>> UH, IT WAS PLAGUED BY, UH,
BAD OMENS AND BAD LUCK
FROM THE VERY BEGINNING.
[ ROCKET LAUNCHING ]
>> LOOKS GOOD HERE, FLIGHT.
GO TO GREEN.
[ MUSIC ]
>> YEARS BEFORE THE FLIGHT,
WHEN THE SPACECRAFT
WAS BEING BUILT,
A DAMAGED LIQUID OXYGEN TANK
WAS INSTALLED
IN THE SPACECRAFT.
THE TANK HAD BEEN DROPPED
ON THE FACTORY FLOOR.
A LITTLE PIECE OF PLUMBING HAD
PREVENTED THE NORMAL PROCEDURE
FOR REMOVING OXYGEN
AFTER A ROUTINE TEST
PRIOR TO THE FLIGHT.
AND THEN ON THE DAY
BEFORE FLIGHT,
WE FILLED UP THE TANK AGAIN
WITH LIQUID OXYGEN,
AND IT WAS A BOMB
WAITING TO GO OFF.
[ MUSIC ]
THIS IS THE CREW OF APOLLO 13
WISHING EVERYBODY THERE
A NICE EVENING AND, UH,
WE'RE JUST ABOUT READY TO
CLOSE OUT OUR INSPECTION
OF AQUARIUS AND GET BACK
FOR A PLEASANT EVENING
AT ODYSSEY. GOOD NIGHT.
>> ACTUALLY, IT WAS THE END
OF THE WORKDAY.
WE WERE FIXIN' TO GO TO BED
AFTER WE DID A FEW THINGS TO
CLEAN UP AND THE NEXT MORNING,
GOING TO LUNAR ORBIT
AND GET READY TO LAND.
AND THEN THAT WAS
A LARGE BANG.
>> WHEN THE EXPLOSION
FIRST OCCURRED, UH,
WE DIDN'T KNOW WHAT HAPPENED.
>> AND THAT JUST RANG THROUGH
THE METALLIC STRUCTURE.
>> UH, HOUSTON,
WE'VE HAD A PROBLEM.
I WAS AT THE LUNAR MODULE
AND THEN I WENT DOWN
TO THE COMMAND MODULE.
>> WE MAY HAVE HAD AN
INSTRUMENTATION PROBLEM, FLIGHT.
>> ROG.
>> AND WE HAD A PRETTY LARGE
BANG ASSOCIATED WITH THE, UH,
CAUTION AND WARNING THERE.
>> WE STARTED TO LOOK AT
THE INSTRUMENT PANELS,
UH, ONE OF
THE QUANTITY GAUGES, UH--
ONE OF THE TANKS WAS ZERO.
THAT WAS THE TANK
THAT HAD BLEW.
I THEN LOOKED OUT THE WINDOW
AND SAW ESCAPING AT
A HIGH RATE OF SPEED,
A GASEOUS OXYGEN.
BECAUSE THE EXPLOSION
OCCURRED ON THE FIRST--
THE DAMAGED TANK,
BUT THAT ALSO RUPTURED
THE SECOND TANK.
JUST BLEW THE ENTIRE SIDE
OF THE SPACECRAFT OFF.
>> MY IMMEDIATE FEELING WAS
JUST A SICK FEELING
IN THE PIT OF MY STOMACH,
A DISAPPOINTMENT.
I KNEW WE HAD LOST THE LANDING.
>> AND FROM THEN ON,
IT WAS NOT A THIRD LANDING
ON THE MOON,
BUT A SURVIVAL
OF HOW TO GET HOME.
>> OKAY, I WANT YOU TO
DOUBLE-CHECK MY ARITHMETIC
TO MAKE SURE WE GOT
A GOOD COURSE ALIGN.
>> GO FLIGHT.
HOW'S THE ARITHMETIC?
>> STANDBY, WE'RE CHECKING.
>> AT THE TIME,
IT'S SCARY AS THE DEVIL
AND, UH, UH,
WE WERE HANDLING SOMETHING
THAT WE KNEW WAS, UH,
OUT OF CONTROL.
AND, UH, EVERY TEAM
THAT CAME ON WAS
DEALING WITH A MAJOR SET
OF PROBLEMS TO DEAL WITH.
AND THEY-THEY JUST, UH,
JUMPED TO THE TASK AND THEY
KNEW WHAT THEY HAD TO DO.
>> OKAY, NOW LET'S
EVERYBODY KEEP COOL.
WE GOT THE LM STILL ATTACHED,
THE LM SPACECRAFT'S GOOD,
SO IF WE NEED, UH,
TO GET BACK HOME,
WE GOT A LM TO DO
A GOOD PORTION OF IT WITH.
[ MUSIC ]
>> ONE OF THE BIGGEST THINGS
WE HAD TO DO IN THE DYING
MOMENTS OF THE ELECTRICAL
SYSTEM IN THE COMMAND MODULE
WAS TO TRANSFER
THE GUIDANCE SYSTEM.
AND TRANSFER THE ANGLE NUMBERS
FROM THE COMMAND MODULE
TO THE LUNAR MODULE.
AND WE ONLY HAD ABOUT
15 MINUTES TO DO THAT.
>> ABOUT 20 MINUTES
AFTER THE EXPLOSION,
IT WAS OBVIOUS THAT, UH,
WE WEREN'T COMING, UH,
TO A LANDING IN THE MOON.
WE WERE GONNA GO AROUND IT.
GLENN HAD ALREADY BEEN
DOWN IN THE TRENCH
WITH THE TRAJECTORY GUYS
AND CAME UP WITH, UH,
FIVE TRAJECTORY
RETURN TO EARTH OPTIONS.
>> SO WE WOULD NOT--
WE WOULD'VE MISSED THE EARTH
HAD WE DONE NOTHING.
SO, THE FIRST THING WAS TO
GET US IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION
TO GO AROUND THE MOON.
AND THAT WAS THE FIRST
MANEUVER, UH, WE MADE,
AND WE USED THE LANDING ENGINE.
THE ENGINE WE NORMALLY
WOULD'VE LANDED ON THE MOON.
[ MUSIC ]
>> EVERYBODY SEEMED TO BE
MOVING IN THE RIGHT DIRECTIONS
WITHOUT BEING DIRECTED.
EVERYBODY HAD A SENSE OF
WHAT HAD TO BE DONE.
THE TRAINING GUYS BROUGHT
THE SIMULATORS UP OVER THERE
AND THE CREWS WERE
OVER IN THE SIMULATORS
TRACKING VIRTUALLY
EVERYTHING THEY WERE DOING.
THEY WERE-- EVERY
CONFIGURATION CHANGE
THAT WAS PROPOSED TO BE DONE
WAS ALREADY BEING WORKED OVER
IN THE SIMULATORS THERE.
SO YOU START GETTING ANSWERS
FROM ALL THESE
VARIOUS DIRECTIONS.
[ MUSIC ]
>> THE COMMAND MODULE
WAS VERY WET.
THERE WAS WATER EVERYWHERE.
ON EVERY-- IN LM,
THERE'S NO INNER WALLS.
SO YOU CAN SEE WATER ON
ALL THE CONNECTORS, UH,
[ INDISTINCT ], PLUMBING.
EVERY TURN, A GLOB OF WATER.
AND THE COMMAND MODULE,
WE ACTUALLY GET TOWELS OUT TO
WIPE OFF THE INSTRUMENT PANEL
TO SEE THE INSTRUMENTS.
>> WE COPIED THAT REPORT,
UH, FROM JIM LOVELL OF
SURFACE MODULE SEPARATION
AT, UH, 138 HOURS.
>> AND THERE'S ONE WHOLE SIDE
OF THAT SPACECRAFT MISSING.
>> IS THAT RIGHT?
>> OKAY, COPY THAT.
FAREWELL, AQUARIUS,
AND WE THANK YOU.
>> SO IT WAS A QUESTION OF
GETTING THIS ENTIRE WORLD
GEARED AND ORIENTED TO ONE
SINGLE JOB: GET THE CREW HOME.
>> TEAMWORK WAS NECESSARY.
GOOD LEADERSHIP,
INITIATIVE TO THINK
OUT-OUTSIDE OF THE BOX.
WHEN THINGS GO WRONG,
HOW DO WE REPAIR THEM?
THOSE ARE THE THREE THINGS
THAT WERE ABSOLUTELY NECESSARY.
>> I WAS MOST PROUD OF-OF
BEING IN THIS TEAM THAT
KNEW WHAT THEY HAD TO DO
AND THERE WAS NO DOUBT ABOUT IT.
UH, THE TEAM COMPLETELY FACED
UP TO WHAT HAD TO BE DONE.
IN THIS CASE,
IT WAS A SURVIVAL CHALLENGE
THAT WE WERE FACED WITH.
SO, THERE YOU ARE.
WE PULLED THAT OFF.
[ MUSIC ]