Jim Lovell, who led Apollo 13 back to Earth safely, died at the age of 97

Astronaut Jim Lovell safely directed the Apollo 13 mission in 1970 and died at the age of 97.

NASA said he “turned the potential tragedy into success” when he was hundreds of thousands of miles from Earth due to the explosion on the spacecraft.

When Lovell and two other astronauts splashed into the Pacific, the moment became one of the most iconic moments in space travel history, watching tens of millions of views on TV.

He is also a member of the Apollo 8 mission, and he is the first person to go to the moon twice.

Acting NASA chief Sean Duffy said Lovell helped the U.S. space program “fakes historic roads.”

“We will miss out on his unshakable optimism, his sense of humor and the way he makes each of us think we can do it impossible. He is indeed one of them,” Lovell’s family said in a statement.

One Saturday, a 16-year-old man dragged a heavy three-foot tube into the middle of the Wisconsin field.

He convinced his science teacher to help him do the makeshift Rockets. Somehow, he managed to master the ingredients of gunpowder – potassium nitrate, sulfur and charcoal.

He wore a welder’s helmet for protection. He packed it in powder, played a game, ran like hell.

The Rockets rose 80 feet and exploded. If the chemicals are packaged slightly differently, he will be blown to pieces.

For Jim Lovell, it’s more than just a childish lark.

He will become an American hero when he realizes his dream of becoming a rocket scientist. But it’s not easy.

James Arthur Lovell Jr was born on March 25, 1928 – just one year after Charles Lindbergh’s historic journey across the Atlantic Ocean.

“Boys like dinosaurs or planes,” he said. “I’m an airplane boy.”

But when he was five years old, his father died in a car accident.

His mother, Blanche, always worked – trying to keep her family wearing clothes and food. Colleges are far beyond their financial influence.

The answer is the U.S. Navy, which is eager for new pilots after World War II. It’s not building a rocket, but it involves flying at least.

Lovell signed a plan that sent him to university at the cost of the army while training fighter pilots.

Over two years, he gambled and moved to the Naval Academy in Annapolis, Chesapeake Bay, hoping to work with his beloved Rockets.

This is a lucky decision.

A few months later, the Korean War broke out and his former apprentice pilot was sent to Southeast Asia. Many people never complete their education.

Annapolis bans marriage, and his girlfriend is discouraged. The Navy does not want the crew members to waste their time on such a rashness.

But Lovell has a sweetheart. Marilyn Gerlach is the high school girl he shyly asked the prom.

Women are not allowed to enter the campus, and travel outside is limited to 45 minutes. This relationship survived.

Hours after graduation in 1952, the newly appointed Lieutenant Lovell married her.

They will be together for more than 70 years until Marilyn dies in 2023.

He did his best to promote his love for the Rockets.

His papers at the Naval Academy are an unheard of topics on liquid fuel engines. After graduation, he hopes to specialize in this groundbreaking new technology.

But the Navy has other ideas.

Lovell was assigned to the aircraft carrier group flying by Flying Banshee Jets at night. This is a white joint only suitable for Daredevils, high temperature business. But for Lovel, that wasn’t enough.

In 1958, he applied for NASA.

The Mercury Project is the United States’ attempt to place a person in orbit around the Earth. Jim Lovell was one of the 110 test pilots considered selecting, but temporary liver condition gave him a chance.

Four years later, he tried again.

In June 1962, after hard medical tests, NASA announced its “new nine”. These will be the ones President Kennedy promised to land American boots on the moon.

This is the most elite flying crowd ever. They included Neil Armstrong, John Young, and fulfilled his childhood dream, Jim Lovell.

Three years later, he was ready.

His first trip to space was in Gemini 7 on two.

Their mission: Find out if a man can survive in space for two weeks. If not, the moon is out of reach.

With the endurance record complete, Lovell’s next flight is directing Gemini 12 rookie Buzz Aldrin.

This time they proved that humans can work outside of spacecraft. Aldrin crawled into the blank space awkwardly and spent five hours shooting the star field.

Now for the moon itself.

The crew of Apollo 8 will be the first to transcend low-Earth orbit and enter another celestial body.

This is NASA’s most dangerous mission to date.

The 25,000-mile hour Saturn v Rockets shot the atmospheres of Lovel, Bowman and William Anders – three times larger than anything you see in the Gemini program.

As navigators, Lovell brought six minutes of people to the celebrity readings—if the computer fails, they have to find their way home.

Sixty-eight hours after takeoff, they did it.

The engine was launched, and the Apollo 8 slid silently behind the moon. These people heard the hoarse sound of the headphones when the radio signal flowed to the mission-controlled signal and then failed.

The charming astronaut secures himself to the window, the first person to see the furthest person we have seen nearest celestial neighbors. Then, from the horizon that advances, it’s an incredible sight.

“Earthrise,” Borman gasped.

“Get the camera quickly,” Lovell said.

It was Christmas Eve 1968.

The United States is in trouble abroad and in civil unrest at home. But at that moment, humanity seemed united.

As the astronauts saw, the people of the world saw their planet – fragile and beautiful – shining in the desolation of space.

Lovell read from Genesis of Genesis on the basis of many great religions in the world.

“God called the day of light, and his name was the night. Night and morning are the first days.”

For him, this is an image that will change our world forever. He put his thumb on the window and the whole world disappeared behind him. This is the most touching experience of his life.

When the spacecraft reappeared from the darkness, Lovell made the first announcement of the good news. When the radio returned to life, he said, “Please note that there is a Santa.”

At that moment, only 239,000 miles, a blue Rolls-Royce man pulled outside his home in Houston.

He walked past dozens of reporters camping and handed the box to Marilyn.

She opened the thin paper of the star map and pulled out the mink jacket. The card that followed said, “Merry Christmas.

They rose as astronauts and came down to celebrities. The Earthlings followed their every move on TV.

There are videotape parades, congressional honors and a position on the cover of Time magazine. They didn’t even set foot on the moon.

Of course, this honor goes to Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin.

A year later, Kennedy’s dream was traced back. Taking a small step, humanity took a huge leap. The new nine people finished their work.

In April 1970, Jim Lovell’s turn was on. Fortunately, the crew of Apollo 13 did not believe in the unfortunate number.

Lovell, Jack Swigert and Fred Haise are people of science – trained people determined to follow Armstrong and Aldrin to the moon’s surface. But something went badly.

When they found low pressure in the hydrogen tank, they were 200,000 miles above the earth and closed the target. It needs to be stirred to prevent the super air conditioner from settle into layers.

Swigert ignores the switch. It should be a routine, but the command module (Odyssey) trembles. The oxygen pressure drops and the power is turned off.

“I believe we’re having problems here,” Swiggart said. Lovell had to repeat the message with amazing mission control: “Houston, we’re having problems.”

This is one of the biggest understatements ever. The crew had a lot of trouble – the dramatic explosion left their craftsmanship unthinkable.

Haise and Lovell frantically launched the lunar calendar module Aquarius.

It should not be used until they reach the moon. It has no heat shield and is therefore not used to re-enter the Earth’s atmosphere. But this can keep them alive until they get there.

The world stopped breathing and looked.

Jim Lovell brings the world together for the second time. The first was Earth Park, and the second was to witness him fighting for survival.

Marilyn said, “Four days, I don’t know if I am a wife or a widow.”

The temperature drops to freezing point and food and water are rationed. Over the past few days, they returned to the edge of the Earth’s atmosphere. They climbed up the Odyssey and prayed that the heat shield was not damaged.

The radio silence accompanied by reentry is longer than normal. Millions of people watched on TV, and many convinced everyone to be lost.

After six minutes of pain, Jack Swigert’s voice penetrated the silence.

The team on the ground held their breath until the parachute was deployed and landed safely.

This mission is NASA’s biggest failure and is undoubtedly the best moment.

Lovell retired from the Navy in 1973 and chose to live a quiet life, working at the Bay-Houston Towing Company, speaking and serving as president of the National Eagle Scouts Association.

His book The Lost Moon: Dangerous Voyage of Apollo 13 became a famous 1995 film, starring Tom Hanks as Jim Lovell.

For the film, the director asked him to dress up as an admiral. It was a cameo scene, shaking hands with Hanks when the crew was rescued from sea.

But the old American hero does not.

Jim Lovell has visited the moon twice, witnessed the Earth and narrowly avoided death in space – no reason to mistakenly touch his resume.

He took out his old naval uniform, scattered it down, and put it on a relief.

He insisted: “I retire as captain and I will be captain.”