How 3 Astronauts were Lost in Space - The Story of Apollo 13

A NASA spacecraft carrying three astronauts was just about to land on the moon when something terrifying happened — something no one had ever imagined.

The spacecraft was about 322,000 kilometers away from Earth.

It had taken the astronauts three days to reach that point.

Suddenly, the main oxygen tank exploded due to a technical fault.

This tank was their primary source of oxygen. Now, the astronauts knew they were in serious trouble.

There was only 15 minutes of oxygen left in the cabin, and it was impossible to return to Earth in that time.

Sending only robots into space is already a difficult challenge for NASA.

But sending humans and bringing them back safely — that's a far more delicate mission, where failure is not an option.

A spacecraft doesn’t just protect astronauts from deadly solar radiation — it also creates a mini-Earth environment to keep them alive.

It has pressurized cabins, oxygen tanks, and special filters to remove carbon dioxide.

But if anything goes wrong in space, the astronauts — and the spacecraft — may be lost forever.

And no one can bring them back.

You may be surprised to know that something exactly like this happened in April 1970 with Apollo 13.

It’s a true incident — one that sounds like science fiction, but is 100% real.

One year earlier, Apollo 11 had successfully landed on the Moon, and Neil Armstrong became the first man to walk on its surface.

Then came Apollo 12, also a success.

Now it was time for Apollo 13 — a mission to explore a region on the Moon called Fra Mauro.

The mission commander was James Lovell, with John Swigert and Fred Haise as module pilots.

They said goodbye to their families and began their journey.

The rocket launched on April 11, 1970, from the John F. Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

Since this was now the third moon mission, not many people were interested in watching it live.

The spacecraft was made of three sections:

1. The Command Module – the cone-shaped part where astronauts spent most of their time.
2. The Lunar Module – spider-like in shape, built to land on the Moon and return.
3. The Service Module – which carried the engine and oxygen tanks, known as the heart of the spacecraft.

The plan was simple: the spacecraft would orbit the Moon, the lunar module would detach and land with two astronauts, collect samples, return to orbit, and dock with the main ship for the return to Earth.

But fate had a very different plan.

55 hours after launch, while the ship was nearing the Moon, an astronaut pressed a button to check the oxygen levels.

Suddenly, there was a violent jolt. Everyone felt it.

At first, they thought Fred Haise was playing a prank — but even he looked shocked.

Then alarms started blaring. Lights began to flash.

They realized that one of the main oxygen tanks had exploded due to a short circuit.

Commander Lovell immediately contacted Mission Control at NASA.

There was chaos on the ground. Engineers knew what this meant — not just a mission failure, but possibly three lives lost in space.

As the data came in, it became even worse:

• The second oxygen tank was leaking
• Two of the three power sources were down
• Their main engine was now unreliable
• And the direction of the spacecraft had shifted

This meant that if they didn’t correct their course, they would be lost forever in deep space.

To make matters worse, the command module now had no lights, no water, and only one backup power source left.

The last oxygen tank was leaking, and they were running out of time.

The news spread across the world.

TV channels that had ignored the mission began live coverage of Apollo 13’s crisis.

The astronauts’ families — and the entire world — watched in suspense.

It had been 90 minutes since the explosion.

NASA realized they had to move the astronauts to the lunar module, which had its own oxygen and systems.

But the lunar module was designed for only two astronauts.

Still, they had no choice.

All three astronauts squeezed into the lunar module while engineers began doing real-time calculations.

They found the module could support them for just 2 days.

But the big question was: how would they return to Earth?

NASA had two options:

1. Use the main engine to fly directly back (risky — it might fail mid-course)
2. Use the Moon’s gravity to slingshot the spacecraft back (less power, but trickier)

NASA chose the second.

But now, they had to use the lunar module’s small engine, not meant for this purpose, to adjust direction and re-enter Earth’s orbit.

Even a small error in calculation would mean disaster.

Mission Control sent precise instructions.

At the right moment, the astronauts fired the lunar module’s engine for exactly 35 seconds.

It worked. The spacecraft was now on course to Earth.

Two days later, they approached Earth at 32,000 km/h.

Now came the final challenge.

Before entering the atmosphere, they had to abandon the lunar and service modules and move back into the freezing command module — the only part built to survive re-entry.

Everyone at NASA — and around the world — held their breath.

As the spacecraft hit Earth’s atmosphere, all communication was lost for 3 minutes.

No one knew if they had survived.

But then — a voice came through:

“We’re okay.”

The parachutes deployed.

Cameras captured the moment live on television.

Families, engineers, and millions around the world cheered with joy.

On April 17, 1970, the capsule landed safely in the Pacific Ocean.

The astronauts were rescued shortly after.

A mission that almost ended in tragedy became a symbol of human courage, brilliant engineering, and the will to survive.