Houston, we have a problem

On Apr 11 1970, 47 yrs ago, Apollo 13 took off.

Was 9 years old and a space junky. Lived every minute news came in about it. Just glad they were able to make it home.

I was twelve but otherwise just the same.

I was 35 but otherwise just the same.

I was 14 at the time,but what mattered then, and has been with me to today, was the the way they solved problems. Big problems. And got them back.
Honestly, watching that unfold was a big reason I got into engineering. Well, couldn't make that, but settled to be a software puke. Still solving problems though.

And speaking of Nasa, we have Cassini's Grand Finale in couple weeks! Talk about engineering...

I was -2.5 years old.

April is an interesting month for Space Flight

12 April 1961 - Yuri Gargarin takes off (Yuri's Night now a regular yearly event around the world).

12 April 1981 - first ever Space Shuttle mission.STS-1

I was 10 when they landed on the moon and I do remember it being on the TV and my parents telling me about it. Apollo 13 however I just can't recall for some reason.

But what an achievement to get those guys back.

I was in my last year of high school when the first shuttle launched. It seemed to me that the whole school was crammed into the TV room.

pffttt that it? i was -19yrs old.

Also just for fun .... my mum would have 7 .. so .. who feels old?

I was only 2 so don't remember it, but I do remember the following years when space travel was still a hot topic. Family vacation 1977, I have more memories of Kennedy Space Center than Disney World, the upcoming Shuttle being the main subject of interest.

I was thinking, it must suck to be a longtime resident of Houston, remembering when it was known as "Space City" (reflected by the Astrodome, AstroWorld, etc.). It must have been an exciting time to live there with all the space themes.

That's a nice way of saying that Houston is a craphole now.

I guess the NASA did not see so much funding anymore, after the russian competition fell away (?)

Seriously, in those times all the regulating mechanisms and tech along with the trajectory had all to be controlled by mechanical "analog" systems, assisted by "computers" that would not even compare to a 1980ies 286. Maybe von Braun would have considered the use of electronics as cheating

You are actually correct. The Cold War rivalry was THE major impetus behind the space program.

LOL Max you are one old geezer at 82.

It was interesting finding out about Yuri from a different perspective. My wife Joanna was born and raised in Poland during communism and she said that they were always told about the hero Yuri Gargarin and how he was such a great person to be in space and they would even write children's books about him and so on, he was revered on so many levels. It was Yuri this, Yuri that. The interesting part was when we asked her niece who was born in 2001 and still lives there, if she had ever heard of Yuri she was clueless. We showed her the children's book and she was giggling about it, not even knowing he existed.

Such a contrast...

v6,
boNes

Thanks for sharing that story. It just goes to show how pervasive and omnipresent authoritarian regimes can be.

NASA blew a lot of its post-lunar budget on the shuttle program for a return that was not equal to the return we got from Apollo.

NASA has a history of doing the impossible.

First, in the early 60s, they shot people into space!
Then, in the early 70s, they had people walk on the moon! Sent probes to Mars and Jupiter!

Finally, in the 80s...they made space flight dull. No one thought it could be done. "No way, it's humanity's most spectacular achievement!" they said.
"Oh YEAH???" said NASA. "Watch this!"

Now people argue that throwing NASA's measly budget at eternal problems like poverty and hunger could actually fix them (laughable) while space is worthless.
Mission accomplished!!



The Jedi Master

Great post Jedi.

Was fresh home from my 2nd tour in Vetnam and watched and prayed for their safe return..I have Apollo 13 on CD and it never fails to make my eyes run when watching them touch down..Was weird folks in Africa were watching the moon landing on TV but I was up North in the hills and got the message over a PRC-25 that 3wwe had men on the moon..Those were exciting days for Americans but the passion has left us now we pay Russia to give our astronauts a lift

I've posted these before, but what the heck - from an event marking the 45th anniversary of Apollo 13:

One of the panels with a group of esteemed astronauts:


Another panel with some of the astronauts and Mission Control staff:


More astronauts and Mission Control crew:


Me and Gene Kranz:

Those pics are so great that I don't think anyone here minds you posting them again.

Lol, I have never, and still haven't, seen Gene Kranz with a smile on his face. Great pics Ken.


Wheels

Here ya go

@Arthonon - Thanks for posting those pics again Ken! Those men shaped our future. Would have loved to been there to hear their first hand accounts....
Lovell just lectured in my area - and I didn't know till after.....

And while we're on dates.

Today is the anniversary of the first man in space. Yuri Gagarin. Remember his name. He had the right stuff too.

"We've got to find a way to make this fit into the hole for this using nothing but that."