Huntsville in Madison County, Alabama — The American South (East South Central)
Lovell Swigert Haise
Launched: April 11, 1970 Splashdown: April 17, 1970
"Okay Houston, Hey, We've got a problem here..."
The Apollo 13 mission is the only Apollo flight remembered primarily for the effort to bring it home. On the second day of the flight, a power producing oxygen tank exploded, badly damaging the service module and forcing the Moon landing to be aborted. But with the spacecraft nearly dead, the cancellation quickly paled in importance to the need to save the astronauts. As mission control radioed emergency strategies around the clock, the astronauts converted the lunar module into a “lifeboat” and overcame each crisis by jury-rigging damaged equipment with the meager resources onboard. Following an anxious pass behind the Moon to gain lunar “sling-shot” momentum for the long journey back to Earth, Apollo 13 limped home with a worldwide television audience watching breathlessly. The astronauts' safe return, despite enormous challenges, was cause for great celebration - reason enough to label the crippled mission a “successful failure.”
Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Air & Space • Exploration.
Location. 34° 42.667′ N, 86° 39.339′ W. Marker is in Huntsville, Alabama, in Madison County. Marker is on Tranquility Base, half a mile west of Old Madison Pike NW, on the left when traveling west. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 1 Tranquility Base, Huntsville AL 35805, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker. Conrad Gordon Bean (here, next to this marker); Shepard Roosa Mitchell (here, next to this marker); Armstrong Collins Aldrin (here, next to this marker); Scott Worden Irwin (here, next to this marker); Young Mattingly Duke (here, next to this marker); Cernan Evans Schmitt (here, next to this marker); McDivitt Scott Schweickart / Stafford Young Cernan (a few steps from this marker); Schirra Eisele Cunningham / Borman Lovell Anders (a few steps from this marker). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Huntsville.
Credits. This page was last revised on June 16, 2016. It was originally submitted on October 27, 2013, by Sandra Hughes Tidwell of Killen, Alabama, USA. This page has been viewed 670 times since then and 9 times this year. Last updated on July 15, 2015, by J. Makali Bruton of Accra, Ghana. Photos: 1, 2, 3, 4. submitted on October 27, 2013, by Sandra Hughes Tidwell of Killen, Alabama, USA. • Bill Pfingsten was the editor who published this page.