447 a
These views of the severely damaged Service Module (SM) were photographed through the 250mm telephoto lens from the LM/CM following SM jettisoning prior to Earth reentry.

Apollo 13 was 178,000 nautical miles from home when the crew heard a loud explosion. The SM oxygen tank had exploded. Within about 3 hours, all oxygen stores were lost, along with water, electrical power and use of the service module propulsion system. Only when the SM was jettisoned in preparation for re-entry could the crew see that the cover of bay number 4 had blown off and the equipment inside was badly mangled. Two of the three fuel cells are visible just forward the heavily damaged area. Three fuel cells, two oxygen tanks, and two hydrogen tanks are located in Sector 4. The damaged area is located above the S-Band high gain antenna.

“I thought, when I saw that oxygen system leaking down, I figured we’d lost them. I really did. I didn’t think we’d make it,” remembered Apollo 13 backup crewmember John Young (from the 2007 documentary In the shadow of the Moon).

056:09:07 Lovell: It looks to me, looking out the hatch, that we are venting something. We are venting something out into the - into space.
056:09:22 Lousma (Mission Control): Roger. We copy your venting.
056:09:29 Lovell: It’s a gas of some sort. [Long pause.]
056:09:49 Haise: Okay. Fuel cell 1, you just wanted it off the line now, Jack, is that right?
056:09:52 Lousma: We just wanted you to open the circuit on fuel cell 1.
056:09:58 Haise: Okay. She’s off the line.
056:12:00 Public Affairs Officer (Mission Control): This is Apollo Control, Houston. This rapid exchange of conversation you’ve heard, may the main B bus is off the line, fuel cells 1 and 3 also off the line, fuel cell 2 is presently on the line. We now show 13 in an altitude of 178,643 nautical miles [330,847 km]. We’re at 56 hours, 12 minutes into the flight.

447 b
Also seated at the console at Mission Control are Rocco Petrone, Apollo Program Director, (facing camera); and Chester Lee, Apollo Mission Director. Dr. Paine and the President were discussing the revised Apollo 13 flight plan following discovery of an oxygen cell failure in the Apollo 13 spacecraft several hours earlier.

056:28:06 Lousma (Mission Control): Okay, 13. We’ve got lots and lots of people working on this; we’ll give you some dope as soon as we have it, and you’ll be the first one to know. [...]
057:11:45 Public Affairs Officer (Mission Control): We now show an altitude of 180,521 nautical miles [334,325 km]. Here in Mission Control we are now looking towards an alternate mission swinging around the Moon and using the Lunar Module power systems because of the situation that has developed here this evening. We now show a velocity of 3,210 feet per second [978 m/s]. This is Apollo Control, Houston. [...]
067:38:20 Public Affairs Officer (Mission Control): This is Apollo Control at 67 hours, 38 minutes. President Nixon talked with NASA Administrator Dr. Thomas O. Paine at 7:45 am CST today. Dr. Paine, who arrived in Houston by NASA aircraft at 6:40 am CST from Washington, was in Mission Control and gave the President an update on the Apollo 13 Mission. Mission Control is in direct contact with the White House. We’ll continue to stand by now for live air-to-ground transmissions.

447 c
“With the Service Module damaged beyond use, the only source for power and consumables was the Lunar Module. The resources of the Command Module had to be preserved for the vital reentry operation. And so the LM became the lifeboat for Apollo 13. Fortunately, the loss of oxygen from the remaining tank was slow enough that the last fuel cell continued to supply power for about two hours. This was enough time to evaluate options and prepare for a quick return to Earth. The crew then powered down the CM and shifted to the powered up LM for the trip home” (http://www.lpi.usra.edu/lunar/missions/apollo/apollo_13).


The first image shows a blurred view of the hatch cover; the second image shows the open transfer tunnel between Odyssey and Aquarius; the third image shows red lights on a control panel of the spacecraft; the fourth image shows an interior view of the LM.

From the mission transcript following the explosion of an oxygen tank in the Service Module:

057:23:54 Swigert: Okay, Jack. It looks like O2 tank 1 pressure is just a hair over 200.
057:24:02 Lousma (Mission Control): We confirm that here and the temperature also confirms it.
057:24:09 Swigert: Okay. Does it look like it’s still going down?
057:24:12 Lousma: It’s slowly going to zero, and we’re starting to think about the LM lifeboat.
057:24:20 Swigert: Yes. That’s what we’re thinking about, too. [...]
057:36:12 Lousma: We figure we’ve got about 15 minutes worth of power left in the Command Module, so we want you to start getting over in the LM and getting some power on that. And, you ready to copy your procedure? [...]
057:41:31 Lousma: 13, Houston. We’d like you to start making your way over to the LM now.
057:41:38 Swigert: Fred and Jim are in the LM.
057:41:42 Lousma: Okay, Jack. Thank you.
057:41:47 Haise: And, Jack, I got LM power on.