Topic > Apollo 13 - 650

The recovery of the Apollo 13 mission from the oxygen tank explosion was not only pure luck and miracle, but there were other contributing factors beyond these. It may be hard to believe, but the timing of the failure also played an important role in the shuttle's recovery. If it weren't for the timing of the disaster, we may never have seen those astronauts again. No one knew that the small Aquarius Lunar Module (LM) would save the crew's lives, or that the lithium hydroxide (LiOH) canister adapter would become so useful in life-or-death situations. Launch of the Apollo 13 mission to circumnavigate the moon and Earth April 11, 1970. Oxygen tank two exploded during the fifty-fifth hour and fifty-fifth minute of the mission (April 13). Just nine minutes before it shattered, the astronauts interrupted a television broadcast. Lovell said, "This is the Apollo 13 crew wishing everyone a good evening, and we are almost ready to conclude our inspection of the Aquarius and return for a pleasant evening on the Odyssey. Good night" (Dunbar) . So far everything was going well with the Apollo 13 mission. Little did they know that just nine minutes later, their lives would change forever. The crew was approximately 321,860 km from Earth when the oxygen tank explosion occurred. Timing was of the essence. If the tank had exploded hours after the original explosion, the crew may not have survived. NASA engineer Jerry Woodfill says, “Not everyone agrees with all the things I've discovered in my research, but pretty much everyone agrees on this, including Jim Lovell. The exact moment the explosion occurred was crucial. Long before or after the mission would have prevented the success of the rescue” (Atkinson). The large amount of hours and distance... half the paper... This would, in effect, bypass the barrel. The air blown through the filter by the suit's fan would contain no carbon dioxide when it re-entered the cabin atmosphere. (Atkinson) To create this invention they used supplies available in the two modules, such as the CM's LiOH canisters and an astronaut's space suit. Great minds create great ideas. This is what the astronauts did; they were smart enough to solve a problem quickly. If the crew had not immediately realized that something was wrong with the Space Shuttle, the timing would have been for naught. Fortunately, they noticed the explosion when they were close to Earth, otherwise they might have died an unexpected death. The crew was smart enough to follow Mission Control's instructions. They entered the LM as mentioned, and then began a sequence of steps to create an invention that would pass air from the cabin to the LM.