Astronauts Mark Anniversary of Apollo 13 Drama 13 April 2010, by MICHAEL TARM , Associated Press Writer
Astronauts mark anniversary of Apollo 13 drama 13 April 2010, By MICHAEL TARM , Associated Press Writer On April 13, 1970, an oxygen tank exploded as the spaceship was four-fifths of the way to the moon. The crew, which included Jack Swigert, who died in 1982, was forced to scrap the moon mission and focus solely on getting back to Earth alive. Lovell's calm if unsettling words to Mission Control following the explosion that, "Houston, we've had a problem" - now widely recited as, "Houston, we have a problem" - belied his quick internal calculation that their chances of survival were slim. Apollo 13 crew member Commander James A. Lovell, "But you don't put that in your mind," he said Jr. poses with his space suit during a 40th Anniversary Monday. "You don't say how slim they are but reunion of the moon mission at the Adler Planetarium rather how you can improve the odds." Monday, April 12, 2010, in Chicago. (AP Photo/Paul Beaty) In Houston, Kranz led hundreds of flight controllers and engineers in a furious rescue plan. He insisted on Monday that he never allowed himself to believe that the plan could fail. (AP) -- Surviving Apollo 13 astronauts and several flight directors reunited on Monday to remember a Still, he quickly added, "there is some point when failed moon mission 40 years ago this week that you do the best you can and then it's up to a higher they managed to turn into one of the greatest authority to steer this mission to its ultimate triumphs in the history of space exploration.
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