Images Dated 1970

Us-Astronautics-Apollo Xiii-Launch

The 363 foot-high (110 meters) Apollo 13 Saturn V space vehicle lifts off 11 April 1970 from the Kennedy Space Center's launch complex with astronauts James A. Lovell Jr., John L. Swigers Jr. and Fred W. Haise Jr. on what was supposed to be the third NASA's manned lunar landing mission. After the explosion of the ship's oxygen tanks 13 April as it had passed into the moon's gravitational field the crew had to leave the command module and climb into the LEM (Lunar Exploration Module). The three astronauts used primitive celestial navigation techniques to determine where they were and how to get back to earth. Despite continued peril, their calculations worked and on 17 April 1970 Apollo XIII splashed down safely in the Pacific Ocean with all occupants intact. / AFP PHOTO

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