1
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(dramatic music)

2
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Auto-sequence indicated (mumbles).

3
00:00:03,389 --> 00:00:05,448
Roger.

4
00:00:05,448 --> 00:00:06,905
Roger, how's it look, ECON?

5
00:00:06,905 --> 00:00:08,138
Got your (crosstalk)?

6
00:00:08,138 --> 00:00:08,971
Okay.

7
00:00:09,918 --> 00:00:11,251
Ignition flight.

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00:00:14,760 --> 00:00:17,900
On the evening of April 13th 1970,

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00:00:17,900 --> 00:00:22,200
NASA's Apollo 13 crew was 200,000 miles from home,

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00:00:22,200 --> 00:00:23,500
hurdling through space,

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00:00:23,500 --> 00:00:25,036
and closing in on their target,

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00:00:25,036 --> 00:00:26,073
the moon.

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00:00:27,200 --> 00:00:29,170
We show 13 at an altitude

14
00:00:29,170 --> 00:00:33,370
of 174,664 nautical miles,

15
00:00:33,370 --> 00:00:35,193
and this is Apollo Control Houston.

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00:00:36,440 --> 00:00:38,520
Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin

17
00:00:38,520 --> 00:00:40,500
had already made history touching down

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00:00:40,500 --> 00:00:42,690
on the lunar surface first.

19
00:00:42,690 --> 00:00:44,620
And despite some launch drama,

20
00:00:44,620 --> 00:00:47,943
Apollo 12 also had a successful lunar landing mission.

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00:00:49,810 --> 00:00:51,850
So for mission commander Jim Lovell,

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00:00:51,850 --> 00:00:54,480
command module pilot Jack Swigert,

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and lunar module pilot Fred Hays,

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Apollo 13 should have been the third time charm.

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But it wasn't.

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No one could believe that an explosion

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00:01:04,910 --> 00:01:07,237
that disastrous had happened.

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The only thing they could do

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was look out the window

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and try to hold it steady.

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Very critical,

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because if it was too steep,

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the sudden acceleration

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would make us a fiery meteor Earth for just a few seconds,

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and that would be it.

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This is the crew of Apollo 13,

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wishing everybody there a nice evening...

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00:01:31,400 --> 00:01:32,930
The crew has just wrapped up

39
00:01:32,930 --> 00:01:34,550
a live TV broadcast,

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00:01:34,550 --> 00:01:36,510
showing those on Earth how comfortably

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00:01:36,510 --> 00:01:39,165
they can live and work in zero gravity.

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We're just about ready to close out

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00:01:41,662 --> 00:01:43,622
our inspection of Aquarius,

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00:01:43,622 --> 00:01:46,694
and get back for a pleasant evening in Odyssey.

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00:01:46,694 --> 00:01:48,250
Good night.

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Mission Control asks Apollo 13

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00:01:50,620 --> 00:01:53,540
for their last checklist item that evening.

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13, we've got one more item for you

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when you get a chance.

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We'd like it to stir up your cryotanks.

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The cryotanks are the oxygen tanks.

52
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The power fans were turned on within the tank

53
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for the third cryo stir of the mission.

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The procedure to stir the oxygen slush inside the tank

55
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to avoid settling.

56
00:02:14,490 --> 00:02:17,263
What happens next is unimaginable.

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(explosion)

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The crew hears a loud bang.

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One of the two oxygen tanks has just exploded.

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Okay, Houston,

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we've had a problem here.

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The spacecraft has suffered

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a catastrophic emergency.

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Unbeknownst to the crew,

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00:02:46,610 --> 00:02:50,063
the service module now has a gaping hole in its side.

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Yet, by some miracle,

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the crew is alive.

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This is Houston,

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say again please.

70
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All right Houston,

71
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we've had a problem.

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The explosion sets off a domino of disasters

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for the crew.

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Warning lights indicate the loss

75
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of two of the three fuel cells.

76
00:03:08,940 --> 00:03:10,610
The spacecraft's primary source

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of electricity and life support.

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00:03:13,460 --> 00:03:15,123
Water supply is cut off.

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Oxygen tank one is empty.

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Our 0.2 quantity number two tank

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is reading zero.

82
00:03:23,621 --> 00:03:24,471
Did you get that?

83
00:03:25,710 --> 00:03:28,413
The second oxygen tank is rapidly depleting.

84
00:03:29,380 --> 00:03:31,000
What happened on the service module

85
00:03:31,000 --> 00:03:32,960
was a double failure.

86
00:03:32,960 --> 00:03:35,110
A manifold blew out that took out

87
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both fuel cells' power systems.

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00:03:37,950 --> 00:03:39,730
There was no power on the vehicle,

89
00:03:39,730 --> 00:03:42,653
except for the batteries in the command module.

90
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The quick-thinking crew

91
00:03:45,550 --> 00:03:46,930
tries to close the hatch

92
00:03:46,930 --> 00:03:48,960
between the command and lunar modules

93
00:03:48,960 --> 00:03:50,713
to protect their oxygen supply.

94
00:03:51,800 --> 00:03:53,010
Continuing to troubleshoot

95
00:03:53,010 --> 00:03:54,660
with the Apollo 13 crew,

96
00:03:54,660 --> 00:03:57,440
closely watching oxygen quantities and pressures

97
00:03:57,440 --> 00:03:58,540
in the command module.

98
00:03:59,570 --> 00:04:02,130
But the hatched lid won't stay shut,

99
00:04:02,130 --> 00:04:03,923
so they secure it with a strap.

100
00:04:06,330 --> 00:04:08,430
Thirteen minutes after the explosion,

101
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Lovell just happens to look out the left-hand window

102
00:04:11,370 --> 00:04:13,003
and see something venting.

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He reports to Mission Control.

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00:04:16,711 --> 00:04:19,629
We are venting something out into the...

105
00:04:19,629 --> 00:04:20,546
Into space.

106
00:04:22,364 --> 00:04:24,083
Roger, we copy you're venting.

107
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Lovell's lucky glance warns the crew

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of another potential catastrophe.

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The venting is precious oxygen,

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rapidly escaping the second

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and only remaining oxygen tank.

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Without oxygen, the crew is doomed.

113
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Not only does it supply the breathing air,

114
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but the fuel cells need oxygen and hydrogen

115
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to provide water and power to the spacecraft.

116
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And now the fuel cells were dying.

117
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The command module batteries had to be saved

118
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for re-entry, which was days away.

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Time is of the essence.

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Astronauts, flight controllers, and engineers

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across America get to work.

122
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They must invent a plan to bring the crew home alive.

123
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One challenge is to find a trajectory

124
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to bring the crippled spacecraft home safely.

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The crew must change course,

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because they are heading straight for the moon.

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As oxygen levels near zero,

128
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NASA begins planning for an alternate mission.

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They propose a radical idea.

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It's slowly going to zero,

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and we're starting to think about the LEM lifeboat.

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The crew agrees.

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Yeah, that's what we're thinking about too.

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They will use the lunar module

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to keep the crew alive,

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and to get them onto a return to Earth trajectory.

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We now show an altitude

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00:05:58,290 --> 00:06:02,440
of 180,521 nautical miles.

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Here in Mission Control, we are now looking towards

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an alternate mission.

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Swinging around the moon

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and using the lunar module power systems

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because of the situation

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that has developed here this evening.

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This free return trajectory

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uses the moon's gravitational force

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to propel them back home.

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Flight director Glynn Lenney

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assures the world with caution.

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We think we have the situation in control,

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we've projected the consumables as described,

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and we have a plan for carrying out

153
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the rest of the mission.

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But there is going to be no relaxation at all,

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as far as that goes,

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from now until splash.

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Next, to preserve critical power

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for their return,

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they shut down the command module,

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and will go to minimum power in the lunar module,

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or LEM.

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The Apollo 13 problem was a shortage of power.

163
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So everything had to be shut down,

164
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and the question was,

165
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can we turn off the gyroscopes,

166
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can we turn off the heaters?

167
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We had to turn it back on again for the re-entry,

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and could we do that?

169
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We had thought it over very carefully

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about what was inside these inertial instruments.

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Would anything break?

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Would they come back on again?

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That's what you're worried about.

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And finally, they have to figure out

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a navigation plan.

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Exactly how, when, and in what attitude

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would they burn the lunar module descent engine

178
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to provide a quick return home?

179
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The Lunar Excursion module, LEM,

180
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it was designed to land on the moon,

181
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but it wasn't designed to control everything

182
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coming back to Earth.

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Completely new procedures

184
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had to be written and tested in the simulator

185
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before being passed up to the crew.

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With only 15 minutes of power left in the command module,

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CAPCOM Jack Lousma instructs the crew

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to make their way into the LEM.

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Flight ECON.

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Go ahead, ECON.

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The pressure in O2 tank one is all the way down

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to 297, we better think about getting in the LEM.

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Or using the LEM system.

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The LEM was designed to supply

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only enough oxygen and power to support

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two men for two days,

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but it was being asked to care for three men for four days.

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To conserve power,

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the crew shuts off all but the life-sustaining systems

200
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in the LEM.

201
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Water is another huge concern.

202
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They need it to cool systems and keep the crew hydrated.

203
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We're at this time water-critical in the LEM.

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So we'd like to use as little as possible.

205
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The crew cuts down their intake

206
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to six ounces each per day.

207
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They would be dangerously dehydrated

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throughout the return.

209
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Carbon dioxide is another major problem.

210
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Day two in the LEM.

211
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A warning light indicates dangerous levels

212
00:09:12,390 --> 00:09:14,470
of CO2 buildup.

213
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They have to figure out a way

214
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to soak up the carbon dioxide they're exhaling.

215
00:09:19,870 --> 00:09:22,060
There were square filters to remove CO2

216
00:09:22,060 --> 00:09:24,360
from the spacecraft in the command module,

217
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and round receptacles in the LEM.

218
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Engineers on the ground scrambled

219
00:09:28,910 --> 00:09:31,040
to find a way to fit square peg

220
00:09:31,040 --> 00:09:32,403
into a round hole.

221
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Their solution requires spacesuit parts,

222
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socks, a flight manual cover,

223
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and duct tape.

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The crew hacks a new system

225
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while combating the effects of poisonous gas

226
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building up inside.

227
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Once the CO2 crisis is over,

228
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everyone immediately turns their attention

229
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to the biggest challenge of all:

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navigation.

231
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Apollo 13 is still heading straight for the moon.

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Somehow, they must change their course

233
00:10:04,480 --> 00:10:06,610
to a return to Earth trajectory,

234
00:10:06,610 --> 00:10:08,773
or the entire crew will perish.

235
00:10:10,130 --> 00:10:12,250
The only option is to push

236
00:10:12,250 --> 00:10:14,800
using the lunar module's descent engine.

237
00:10:14,800 --> 00:10:17,183
A risky maneuver that had never been tested.

238
00:10:18,090 --> 00:10:20,404
So there was some point between the explosion

239
00:10:20,404 --> 00:10:23,009
and the realization that their only way home

240
00:10:23,009 --> 00:10:25,400
was to push,

241
00:10:25,400 --> 00:10:27,650
that we had to start doing those simulations.

242
00:10:30,283 --> 00:10:31,990
The lunar module was equipped

243
00:10:31,990 --> 00:10:34,060
with the same navigation and guidance system

244
00:10:34,060 --> 00:10:35,350
as the command module,

245
00:10:35,350 --> 00:10:37,695
but with different software.

246
00:10:37,695 --> 00:10:40,440
Engineers who designed the system weren't sure

247
00:10:40,440 --> 00:10:42,620
if the LEM would be able to handle navigation

248
00:10:42,620 --> 00:10:45,293
for the entire spacecraft in powered flight.

249
00:10:46,960 --> 00:10:48,274
So this had happened,

250
00:10:48,274 --> 00:10:49,860
(mumbles) the problem.

251
00:10:49,860 --> 00:10:51,840
You know, (mumbles) the question was asked me,

252
00:10:51,840 --> 00:10:54,980
can your assimilator simulate the lunar module

253
00:10:54,980 --> 00:10:57,550
pushing the command module back home?

254
00:10:57,550 --> 00:10:59,650
The lunar module was controlling

255
00:10:59,650 --> 00:11:01,982
the combination of the command module

256
00:11:01,982 --> 00:11:03,810
and the service module.

257
00:11:03,810 --> 00:11:06,027
So that was the biggest challenge for that mission,

258
00:11:06,027 --> 00:11:09,413
was that we had to work out in real time new algorithms.

259
00:11:11,610 --> 00:11:13,420
We had to answer the question,

260
00:11:13,420 --> 00:11:16,450
when the lunar module fires its engine

261
00:11:16,450 --> 00:11:18,110
to push the command module,

262
00:11:18,110 --> 00:11:20,140
is the whole thing going to break in half

263
00:11:20,140 --> 00:11:21,053
and fly apart?

264
00:11:22,110 --> 00:11:23,513
Nobody comes home.

265
00:11:24,850 --> 00:11:25,963
There is no recovery.

266
00:11:27,770 --> 00:11:29,960
We didn't have two weeks, we didn't have a day.

267
00:11:29,960 --> 00:11:31,233
You know, we had hours.

268
00:11:33,600 --> 00:11:35,160
Doing this simulation was kind of important.

269
00:11:35,160 --> 00:11:37,190
They wanted to know if it was going to work.

270
00:11:37,190 --> 00:11:39,070
We ran all sorts of tests.

271
00:11:39,070 --> 00:11:40,410
We didn't have a lot of time.

272
00:11:40,410 --> 00:11:43,830
And that happened and there was essentially a day

273
00:11:43,830 --> 00:11:46,883
to get all sorts of analysis and testing done.

274
00:11:49,060 --> 00:11:51,190
As the astronauts close in on the moon,

275
00:11:51,190 --> 00:11:53,470
ground engineers calculate various options

276
00:11:53,470 --> 00:11:54,393
to get them home.

277
00:11:55,490 --> 00:11:57,170
Each carries its own risk,

278
00:11:57,170 --> 00:11:59,063
and they are running out of time.

279
00:12:00,400 --> 00:12:03,360
Flight directors Gene Kranz and Chris Kraft

280
00:12:03,360 --> 00:12:05,510
picked the option that requires two major

281
00:12:05,510 --> 00:12:06,850
trajectory corrections,

282
00:12:06,850 --> 00:12:09,286
powered by the LEM descent engine.

283
00:12:09,286 --> 00:12:11,370
The crew is able to transfer

284
00:12:11,370 --> 00:12:14,173
the command module's navigation platform to the LEM.

285
00:12:15,103 --> 00:12:17,860
But first, the LEM's navigation system

286
00:12:18,770 --> 00:12:19,673
must be realigned.

287
00:12:21,280 --> 00:12:23,120
The computer could tell us actually

288
00:12:23,120 --> 00:12:24,240
how to get back home,

289
00:12:24,240 --> 00:12:27,650
if we had a problem en route to the moon.

290
00:12:27,650 --> 00:12:30,570
I had to manually, and look outside,

291
00:12:30,570 --> 00:12:32,190
to see the stars,

292
00:12:32,190 --> 00:12:34,610
and then move the spacecraft around,

293
00:12:34,610 --> 00:12:37,946
and then try to get the stars into the objects

294
00:12:37,946 --> 00:12:41,173
so that I could do the alignment that way.

295
00:12:42,550 --> 00:12:44,210
Ordinarily, the spacecraft

296
00:12:44,210 --> 00:12:47,600
uses star points and the onboard navigation enoptic system

297
00:12:47,600 --> 00:12:48,800
to align the spacecraft

298
00:12:48,800 --> 00:12:50,223
for mid-course maneuvers.

299
00:12:51,220 --> 00:12:53,970
But Lovell must do it by eye manually

300
00:12:53,970 --> 00:12:55,820
through the ship's window.

301
00:12:55,820 --> 00:12:56,653
Take a look.

302
00:12:56,653 --> 00:12:57,820
We'd like to know if you can see stars

303
00:12:57,820 --> 00:12:59,621
for alignment purposes.

304
00:12:59,621 --> 00:13:01,112
No, we're not able to,

305
00:13:01,112 --> 00:13:02,320
but (muffled speaking),

306
00:13:02,320 --> 00:13:05,573
gave away at the time of the mishap,

307
00:13:05,573 --> 00:13:07,184
(muffled speaking),

308
00:13:07,184 --> 00:13:10,050
we do have the earth and moon back in the (mumbles).

309
00:13:13,630 --> 00:13:14,620
Explosion debris

310
00:13:14,620 --> 00:13:16,620
swirling outside the spacecraft

311
00:13:16,620 --> 00:13:19,240
makes it impossible to sight real stars.

312
00:13:19,240 --> 00:13:22,713
So Lovell uses the sun instead as an alignment star.

313
00:13:25,530 --> 00:13:28,240
Luckily, Commander Lovell is the only astronaut

314
00:13:28,240 --> 00:13:30,360
uniquely trained for this difficult task

315
00:13:30,360 --> 00:13:33,210
because of a mistake he made just over a year earlier

316
00:13:33,210 --> 00:13:34,983
as a Navigator on Apollo 8.

317
00:13:36,247 --> 00:13:38,190
Houston, Apollo 8.

318
00:13:38,190 --> 00:13:41,050
Apollo 8 Houston, go ahead.

319
00:13:41,050 --> 00:13:43,160
Roger, for some reason

320
00:13:43,160 --> 00:13:45,347
we suddenly got program 01 and no attitude light

321
00:13:45,347 --> 00:13:46,180
on our computer.

322
00:13:46,180 --> 00:13:49,860
Pushed the wrong button actually telling the computer

323
00:13:49,860 --> 00:13:51,010
and the guidance system

324
00:13:51,010 --> 00:13:53,940
that we're back on the launchpad.

325
00:13:53,940 --> 00:13:57,950
So we had to manually then go look at the stars

326
00:13:57,950 --> 00:14:00,360
and realign that platform,

327
00:14:00,360 --> 00:14:02,283
which we successfully did.

328
00:14:04,610 --> 00:14:05,730
A year or so later,

329
00:14:05,730 --> 00:14:07,140
on Apollo 13,

330
00:14:07,140 --> 00:14:10,160
we had to turn off our computer,

331
00:14:10,160 --> 00:14:13,470
turn off our guidance system to save power.

332
00:14:13,470 --> 00:14:15,260
I was pretty confident

333
00:14:15,260 --> 00:14:17,590
that I could get our alignment back again.

334
00:14:17,590 --> 00:14:21,040
And basically, because of the training I had

335
00:14:21,040 --> 00:14:22,863
inadvertently on Apollo 8.

336
00:14:24,940 --> 00:14:26,940
With the navigation system aligned,

337
00:14:26,940 --> 00:14:29,770
the crew prepares to change course for home.

338
00:14:29,770 --> 00:14:30,963
This is Apollo Control,

339
00:14:30,963 --> 00:14:32,173
that's present time,

340
00:14:32,173 --> 00:14:33,600
a flight dynamics officer

341
00:14:33,600 --> 00:14:35,700
here in Mission Control is computing

342
00:14:35,700 --> 00:14:38,380
a maneuver to place Apollo 13

343
00:14:38,380 --> 00:14:40,450
back on a free return trajectory.

344
00:14:40,450 --> 00:14:41,730
The alignment with the sun

345
00:14:41,730 --> 00:14:44,900
proves to be less than one half a degree off,

346
00:14:44,900 --> 00:14:47,320
giving the crew confidence they can execute

347
00:14:47,320 --> 00:14:49,640
the lifesaving burn necessary

348
00:14:49,640 --> 00:14:51,853
to get them on course for Earth.

349
00:14:52,910 --> 00:14:53,925
What do you got?

350
00:14:53,925 --> 00:14:56,181
Upper-right corner of the sun.

351
00:14:56,181 --> 00:14:57,014
We've got it!

352
00:14:57,014 --> 00:14:59,023
Houston, Aquarius.

353
00:14:59,023 --> 00:15:00,500
Go ahead (mumbles).

354
00:15:00,500 --> 00:15:02,923
Okay, it looks like the sun check passes.

355
00:15:02,923 --> 00:15:04,750
We understand it checks out.

356
00:15:04,750 --> 00:15:06,350
We're kind of glad to hear that.

357
00:15:09,449 --> 00:15:11,740
They had no attitude reference,

358
00:15:11,740 --> 00:15:13,960
the intertial guidance system was not on

359
00:15:13,960 --> 00:15:16,200
and so they were trying to

360
00:15:16,200 --> 00:15:19,580
steer that whole conglomeration,

361
00:15:19,580 --> 00:15:22,580
command module and the LEM,

362
00:15:22,580 --> 00:15:24,439
steer the whole thing so that they could

363
00:15:24,439 --> 00:15:27,110
do the mid-cross correction in the right direction.

364
00:15:27,110 --> 00:15:28,300
And the only thing they could do

365
00:15:28,300 --> 00:15:31,400
was look out the window of the LEM

366
00:15:31,400 --> 00:15:32,823
and try to hold it steady.

367
00:15:34,740 --> 00:15:36,350
A 35 second burn

368
00:15:36,350 --> 00:15:39,190
allows Apollo 13 to swing around the moon

369
00:15:39,190 --> 00:15:41,990
onto a free return to Earth course.

370
00:15:41,990 --> 00:15:43,763
One of the most impressive things

371
00:15:43,763 --> 00:15:45,410
that they were able to do

372
00:15:45,410 --> 00:15:47,670
was to target that trajectory

373
00:15:47,670 --> 00:15:50,250
and burn and actually control the vehicle,

374
00:15:50,250 --> 00:15:53,180
to get back to that trajectory by hand.

375
00:15:53,180 --> 00:15:55,443
That, to me, is one of the most amazing things.

376
00:15:56,655 --> 00:15:57,920
About 18 hours later,

377
00:15:57,920 --> 00:15:59,710
after routing the far side of the moon,

378
00:15:59,710 --> 00:16:02,513
they initiate the second burn to speed up their return.

379
00:16:04,054 --> 00:16:05,970
An enormous relief,

380
00:16:05,970 --> 00:16:07,260
when the burn happened,

381
00:16:07,260 --> 00:16:09,280
and it didn't come apart.

382
00:16:09,280 --> 00:16:12,387
Just an incredible sense of relief.

383
00:16:15,563 --> 00:16:16,670
While the world waits,

384
00:16:16,670 --> 00:16:18,253
the crew is on their way home.

385
00:16:20,590 --> 00:16:22,570
Strict food and water rations,

386
00:16:22,570 --> 00:16:24,000
freezing temperatures,

387
00:16:24,000 --> 00:16:26,460
and condensation forming all over

388
00:16:26,460 --> 00:16:28,903
makes it a difficult two and a half day journey.

389
00:16:29,810 --> 00:16:32,420
Sleep is virtually impossible.

390
00:16:32,420 --> 00:16:34,640
So the three days coming back were nerve-wracking

391
00:16:34,640 --> 00:16:37,403
because they had to just survive.

392
00:16:38,670 --> 00:16:40,820
As the crew approaches re-entry to Earth,

393
00:16:40,820 --> 00:16:43,700
they crawl back into a cold, dark command module

394
00:16:43,700 --> 00:16:47,016
to make sure they can re-start the guidance system.

395
00:16:47,016 --> 00:16:49,860
(dramatic music)

396
00:16:49,860 --> 00:16:53,210
We were forced to shut that system down with no power.

397
00:16:53,210 --> 00:16:55,023
It was never designed to do that.

398
00:16:56,130 --> 00:16:57,300
The critical components

399
00:16:57,300 --> 00:16:59,310
of the guidance system are the computer,

400
00:16:59,310 --> 00:17:00,910
and an inertial measurement unit,

401
00:17:00,910 --> 00:17:03,280
with stabilizing gyroscopes.

402
00:17:03,280 --> 00:17:05,873
The inertial system was a crucial element.

403
00:17:07,350 --> 00:17:10,400
The gyros were filled with fluid,

404
00:17:10,400 --> 00:17:12,100
and the fluid had to be maintained

405
00:17:12,100 --> 00:17:14,713
at like 154 degrees Fahrenheit.

406
00:17:15,820 --> 00:17:17,260
The gyroscopes were exposed

407
00:17:17,260 --> 00:17:19,020
to a drastic drop in temperature

408
00:17:19,020 --> 00:17:21,793
as a result of power failures after the explosion.

409
00:17:23,060 --> 00:17:24,440
The worst fear is they wouldn't start

410
00:17:24,440 --> 00:17:25,800
when you turn them on.

411
00:17:25,800 --> 00:17:26,920
And if you did turn them on,

412
00:17:26,920 --> 00:17:28,010
did you have enough performance

413
00:17:28,010 --> 00:17:29,810
to even get into the entry corridor?

414
00:17:32,120 --> 00:17:33,470
Engineers needed to test

415
00:17:33,470 --> 00:17:34,970
the gyroscopes on Earth,

416
00:17:34,970 --> 00:17:37,433
and quickly report results to Mission Control.

417
00:17:38,400 --> 00:17:40,600
The one thing that we did

418
00:17:40,600 --> 00:17:43,020
was to take guidance systems

419
00:17:43,020 --> 00:17:45,130
and shove them in the freezer

420
00:17:45,130 --> 00:17:46,623
while this was all going on,

421
00:17:47,530 --> 00:17:50,030
just to figure out what might happen.

422
00:17:50,030 --> 00:17:51,380
Here at the laboratory,

423
00:17:51,380 --> 00:17:53,740
we did days of testing,

424
00:17:53,740 --> 00:17:56,220
and we put them in refrigerators,

425
00:17:56,220 --> 00:17:58,000
put them in car trunks,

426
00:17:58,000 --> 00:17:59,500
then brought them in to test them,

427
00:17:59,500 --> 00:18:00,800
to start them,

428
00:18:00,800 --> 00:18:03,820
and see what kind of performance we could get.

429
00:18:03,820 --> 00:18:05,070
Most of the time they worked,

430
00:18:05,070 --> 00:18:06,430
but once in a while, they didn't.

431
00:18:06,430 --> 00:18:09,250
So there was always an element of doubt.

432
00:18:09,250 --> 00:18:10,500
It was a big question,

433
00:18:10,500 --> 00:18:12,343
whether gyros would even turn on.

434
00:18:15,630 --> 00:18:17,227
Ready to start (muffled) ?

435
00:18:18,300 --> 00:18:19,870
It is go time.

436
00:18:19,870 --> 00:18:23,108
The crew attempts to power up the command module.

437
00:18:23,108 --> 00:18:24,040
(muffled speaking)

438
00:18:24,040 --> 00:18:25,504
Okay (muffled).

439
00:18:25,504 --> 00:18:26,337
It's good.

440
00:18:27,900 --> 00:18:29,000
And it works.

441
00:18:30,640 --> 00:18:33,220
But, as the spacecraft nears re-entry,

442
00:18:33,220 --> 00:18:35,780
ground tracking detects an unexpected change

443
00:18:35,780 --> 00:18:37,190
in trajectory.

444
00:18:37,190 --> 00:18:40,180
This could spell disaster for the crew.

445
00:18:40,180 --> 00:18:42,520
Very critical, because we're too shallow,

446
00:18:42,520 --> 00:18:46,440
we would skip off like skipping a stone on water.

447
00:18:46,440 --> 00:18:47,670
If it was too steep,

448
00:18:47,670 --> 00:18:49,930
the sun to cell ratio would make us a fiery

449
00:18:49,930 --> 00:18:52,830
meteor Earth for just a few seconds, and that would be it.

450
00:18:53,770 --> 00:18:55,560
Mission Control decides to do

451
00:18:55,560 --> 00:18:57,203
one last course correction.

452
00:18:58,430 --> 00:18:59,430
They're going to be

453
00:18:59,430 --> 00:19:02,580
possibly taking us away from the place

454
00:19:02,580 --> 00:19:04,630
we know we want to be in the ball.

455
00:19:04,630 --> 00:19:05,980
Once again,

456
00:19:05,980 --> 00:19:07,520
they turn to Jim Lovell,

457
00:19:07,520 --> 00:19:09,500
the only astronaut uniquely qualified

458
00:19:09,500 --> 00:19:11,243
from his time aboard Apollo 8.

459
00:19:12,260 --> 00:19:13,920
One of the things they trained on

460
00:19:13,920 --> 00:19:16,450
was how you restart the navigation fix

461
00:19:16,450 --> 00:19:18,910
in the computers while coming back to Earth.

462
00:19:18,910 --> 00:19:21,098
It was a program that if we had lost

463
00:19:21,098 --> 00:19:24,250
our guidance system completely,

464
00:19:24,250 --> 00:19:26,074
and we're coming back,

465
00:19:26,074 --> 00:19:29,387
how can we make a final maneuver

466
00:19:29,387 --> 00:19:31,030
to sort of get back

467
00:19:31,030 --> 00:19:34,363
into the proper position to make a safe landing?

468
00:19:36,890 --> 00:19:39,280
Using the limb's attitude control rockets,

469
00:19:39,280 --> 00:19:41,020
Lovell performs a manual burn

470
00:19:41,020 --> 00:19:43,263
to make sure they hit their re-entry target.

471
00:19:45,440 --> 00:19:47,413
So on 8, he did it.

472
00:19:48,290 --> 00:19:49,470
And the only other time

473
00:19:49,470 --> 00:19:51,830
they used that type of re-initialization

474
00:19:51,830 --> 00:19:53,980
of the navigation system was on 13.

475
00:19:53,980 --> 00:19:55,220
And they happened to have

476
00:19:55,220 --> 00:19:57,300
the one person who was experienced in doing it

477
00:19:57,300 --> 00:19:59,660
on board the vehicle, with Jim Lovell.

478
00:19:59,660 --> 00:20:01,550
It was an emergency procedure,

479
00:20:01,550 --> 00:20:05,133
but came in pretty handy on Apollo 13.

480
00:20:05,133 --> 00:20:07,780
That was the way we made our final maneuver

481
00:20:07,780 --> 00:20:09,973
to get back into the earth's atmosphere.

482
00:20:12,910 --> 00:20:14,580
Four hours before landing,

483
00:20:14,580 --> 00:20:16,463
the crew faces their next hurdle.

484
00:20:17,750 --> 00:20:19,300
Command module has to separate

485
00:20:19,300 --> 00:20:21,032
from the service module.

486
00:20:21,032 --> 00:20:22,350
It wasn't known that the separation

487
00:20:22,350 --> 00:20:23,250
was going to work.

488
00:20:24,840 --> 00:20:25,890
But it does.

489
00:20:30,410 --> 00:20:32,090
As the module drifts away,

490
00:20:32,090 --> 00:20:34,330
the crew is able to photograph the wreckage,

491
00:20:34,330 --> 00:20:36,793
revealing just how lucky they are.

492
00:20:38,568 --> 00:20:41,760
That's when we saw this incredible explosion

493
00:20:41,760 --> 00:20:43,683
on the side of the service module.

494
00:20:46,148 --> 00:20:47,400
And there's one whole side

495
00:20:47,400 --> 00:20:49,214
of that thing missing.

496
00:20:49,214 --> 00:20:50,570
Is that right?

497
00:20:50,570 --> 00:20:51,880
The whole panel is blown out

498
00:20:51,880 --> 00:20:55,276
almost from the base to the engine.

499
00:20:55,276 --> 00:20:56,266
It's really a mess.

500
00:20:56,266 --> 00:20:57,980
Man, that's unbelievable.

501
00:20:57,980 --> 00:21:00,200
No one could believe that an explosion

502
00:21:00,200 --> 00:21:01,943
that disastrous had happened.

503
00:21:05,090 --> 00:21:06,390
Three hours later,

504
00:21:06,390 --> 00:21:09,060
the crew leaves the lunar module Aquarius for good,

505
00:21:09,060 --> 00:21:11,023
and prepares for the last hurdle.

506
00:21:13,800 --> 00:21:15,260
They jettison their life boat,

507
00:21:15,260 --> 00:21:17,290
and brace for a fiery re-entry

508
00:21:17,290 --> 00:21:19,407
down a narrow corridor.

509
00:21:19,407 --> 00:21:20,967
(mumbles) had three cold astronauts in it,

510
00:21:20,967 --> 00:21:23,040
but it just re-entered flawlessly,

511
00:21:23,040 --> 00:21:25,107
like it had been trained to do.

512
00:21:25,107 --> 00:21:27,857
(dramatic music)

513
00:21:36,289 --> 00:21:37,122
Hello 13,

514
00:21:37,122 --> 00:21:37,955
this is Recovery.

515
00:21:37,955 --> 00:21:41,443
We observed your RCS burn, over.

516
00:21:41,443 --> 00:21:42,276
This is Recovery,

517
00:21:42,276 --> 00:21:44,276
Apollo 13 is descending.

518
00:21:47,860 --> 00:21:50,340
Odyssey Houston standing by, over.

519
00:21:50,340 --> 00:21:51,173
Moments later,

520
00:21:51,173 --> 00:21:53,410
with the entire world watching,

521
00:21:53,410 --> 00:21:56,583
they splashed down gently in the Pacific Ocean near Samoa.

522
00:22:02,830 --> 00:22:05,070
Odyssey Houston, we show you on the main,

523
00:22:05,070 --> 00:22:06,370
it's really looking great.

524
00:22:10,760 --> 00:22:13,690
Apollo 13 did not land on the moon.

525
00:22:13,690 --> 00:22:16,230
But thanks to the incredible efforts of its crew,

526
00:22:16,230 --> 00:22:19,240
and the tremendous ingenuity of experts on the ground,

527
00:22:19,240 --> 00:22:21,623
the astronauts made it safely home.

528
00:22:23,830 --> 00:22:25,860
After an intense investigation,

529
00:22:25,860 --> 00:22:28,120
the Apollo 13 Accident Review Board

530
00:22:28,120 --> 00:22:30,253
identified the cause of the explosion.

531
00:22:31,160 --> 00:22:34,290
During a final launchpad test before the mission,

532
00:22:34,290 --> 00:22:37,570
the oxygen tank heaters were left on too long,

533
00:22:37,570 --> 00:22:40,440
degrading some of the fans' wire installation,

534
00:22:40,440 --> 00:22:42,043
causing a short circuit.

535
00:22:44,300 --> 00:22:47,430
Through this remarkable post-mission laboratory test,

536
00:22:47,430 --> 00:22:48,900
engineers determined that

537
00:22:48,900 --> 00:22:51,170
when the exposed bandwires shorted,

538
00:22:51,170 --> 00:22:53,600
the Teflon insulation caught fire,

539
00:22:53,600 --> 00:22:56,543
triggering a massive oxygen fuel explosion.

540
00:22:58,700 --> 00:23:03,090
That explosion took place on April 13, 1970,

541
00:23:03,090 --> 00:23:05,680
when the crew of Apollo 13 was more than

542
00:23:05,680 --> 00:23:08,349
200,000 miles from home.

543
00:23:08,349 --> 00:23:11,099
(intense music)