spacecraft, commander Jim Lovell glanced out the window and was aghast to see Apollo 13 was venting "something out into space."

It had been about 56 hours since Apollo 13 had roared off the launchpad in Cape Canaveral, Florida.  On board with Swigert and Lovell, was Fred Haise, a last minute replacement for crew member Ken Mattingly, who was unwittingly exposed to measles.

Lovell was the world's most experienced astronaut at that time.  He had logged three missions and spent 572 hours in space.  He was crew a member on Apollo 8, the first U.S. mission to circle the moon, and had flown on two Gemini flights.

Up until the explosion, the mission was deemed "all systems go" for a lunar landing. When Mission Control scrutinized the craft's data, it quickly scrubbed the original objective and began a frantic around-the-clock marathon to determine how to return the three astronauts safely back to Earth.

Never before had NASA dealt with such formidable obstacles.  The spacecraft was slowly leaking oxygen that would gradually bleed the supply until no air was left to breathe.  With the loss of power cells, temperatures in Apollo 13 hovered near freezing.  Most of the food on board was inedible.

When it seemed nothing else could go wrong, water became an issue because it was needed to cool the systems.  The crew was ordered to conserve water, reducing their daily intake to six ounces per man per day.  Slowly, they became dehydrated and weakened, losing a total of 31 pounds during the ordeal.

While Americans were glued to their televisions, Mission Control scrambled to find a way to use what little power was remaining to fly the astronauts home.  With only 15 minutes of power to spare in the command module, Houston directed the crew to board lunar module Aquarius.

The lunar module had not been designed for a such a rigorous journey. It lacked a shield to survive the searing heat of reentry into the Earth's atmosphere.  But it was their last best hope.  Mission Control radioed new instructions to the crew for preserving power and burning the craft's engines.

As Aquarius hurtled toward Earth, the nation's news networks broadcast live accounts and pictures of Apollo 13's epic dash toward the Pacific Ocean.  In the waning moments, Mission Control lost transmission with the spacecraft, adding to the gripping suspense.

After some anxious moments, the space capsule splashed down in the chilly waters of the Pacific Ocean on April 17. Americans everywhere cheered the safe return of the nation's newest heroes.  The outpouring of joy and relief would last for days as the country feted Lovell, Haise and Swigert.

What at one time had seemed liked a certain disaster, turned into a shining moment for the American space program.

The improbable saga became one more reason for the nation's people to proudly call themselves Americans.