Questions tagged [apollo-13]
Questions regarding Apollo 13 which is launched as a part of American Apollo space program by Saturn v from Kennedy Space Center in April 11, 1970 carrying three crew members but lunar landing was aborted because of rapture of oxygen tank and few technical problems after injection to orbit
64 questions
0votes
1answer
369views
If Apollo 13 had skipped off the atmosphere into space, and fell back down days later, what would have happened? [closed]
There's no way they could have planned a contingency for this. Nixon probably would have used the same speech prepared for the 11 guys dying on the moon. Would the astronauts have said goodbye to ...
22votes
2answers
5kviews
On Apollo 13, why did the CM pilot tape a handwritten note over the CM/LM SEP switch?
The pilot put a little sign that said "NO!" over the undock switches. Flipping either would have decompressed both modules and killed everyone instantly. The official reason is that he ...
11votes
1answer
2kviews
Why did the Apollo 13 tank #2 have a heater and a vacuum?
While reading the accident report of Apollo 13, I came across this diagram: Diagram by NASA The report was just explaining the SM oxygen tank, and I have two questions looking at his diagram. Why is ...
-1votes
1answer
191views
What would have happened if the 2nd L.C.G. bag was torn during the Apollo 13 mission?
In the Apollo 13 movie, when the astronauts build the filter in order to connect the CSM and LM canisters, one of the components needed for that is an L.C.G. bag. One astronaut accidentally rips it. ...
32votes
1answer
4kviews
Apollo 13's plutonium RTG re-entry into the Tonga Trench: Good shootin' or good luck?
Plutonium powered RTGs are encased to survive re-entry. According to the Wikipedia article on Apollo 13 RTGs were used to power … the scientific experiments left on the Moon by the crews of Apollo …...
5votes
1answer
649views
What was the available delta v of the Apollo 13 spacecraft, post explosion?
The LM ascent engine wasn't used for direct abort. Presuming no one cares about the crew and just wanted to burn the LM to empty (both stages), what would the delta v have been? If it helps, I'm ok ...
31votes
1answer
5kviews
Did the crew lock themselves inside the LM on Apollo 13?
Watching and reading about Apollo 13 I am a little confused. They left the Command Module to use the Lunar Module as a lifeboat but did they close the hatch between the 2 to ensure the CM didn’t use ...
1vote
1answer
184views
How can I find Inclination and Longitude of ascending node for the Moon on JPL's Horizons?
To answer the bountied question "Puzzler: Precisely what maximum distance from the Earth did the Apollo 13 astronauts achieve? ", I have to know the Inclination and the Longitude of ...
25votes
1answer
831views
Does the post Apollo 13 roast mixtape still exist?
The debriefing party at the Hofbraugarten was merciless, beginning with a parody of the mission. The tape prepared by the Apollo 13 backup crew and the CapComs was not for the thin-skinned. The parody ...
22votes
1answer
7kviews
Would replacing a damaged tank have prevented the Apollo 13 incident?
In Oct. 1968, at North American works, one Oxygen tank was dropped from a height of 2 inches, (perhaps on the fill valve side) and this dropping damaged the fill valve. Because of this, this ...
18votes
3answers
8kviews
Apollo 14-17 - Why didn't they keep the Lunar Module docked as a lifeboat for the way back to Earth?
During Apollo 13, the Lunar Module had to be used as a lifeboat in order to save the astronauts. Then, it was only jettisoned from the Command Module shortly before Earth re-entry (even after the ...
18votes
1answer
2kviews
What exactly makes the "bang-bang-bang-bang-bang-bang-bang!" sound just before "Houston, we have hard dock." in the Apollo 13 movie?
About seven seconds after "Capture!" and just before "Houston, we have hard dock" in the feature film Apollo 13 there are about seven loud bangs at about 3 Hz repetition. At this ...
13votes
1answer
3kviews
What is this unlikely-looking contraption ("plutonium battery and scientific equipment") they're making Jim Lovell carry around a parking lot?
The BBC's Did nuclear spy devices in the Himalayas trigger India floods contains the following image and caption. Questions: What scientific equipment and which plutonium battery is this? Since this ...
2votes
1answer
524views
What was the normal function of the (coax?) crosshairs used during the Apollo 13 famous manual burn?
What crosshairs were used to maintain an attitude during the famous manual trajectory correction burn during Apollo 13's return to Earth? What was their normal function? This is all I can hear in the ...
0votes
0answers
92views
Did the service module in Apollo 13 do anything useful after the explosion, so that keeping it attached was important? [duplicate]
I realize they didn't know what happened so probably didn't know that there was such extensive damage. However, they didn't eject the service module. Why was that? Did it serve some useful purpose ...