50 Years Ago – April 11, 1970
Lift off of Apollo 13
At 2:13 p.m., astronauts James Lovell, John Swigert and Fred Haise left Earth on the third mission to the Moon.
The purpose of this mission was to land in Fra Mauro highlands of the Moon and explore and take geological samples in the Imbrium Basin.
Landing the lunar module, Aquarius, in the highlands will be the hardest landing yet for the NASA astronauts due to the large boulders in the landing zone.
If all goes well, the lunar module is scheduled to land on the moon in the evening of April 15.
FILE – In this April 11, 1970 file photo, the Saturn rocket carrying the Apollo 13 spacecraft lifts off the launch pad at Cape Kennedy, Fla. It really is rocket science and it really is hard. The giant explosion that gets a rocket off the ground isn’t that complicated. Controlling that reaction and going where you want, when you want – that’s where engineers earn their money and ulcers. And it’s where past rockets and spaceships have ended in spectacular and sometimes deadly failures. Former NASA deputy administrator Hans Mark said most failures are from human error. He pointed to a dropped oxygen tank that caused the near-fatal Apollo 13 explosion. (AP Photo)
Several days before lift-off there was a staffing change on the mission. Thomas Mattingly was originally scheduled for this mission but he was grounded after he was exposed to German measles. Out of concern for him and his fellow astronauts, Mattingly was replaced by his understudy John Swigert.
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- The Scranton Times – April 11, 1970
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- The Tribune – April 11, 1970
On the ground at misson control in Houston was Old Forge native Glynn Lunney is one of the four flight directors on the Apollo 13 mission. Lunney will be at the control board during the lift off of the lunar module from the moon’s surface and during the “burn” maneuver that will start the astronauts on their path back to Earth.
Marywood names new president
The trustees of Marywood College announced that they have selected Sister M. Coleman Nee, IHM, Ph.D., as the new president of the college.
Nee, a Scranton native, takes over the college from Sister St. Mary Orr who recently resigned after serving as president for nine years.
Prior to her appointment, Sister Coleman nee was a trustee of the college and coordinator of the apostolic works of the IHM Order.
Related Material –
Apollo 13 In Real Time – a website that uses data, images, sound and video to recreate the mission – https://apolloinrealtime.org/13/
Apollo 13 video collection – collection of videos dealing with the mission – https://archive.org/details/jsc-pao-video-collection?and[]=Apollo+13+Resource+Reel&sin=&sort=-publicdate
Houston We Have A Podcast – a collection of Apollo related podcasts from the Johnson Space Center – https://www.nasa.gov/johnson/HWHAP/apollo50th
Apollo 13 Images of the Moon in 4k – https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/13537
Old Forge Native looks back on mission control job during moon landing – Caitlin Heaney West – July 15, 2019
To The Moon and Chappaquiddick – Episode One of the Historically Hip podcast featuring Brian Fulton and Caitlin Heaney West – July 11, 2019
Brian Fulton has been the librarian at The Times-Tribune for the past 15 years. On his blog, Historically Hip, he writes about the great concerts, plays/musicals and celebrity happenings that have taken place throughout NEPA. He is also the co-host of the local history podcast, Historically Hip. He competed and was crowned grand champion on an episode of NPR quiz show “Ask Me Another.” Contact: bfulton@timesshamrock.com; 570-348-9140; or @TTPagesPast
