Spaceflight Now: Apollo 13 Retrocast
Wednesday: April 19, 2000  0001 GMT
The aftermath of Apollo 13
In a colourful half hour ceremony at Houston, President Nixon, accompanied by Mrs Nixon, presented the Medal of Freedom, America's highest civil award, to the NASA Manned Spacecraft Center in recognition of their achievement in bringing Apollo 13 safely home.
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Nixon
Friday: April 17, 1970  1500 GMT
Apollo 13 returns home
Re-entry day -- the climax of this 7-day space drama -- started quietly. But steady confidence changed to nervous tension when the Commander, Jim Lovell, who's now clocked up 30 days in space, made what was probably his biggest mistake in all that time.
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Splashdown
Service Module separation reveals major damage
The crew have successfully jettisoned the Service Module, and taken photographs of it, heavily damaged, and with debris hanging from it.
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Separation
The human factor of the Apollo 13 crisis
The human problems are as big as the technical ones for Apollo 13. The astronauts need to stay rested to complete important tasks. And the astronauts' wives are listening continuously to their private feed from Mission Control.
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Kranz
Thursday: April 16, 1970  0001 GMT
Capsule air and plutonium concerns for Apollo 13
As Apollo 13 is nursed homewards, the astronauts' main concern is the Lunar spacecraft's air conditioning system is not designed to provide fresh air for the docking tunnel and Command Module. There is also worry about the atomic battery onboard.
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Air scrubber
Wednesday: April 15, 1970  0400 GMT
Apollo 13 rounds the moon
Apollo 13, safely around the moon, and steadily speeding up as it approaches earth, still faces many problems before it can be regarded as out of trouble.
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Moon
Tuesday: April 14, 1970  2130 GMT
Apollo 13 on Free Return Trajectory
Apollo 13 has achieved the first step necessary for a safe journey home. The crew has fired the Lunar Module's descent engine to enter what's called a "free return trajectory". If no further rocket firings are possible, the craft will pass round the back of the moon and return to Earth, probably on Saturday.
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Moon
"The longest night"
Glynn Lunney at Mission Control described it as "the longest night in the space programme". For hours after the explosion we've been listening to the exchanges between the crew and Mission Control, trying to identify what it is that the astronauts can see venting into space.
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Explosion
Crisis hits moon mission
Big trouble for Apollo 13 -- so serious that there's talk of having to use the Lunar Module as a lifeboat to help get the crew back to Earth.
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Explosion
Monday: April 13, 1970  0500 GMT
Astronauts rest as they cruise on
With a strenuous time ahead of them when once they get to the moon, the crew are being given as restful a time as possible on the long journey there. This morning, the crew successfully carried out a mid-course correction and a TV transmission at the same time.
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Illustration
Sunday: April 12, 1970  0457 GMT
Apollo 13 on track to the moon
Jim Lovell, Fred Haise and Jack Swigert are now so accurately on course for their 75-hour flight to the moon that their first mid-course correction has been cancelled.
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Earth
Saturday: April 11, 1970  1845 GMT
In orbit despite rocket problems
Apollo 13 and its three-man crew have been successfully launched into Earth orbit, and are now being checked out before being placed in a 75-hour trajectory to the moon -- longer than usual because the moon is almost at its maximum distance of 252,000 miles.
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   LAUNCH VIDEO
   ALTERNATE LAUNCH VIDEO
Launch
Apollo 13 is go for launch!
At Cape Kennnedy, everything is now in order for today's planned launch of America's third moonlanding mission. Liftoff is expected at 2:13 p.m. EST (1913 GMT). Spaceflight Now will have a full report after the launch including video of the liftoff.
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Apollo 13
Friday: April 10, 1970  1500 GMT
Swigert joins Apollo 13 crew -- its official
Apollo 13 is now expected to be launched tomorrow with astronaut Jack Swigert, the backup Command Pilot, in the centre couch. The flight had been on the verge of postponement for nearly a week.
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Apollo 13
Flight Data File
Mission: Apollo 13
Flight crew:
James A. Lovell, Jr.
John L. Swigert, Jr.
Fred W. Haise
Launch vehicle:
Saturn V AS-508
Launch:
1913 GMT, April 11, 1970
Lunar landing site:
Fra Mauro

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