446 a
Taken by a color TV camera on board the spacecraft

Interior view inside the LM Aquarius just before the explosion

Apollo 13, April 11-17, 1970, 055:29:16 GET

Vintage chromogenic print on fiber-based Kodak paper, 20.3 x 25.4cm (8 x 10in), with NASA MSC caption and “A Kodak Paper” watermarks on the verso, numbered “NASA S-70-34845” in red in top margin

446 b
Taken by a 16mm camera inside the LM Aquarius

Oxygen tank explosion in the Service Module: “Houston, we’ve had a problem”

Apollo 13, April 11-17, 1970

Vintage chromogenic print on resin coated Kodak paper, 20.3 x 25.4cm (8 x 10in), with NASA Goddard caption and “A Kodak Paper” watermarks on the verso, numbered “NASA G-72-245” in black in bottom margin
20.3 x 25.4cm (8 x 10in)

446 b
NASA SP-350, p.252.

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Lot Essay

446 a
The rendezvous radar antenna of the LM is seen through the LM optics.

This mission’s fourth TV transmission dealing mostly with activities in the LM was canceled by the major TV networks due to a lack of audience. A few minutes later the explosion of an oxygen tank in the Service Module changed everything. Apollo 13 became the most carefully watched mission of the programme. For a tense four days, no one knew if the crew would make it back safely. Because electrical power was severely limited, no more live TV broadcasts were made; TV commentators used models and animated footage as illustrations.

055:29:16 Lovell: Fred is now looking through our optical device. It’s an instrument in which to align our platform, and Fred is now looking into it just to see what kind of an outside picture he might be able to get. We might be able to use a TV camera to look through our optical instrument to the outside of the Command Module. [...]
055:46:11 Lovell: And this is the crew of Apollo 13 wishing everybody there (the TV viewers on Earth) a nice evening, and we’re just about ready to close out our inspection of Aquarius and get back for a pleasant evening in Odyssey. Good night.
055:46:30 Lousma (Mission Control): Thank you, 13.
055:46:30 Public Affairs Officer (Mission Control): Apollo Control, Houston; 55 hours, 47 minutes. Apollo 13 presently at 177,861 nautical miles [329,399 km] away. Velocity now reading 3,263 feet per second [995 m/s].

446 b
This frame from a 16mm movie was exposed after jettison of the Service Module prior to Earth reentry showing the damage which happened to the Module at about 055:55:20 GET as it was docked to the spacecraft on the way to the Moon. James Lovell and Fred Haise had just entered the LM Aquarius to check it over and sent a TV transmission to Earth when the crew heard a loud explosion. The Service Module had been due to take them back to Earth but this view from the lifeboat LM Aquarius reveals that an entire panel had been blown away by the explosion of an oxygen tank.

055:55:19 Swigert: Okay, Houston...
055:55:19 Lovell: ...Houston...
055:55:20 Swigert: I believe we’ve had a problem here. [Pause.]
055:55:28 Lousma (Mission Control): This is Houston. Say again, please.
055:55:35 Lovell: Houston, we’ve had a problem. We’ve had a Main B Bus Undervolt.
055:55:42 Lousma: Roger. Main B Undervolt. [Long pause.]
055:55:58 Lousma: Okay, stand by, 13. We’re looking at it.
055:56:10 Haise: Okay. Right now, Houston, the voltage is - is looking good. And we had a pretty large bang associated with the Caution and Warning there. And as I recall, Main B was the one that had had an amp spike on it once before.