Apollo 13: Houston, We Have a Problem

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[@jacoboconnell7518]

Simon sponsoring his own channel=infinite money loop. Legend.

[@sirmingusdewiv8325]

He's becoming more American by the day.

[@DrewNorthup]

There are a number of other staff...

[@joeystrittmatter6890]

@@DrewNorthup true but they're just chained up in the basement LMFAO

[@nealhoffman7518]

I'm pretty sure it took off after his video about how Hollywood movies never make a profit lol

[@delurkor]

Just don't confuse your beard oil with your Shave Club ball spray.

[@scottwilliamson9506]

My dad was one of the young engineers working at NASA-JSC on the Apollo project who was called in the night of the accident. On top of this, I was born the day of the launch. So when I was just a couple of days old he had to cut any paternity leave short. He tells the story that they basically called everyone, creating a traffic jam in the middle of the night to get into the center... I get emotional every time I hear this story. Great video.

[@michel5148]

wish my dad was a engineer, my dad smokes. so i heard.

[@bimblinghill]

That's really cool!

[@Hollylivengood]

That is awesome! My father was a mechanical engineer, and when we watched the landing on the news - of course people cheered an all, like they showed - but he joked about how apollo 13 made the engineers finally look cooler than the astronauts.

[@unclerojelio6320]

“Paternity leave” lol

[@brianarbenz1329]

I once had a roommate who was born during the Apollo 13 mission. She hadn't known that until she mentioned her birthdate, which sounded to me like that very week. I looked it up and sure enough, it was. Interestingly, her life has had a whole bunch of problems. But I believe she will safely "splash down."

[@amb163]

Another Megaprojects idea: The 2010 Copiapó Rescue Operation, a world-wide effort to save the 33 Chilean miners and development of the Phoenix Capsule.

[@thekidfromcleveland3944]

Perhaps even more impressive is how calm the atronaunts were during the whole thing Despite the dire circumstances. The uncomfortable conditions. The possibilty of death. The audio recording will put you to sleep. All that yelling n drama in the movie was fabricated because the real astronaunts were so cool and collected. Theres a very small group of people that wouldve been the same way. Yes it was close to zero c. But those guys had ice in their veins on the launchpad. Absolute legends

[@oig40203]

That's because they had practiced in the sim for hundreds of hours, dealing with all kinds of failures. This prepared them.

[@simonm1447]

For Jim Lovell this was not the first moon flight, he flew around the moon with Apollo 8 before. Unfortunately for him he could never land on the moon, Apollo 8 had no LEM (it was not ready) and with the exploding oxygen tank his only chance to land on the moon was gone

[@Zoom15000]

Not necessarily. What was transmitted over the radio doesn't mean there may not have been tense and heated discussion among the three men. They make this point in the film when they're having an argument, Mission Control radios and Lovell shouts "are we on vox?" then switches to a calm voice to talk to MC

[@ClimptheGreat]

My grandfather was in the control room in houston during apollo 13, he was the chief retro grade officer (which he received the NASA presidential medal of honor for his service to nasa)... ive meet like everyone in this video. There is actually a story about his division coming up with the formula for their return back to earth that was told to me by Gene Kranz

[@C2K777]

Now that is a family history that would earn you a beer or twenty if we were to ever cross paths.

[@marcuswilson3485]

Was he involved with Operation Paperclip?

[@wrightmf]

He talked about what it was like viewing data on those CRT monitors, those didn't have the clarity like today's monitors. What it was like working in that room where everyone smoked?

[@Terri_MacKay]

I would never get tired of listening to him talking about that mission. You're so lucky to have been able to hear about it firsthand from him.

[@kdids]

now thats freaking epic! what a story and family history!

[@robertslater8293]

Thanks for the awesome video! My grandpa actually worked on the team that came up with the co2 scrubber and fun fact the astronauts went around and personally thanked each person at mission control and nasa that helped bring them home safe so we have a picture of my mom as a baby sitting on one of their laps.

[@retrosim4197]

I always wondered what happened on the subsequent missions after 13. Did they redesign the scrubbers to be the same on both spacecraft or did they they manufacture a more permanent adapter in case a similar situation ever came up again?

[@DrewNorthup]

@@retrosim4197 The adapter had actually be designed as a brainstorming type exercise prior to Apollo 13. The main things they would have had to do during the mission itself would be to update the design to match the known resource pool as needed and make sure the instructions were usable by the astronauts.

[@megaprojects9649]

legend

[@Terri_MacKay]

I'm loving all the commenters who have family members who worked for NASA, and were involved in this Apollo mission. It must be riveting to be able to hear about it firsthand from someone who was there. 😃

[@robertslater8293]

@@megaprojects9649Thanks Simon (and/or whoever you have locked in your basement to reply to your video comments 🤣)

[@Spiritus_Invictus]

The one sentence in that movie that gives me chills every time. "this could become NASA greatest failure." "I disagree sir, this will become our greatest achievement"

[@charlesstaats9902]

Of course, almost the same sentence(s) feature in HBO’s Chernobyl.

[@kriskay5020]

death or glory

[@kremesauce]

“This will be our finest hour”

[@billolsen4360]

@@kremesauce It was!

[@grahampowelljr1]

My favorite line in the movie was from Lovell's mother: "Son, if they could make a washing machine fly, my Jimmy could land it."

[@jsfbr]

My mom, my sister and I prayed together every night at our home in Brazil for their safe return to Earth.

[@mjelves]

So I guess they should thank you?🙄

[@diego_z90]

@@mjelves why you so salty

[@mjelves]

@@diego_z90 you’ve mistken salt for sarcasm

[@spnhm34]

The mission controllers who saved the day were led by Gene Kranz and Glynn Lunney, the latter of whom pulled off (to quote Mattingley) “the most magnificent display of personal leadership I’ve ever seen”. These are the standouts in a story of many heroes

[@Gallade082]

John Aaron also played a big role!

[@michaelhart7569]

Whenever I watch TV footage of the events, Gene Kranz strikes me as a man who might otherwise have been a famous General in WWII. The kind of leader that soldiers would die for.

[@spnhm34]

@@michaelhart7569 absolutely. He was in the service as a younger man. Lunney was a quieter character but for me his leadership was equally inspired

[@skwervin1]

I read Jim Lovell's book that tells of his astronaut career including how he got into the program initially. An amazing read. He tells the story of how Gene Krantz would have his wife make a waistcoat for each launch which you see arriving at the command centre in the movie but Gene refused to start the pre launch until he had it - it was his good luck charm. He would not take it off until the crews landed safely. Love you Simon and all your channels.

[@starcrafsf7101]

My grandmother was one of the head math aids with NASA during the whole Apollo project, in fact if I remember correctly she was the head of the department, and was one of the key figures that worked on the math for the Apollo 13 crisis.

[@Terri_MacKay]

It must be fascinating listening to her talk about the mission. And, congrats to your grandmother for being a pioneer and a trailblazer!!

[@starcrafsf7101]

@@Terri_MacKay she had a lot of interesting stories for sure.

[@htc86752]

I'm dating myself when I say this, but I remember the re-entry of 13. My folks got up and turned off the TV when the spacecraft didn't establish comms on schedule so we didn't know until the next day that the crew was back safely. I can clearly remember my mom crying when we founnd out. It was that kind of time back then. Godspeed.

[@randyhager2054]

Yeah...I'm old too and can remember watching almost every Apollo mission. I ended up working for Rockwell International on the B-1B and met one or two guys that had their hand in the command module workings. Got to inspect the front window bulkhead of the last shuttle Endeavour while at Rockwell in Columbus Ohio. I even remember the LAST Gemini mission too.

[@HankD13]

Remember it well, and listened to it live (in Kenya). I watched the moon landing live on the first tv I had ever seen, while on holiday in London, and remember the colour photos! in the newspaper the following day. Been a space nut ever since.

[@marsgal42]

I remember when this happened. Like Apollo 11, *everybody* was glued to their radios and tvs for the duration.

[@WildeFyre69]

I was young at the time, but I had watched every space mission that had been televised. When news of Apollo 13 broke we were all glued to the television, hoping and praying for the safe return of the crew. When they finally landed safely, you could hear the sound of applause and relief from around the world. Truly a magnificent acheivment.

[@billolsen4360]

I was in Israel at the time of Apollo 11's landing in a hotel with only one TV in the lobby. Every guest & employee was gathered at that one set.

[@addikay7097]

If you guys ever get the chance, the Apollo 13 capsule currently resides at the Cosmosphere in Hutchinson, Kansas

[@wrightmf]

it used to be in France, but with Lovell's book and the movie, US wanted it back.

[@Acrophobia2]

Why did they decide to put it there?

[@wrightmf]

@@Acrophobia2 I don't know, I can only speculate Apollo 13 was the "flight that failed" title of a early 1970s book by Henry SF Cooper.

[@Virtuous_Rogue]

@@Acrophobia2 If you were referring to Hutchinson with your comment, Hutchinson has the second largest air and space museum in the US. It started out as a planetarium and I guess it grew because rural Kansas has plenty of land. The lobby has a retired SR-71 Blackbird.

[@Acrophobia2]

@@Virtuous_Rogue yes that answered my question! Thanks!

[@yousifkenick9886]

I was just one and a half years old and was present for the launch in a boat just offshore. My father says I may be the only person alive who actually slept through an entire Saturn V launch that close to the launch site (a blessed skill I still use on planes, trains, and other conveyances of very long trips).

[@deviljelly3]

I have a MegaProject topic idea for you: "The Human Genome Project"

[@Cryodrake]

Yes do this simon!

[@lebowskiunderachiever3591]

@Ty Vsd1337 Snake . Snaaaaaake !

[@chewysaiditfirst]

Yes please

[@TheQuickSilver101]

Excellent idea!

[@terryarmbruster7986]

Or the human gnome project. Think of all the years energy people have spent setting up millions upon millions of lawn and garden gnomes!!!! 👍🤓😆😂

[@delurkor]

I was 25 when this occurred, in the Army, in Viet Nam. Listening to people saying that their grand parents worked on this, Gad I'm old!

[@TechnikMeister2]

I am old enough to have watched all the milestones into space live on TV...Mercury through to Apollo 13. It eclipsed Apollo 11 which in itself was awe inspiring. My Dad was a program leader at the Parkes Radio Telescope in Parkes in Australia which was the relay station for all the communications. He watched and listened to everything. He said to me that despite the horrendous stress on the astronauts, he said he did not hear one swear word uttered. They were true professionals.

[@MrTexasDan]

Who played your dad in The Dish?

[@annvictor9627]

Watching your replaying of the footage of the safe landing brought tears to my eyes. I was still in high school when it happened -- didn't expect to get teary-eyed over something I knew had safely taken place over 50 years ago.

[@jeffagain7516]

Howard did a wonderful job bringing this incredibly tense drama to the movie screen, as did all the actors of course. Still one of my fave films of all time. I remember well, listening to every piece of news with frantic fear and anticipation, as the events played out in real time. As you mentioned Simon, it was an incredible moment that brought the entire world together in joint harmony, hoping and praying the lads would get home alive. Thanks for this.

[@andrewirwin]

Fantastic! *13 Minutes to the Moon* is a fantastic podcast series which goes into in-depth analysis on the audio from the mission. Would Highly recommend.

[@Hounds-m9f]

Personally knew Jack Swigert before he died in '82 at 51. Absolute Legend!

[@nazukeoya]

I watched Apollo 13 in the theater and it was the first time I ever saw people clap at the end of a movie.

[@way2crazie620]

I'm so old watched PeeWee herman in the cinema....

[@way2crazie620]

Or was it a bathhouse??

[@susanmaggiora4800]

WAY2CRAZIE Durrrr🤦‍♂️

[@mohammedpanju2236]

Terrific Movie with the great Tom Hanks.

[@Dysan72]

Slight correction, only 1 engine of the 2nd Stage cutout (specifically the inboard engine, the one in the middle) they burned the remaining 4 for longer (from the same fuel tank) to get to orbit.

[@302racing3]

My favorite bit of trivia about this is that when the movie was in early press screenings, some critics down rated it saying it had to be manufactured since there’s no way that astronauts could have survived such ordeals

[@9sunstar9]

🤦🏼‍♀️🤦🏼‍♀️🤦🏼‍♀️🤦🏼‍♀️

[@wolfario1144]

LOL

[@RobertBrown-jz4qj]

Man. My age is showing.. They did n p t know any of the history.

[@wrightmf]

Most people cannot survive such ordeals, that's why only a few qualify as astronauts. Besides being very smart and good shape, they have the mental attitude of not freaking out when circumstances are really bad as if no way to safely return home.

[@Rybo-Senpai]

actually i believe it was a singular individual among the audience at a test preview of the movie, but however this person was not a critic or aware that the movie was based on a true story (most likely cos they weren't born when it happened or they lived under a rock since the 1950's and only recently resurfaced in the 90's lol) Edit: after looking up the IMDB trivia page for the Apollo 13 Movie the comment card indicated "total disdain" and that it was "a typical Hollywood ending, no-one could have survived what happened in the movie" so one could speculate that this was possibly a flat earther....which makes anyone who lived under a rock for 40 years infinitely more intelligent

[@PeterCombs]

I remember this story well from the time, the world was holding its collective breath. An amazing story..

[@mho...]

i said it before i say it again: *The Modern Shipping Container* and its impact on global trade needs an episode on Megaprojects/Geographics!, nothing has changed the planet like these millions of steel boxes traveling the globe every day!

[@gudmunduringigudmundsson9287]

If that, then the plastic and aluminum containers for beverages too.

[@Rex-ii2yz]

And if you are in the US military, you can get to live and work in one for up to a year at a time! :P

[@mho...]

@Kainpiller wow, get some manners!

[@Wootguy238]

@@gudmunduringigudmundsson9287 Coor's!

[@888johnmac]

yeah .. this ( doesn't even need to look at the dozens of other uses for a shipping container )

[@RS49059]

🤣🤣🤣🤣 literally yesterday my husband was saying he wanted to get a beard brush and oil... Now he's getting some with Simon's face on it!

[@augiegirl1]

When the movie came out in 1995, I was working at Hardees (who had the merchandising deal). There were 4 plastic commemorative cups with scenes from the movie (I still have 2 of them), as well as the “Apollo burger,” which had thousand island dressing on it.

[@OmgItsShadow99]

amazing video, i Love your content, and i was nearly crying i have always loved story's about space missions and i have always loved the story behind the Apollo 13. Amazing video that made my day. your videos kept me entertained during this lockdown. keep up the good work, and stay safe. :)

[@otakuribo]

Clear heads, creative thinking, and a roll of duct tape can literally save lives! 🌌🚀

[@garywalker447]

Items brought on board Apollo were closely monitored, weight was critical but when loading the craft several days before the launch, one of the astronaughts tossed in an extra roll of duck tape. The CO2 kluge was only one of the emergency uses for the tape and by the time they landed, they were mostly through the second roll of tape. All future Apollo missions flew with two rolls of duck tape.

[@Ghostvertigo]

Just like red green always said duct tape can fix anything LOLOL 😂

[@otakuribo]

@@garywalker447 I love this addition! 💜 I've heard that duct tape is like the Force; it has a light side and a dark side, and it holds the universe together

[@garywalker447]

@jared price Actually much of this tape is made on a basis of cotton duck cloth so both terms are correct.

[@Jedi.Toby.M]

And you don't even need a clear head or creativity...as long as you have duct tape

[@russellzauner]

Best case of "I'm not even supposed to be here today" ever.

[@deemariedubois4916]

One of my favorite movies, Apollo 13. Your video is still a treat Simon even though I’ve watched every video available of this flight.

[@mdmjeremiah]

Apollo 13 has been my favorite movie for many years, since I first saw it in the theater when it came out. Every year in April I watch it on the anniversary of their mission. This is now my favorite Megaprojects episode and I guess I will add it to my annual viewing list.

[@lukewilliams8485]

I loved the book Jim Lovell wrote on his account of the mission

[@ignitionfrn2223]

3:05 - Chapter 1 - Background 4:55 - Chapter 2 - Launch 7:20 - Chapter 3 - Disaster 8:55 - Chapter 4 - To the moon 10:55 - Chapter 5 - The burn 12:30 - Chapter 6 - CO2 13:50 - Chapter 7 - Reentry 16:20 - Chapter 8 - The successful failure

[@wrightmf]

John Aaron, also known as the best EECOM, lead the team to devise CM powerup procedure. Sy Liebergot was EECOM on shift during the O2 tank explosion (Clint Howard played his character in the movie). When Sy saw all the data go offline and then most of the values railed (too high or too low) he first said "I think we have an instrumentation problem" (in the movie, "It's gotta be instrumentation"). To him it looked like a PCM data stream error because the spacecraft was designed that it can never have a quadruple major systems failure. Of course they soon figured something bad happened, and everyone in MOCR was asking Sy what's going on with systems. At that moment Sy felt all he wanted to do was go home, obviously that was to never happened so like everyone else began working the problem. At the moment Sy had no idea what started the chain of events, it was not until he got off shift went to his back room where they have stripchart recorders which showed the moment O2 temperatures began to rise which was same time when Swigert turned on tank stirrers. After safely landed, they don't light up victory cigars until crew safely on carrier, there was some time wrapping things up but most everyone didn't head to the bars for celebration, they went home to catch up on sleep.

[@michaelhowell2326]

I honestly think the Apollo 13 mission is the greatest achievement in all human history since the wheel. Just slightly ahead of the actual Moon Landing.

[@texan-american200]

It was certainly was an incredible successful unplanned mission. Learning to steer a lunar module with a command module still attached to it making it unbalanced. Learning to create new procedures for a successful command module shut down and restart when they returned. Learning how to fit a large square peg into tiny round hole for oxygen. Learning to align the Aquarius to the Earth for proper return trajectory as well as speed their return home. That and a myriad of other things such as simply surviving and keeping their wits about them as just one example

[@Silensy]

My friend's father was one of the men in the room in that famous scene creating the adapter for the CO2 scrubber. So many heroes in this one.

[@kittthegryphon748]

Mega project ideas: the moon buggy, from the final few Apollo missions to the moon and the final Apollo mission to meet up with the Russian space craft

[@wmarkwitherspoon]

My late Father In Law worked on the buggy, he came up with the idea of using screen wire and light plates to create the tires. As well as he worked on the decent module.

[@Rickinvegas]

Great video! This is not a criticism but your comment about the “Darkside of the moon“ reminded me of my astronomy professor in college jumping on me when I used that phrase. He sternly corrected me by pointing out that the “far side“ of the moon gets just as much sunlight light as the near side. I’ve never made that mistake again LOL

[@888johnmac]

" Darkside of the moon " excuse me i'm just going to listen to some Floyd

[@MrTexasDan]

@@888johnmac There is no dark side of the moon really. As a matter of fact it's all dark.

[@Restilia_ch]

But it is "dark" to our line-of-sight, in particular to radio transmissions straight from Earth. So while it does get sunlight, it's still "dark" to us.

[@robertgraybeard3750]

@@MrTexasDan - ah, yes . . albedo

[@MrTexasDan]

@@robertgraybeard3750 No ... Pink Floyd

[@Michael-it6gb]

Its really cool that you know included voice radio recording, you rarely included stuff like that in your youtube projects. Makes subtle things like this more real.

[@mikev230]

One of my professors in college was in the room when they had to fit a square peg into a square hole. It was just amazing what they had to do.

[@Jemzuki]

If anyone wants to hear more on this, I HIGHLY recommend checking out BBC podcast 13 minutes to the Moon and its 2nd season which focuses on Apollo 13. Lots of recordings and interviews with the astronauts and the mission control team and a hugely thrilling story. So many things happened that could have been the end of the crew.

[@KPearce57]

My Uncle worked for IBM/NASA working on computer programs from Gemini to the end of Apollo .

[@Terri_MacKay]

He was there while history was being made!!

[@doxx2265]

Simon: “we care about the facts here at mega projects” Also Simon, but on cocaine: “WHAT YOU EXPECT FACTS FRIM MR.BLAZE” * asmr* “raid shadow legends”

[@thekidfromcleveland3944]

"Read the facts Fact Boy!!!"😂😂🤣😂

[@brondroid]

1. Somehow I missed this video; just watched the Voyager II video and thought to search for this, and I'm so glad you've already done one. 2. Bought Beard Blaze sample pack as a birthday gift for my brother, and he's HOOKED!!

[@johnw7602]

The tragedy is, it takes a tragedy for the world to come together like it did then.

[@ForgivenMan-jl7bp]

You shut up and keep your opinions to yourself. Dont you ever post on here again.

[@dragonhealer7588]

@@ForgivenMan-jl7bp ???????

[@ForgivenMan-jl7bp]

@@dragonhealer7588 he talking about people coming together, so I figured I would be as rude as possible. Just playing though. Little bit of fun.

[@danielnaylor3434]

We are at our best when things are at their worst. It is both an inspiring strength, and most damning flaw.

[@shrimpflea]

But it wasn't a tragedy.

[@ryanc473]

Just watched the Apollo 13 movie and holy crap, it gets me every time. It's a story of a catastrophic failure with compounding problems ultimately leading to one of the greatest triumphs in human history. In the now well known (and admittedly slightly edited for movie's sake) words of flight director Gene Kranz, "With all due respect, sir, I believe this is going to be our finest hour." And oh boy was he correct Edit: also, in case you're curious, the exact quote is actually "No this is going to be our finest hour." It's admittedly a bit impactful (at least in my opinion) compared to the movies version, but still! The other fun little fact that a lot of people don't realize (but that this video correctly points out) is that the original person to report the problem was Jack Swigert (Kevin Bacon in the movie), not Jim Lovell (Tom Hanks in the movie). And the exact line was "Okay, Houston, we've had a problem here." Followed up after a request to repeat the transmission from Houston by the far more famous line from Jim Lovell of "Uh, Houston, we've HAD a problem" (emphasis added by me)

[@Miguel-ug4yq]

Great video. Always a fan Simon. Thank you! Just one minor correction: it was actually Pope Paul VI who prayed for the Apollo 13 and not Paul IV. Just a matter of placing the “I” correctly (roman numerals...). Thanks again.

[@wrightmf]

Shortly after the movie Apollo 13 appeared in theatres, local SF bay area section of AIAA had Gene Kranz as the speaker. Standing room only! He also met a friend there he hadn't seen in years. Obviously excellent speaker. They didn't know exactly what caused the explosion but Gene said for the Shuttle they would have known instantly because so much more was telemetered, they know every switch position. Mr. Kranz said he got the job at NASA from a ad in Aviation Week. This was also a few years before smoking was banned from federal buildings, he joked "us old guys should smuggle in cigars to the MOCR." I asked him about Don Arabian who managed the MER (mission evaluation room), Gene said if you want to know every technical detail, Don still knows. I also talked with his wife Marta about was it true barely completed her husband's vest for Apollo 13. She said no, and vests she made were easy. There were plenty of fabric places including those stores managed by hippies so she had wide variety of materials to choose from. I even got her autographed which she tagged "the vest lady."

[@JerryListener]

My cousin James Lovell, is at the center of this video. Tom Hanks played a member of my family... that's so crazy! I wasn't born when this happened, but I still feel the pressure my family must have experienced. I am the same age Jim was when this happened now! (I've not been to space yet....)

[@progkarma944]

Excellent Video! Please consider the Cassini-Huygens for a Megaprojects episode! :) Cheers from Canada!

[@DownloadeousMaximus]

I love your videos and you as a host Simon. By far, some of the best content on KZbin. You have enough work for your own cable channel.

[@DownloadeousMaximus]

@Kirk Oglesby without question. But, look at the competition. It’s all trash.

[@addicted2caffeine]

Simon you have the most amazing dramatical voice. makes you feel like you are there and then .

[@chrissteinmeyer6119]

This channel and your other channel are KZbin gold!! Keep up the good work!!

[@kaiying74]

I'd argue that this is humanity's finest achievement. It's when things go wrong you learn what you're made of.

[@redstonewisard]

This is a project that I have been waiting for! Thank you so much for covering it!

[@jimgrieve72]

Good episode, thank you! (But you did forget to mention Jim Lovell’s brief cameo in the Hollywood film!)

[@jacyraynebow3173]

Churches’ message boards “pray to bring our astronauts home”. I love that even a small note was made of that.

[@Nowhereman10]

Also not mentioned in this video is that the "mailbox" adapter was not improvised on the spot as shown in the Apollo 13 movie, it was actually part of emergency procedures, which included powering up and using the LEM was a lifeboat that were developed in between Apollo 10 and 13.

[@mjelves]

Ehm no it wasn’t. They had to design and test it on the spot. It was never considered as a scenario

[@Nowhereman10]

@@mjelves Oh, yes it was. Scott Manley goes into that here: kzbin.info/www/bejne/poGlfHWFqt6Mhqs After Apollo 9 or 10, someone brought up "what if the air in the command module is contaminated" and the idea of using the LEM as lifeboat was developed. Sorry. Fun scene in the movie, but not something that happened during Apollo 13 for real.

[@adamreynolds3863]

Just when you almost lose hope for humanity, stories like this bringing everyone together, gives a huge positivity boost!

[@MkVIIIMaus]

Thank you Simon. If you listen to the in flight audio, it was actually Jack Swaggart who said it first. Jim Lovell repeated it when Huston asked for clarification. Failure is not an option. - Gene Cranz Apollo flight director

[@katherinekinnaird4408]

This story never gets old.

[@neilzukov2921]

Mega Project idea: The "Mining and Chemical Combine" in Zheleznogorsk, Russia. A Plutonium production plant. The entire facility was built 200 meters into the mountain, and contains 3 Nuclear Reactors (Basically the same design as РБМК, like in Chernobyl),1 АД and 2 АДЭ (АДЭ-2 provided power and heating to the workers city, Zheleznogorsk). The facility has its own railway and electric locomotive. Now the Plutonium production is stopped (since 95'), and the reactors were shut down. Now they produce MOX fuel for fast liquid metal Reactors (for now, БН-800).

[@chrislong3938]

You told this story perfectly! Thanks!!!

[@annvictor9627]

Dad bought each of us a commemorative Apollo 13 glass after they came back.

[@yousifkenick9886]

Ideas: Lake Pontchartrain Causeway 38.4km: The Lake Pontchartrain Causeway in the United States was the undisputed longest bridge over water for a long time, before the Jiaozhou Bay Bridge came into the picture. The Jiaozhou Bay Bridge, also known as the Qingdao-Haiwan Bridge. The bridge, which is built to last 120 years, measures 55km long. It features a main bridge stretching over 30km as well as two artificial islands and link roads totalling 25km. The authorities said that the bridge is able to withstand a magnitude-8 earthquake, a super typhoon or a strike by a cargo vessel weighing 300,000 tonnes. King Fahd Causeway (25km): The King Fahd Causeway is a series of bridges and causeways that links Bahrain to Saudi Arabia. It was inaugurated in 1986 after five years of construction and remains the only land link that Bahrain has with the outside world. It has been credited as an important contributor to inter-Gulf trade, with several million people using the bridge annually. Chenab bridge: The world's highest railway bridge is 359 mt above the River Chenab in Jammu and Kashmir. It is 35 meters higher than the Eiffel Tower in Paris. The Chenab bridge is on the Katra-Banihal railway line at Kauri village in Reasi district. The Millau Viaduct is a cable-stayed road-bridge that spans the valley of the river Tarn near Millau in southern France. Designed by the French structural engineer Michel Virlogeux and British architect Norman Foster, it is the tallest bridge in the world with one mast's summit at 343.0 meters above the base of the structure. It is also the 12th highest bridge in the world, with a 270 meters drop from the bridge road to the valley below. China Sky Eye, the world's largest single-dish radio telescope, is now fully operational. China's Five-hundred-meter Aperture Spherical Radio Telescope, known as FAST, is the world's most sensitive listening device.

[@franl155]

I remember this: well, all I remember is the "problem" announcement coming over, and the controller's head jerking up sharply before he said calmly "Say again". I don't remember anything more about it, and I don't remember if this was live from Mission Control or shown later on the news [I mention this because I made the same comment on another vid, and got taken to task because "it wasn't shown live"].

[@b1646717]

The mailbox is a beautiful piece of engineering. Made under pressure, out of materials at hand, and it works = brilliant.

[@jimmyryan5880]

I loves that everything came down to putting a square peg into a round hole

[@guccimain89]

Exactly...and they freaking did it. And then, after doing it, the communicated precisely how to do it through radio to 3 astronauts currently being poisoned by their own breath.

[@brianmurray7980]

The Apollo 13 movie came out when I was 7 years old. It 100% captivated me. It's my favorite Hanks movie.

[@HEDGE1011]

12:38 Fuel, power, and oxygen were critical considerations, but the most limiting factor quickly became the quantity of cooling water available.

[@BedsitBob]

The DPS (Descent Propulsion System) engine was designed to get them *onto* the moon, not off again. Getting them off the moon, was the job of the APS (Ascent Propulsion System) engine, built into the bottom of the crew cabin.

[@karllewis735]

You didn't mention that Gruman, maker of the Lunar Module, sent a bill for towing to North American, makers of the Command Module.

[@karllewis735]

@Galileo7of9 Yes. Grumman. I am, if not the world's worst typist, somewhere in the top 4 or 5. (And if there's a way to edit KZbin comments I've not found it.)

[@karllewis735]

@Galileo7of9 [slaps forehead] So... in addition to being a piss poor typist, I'm also a moron, or blind, or... something. Damn. Well... one learns something nearly every day. Thanks. Now I know.

[@leeeastwood6368]

@@karllewis735, welcome to my world!

[@Morris2182]

Awesome 😂. I never knew that

[@billolsen4360]

Didn't Grumman also make buses at one time?

[@StephenWest-t2v]

The Pogo oscillations that happened at launch is probably exactly what you think it is. If all 5 F1 engines fired at exactly the same time, their combined 10 million+ pounds of thrust actually cause the entire vehicle to flex and then seem to come back down to some degree as if the entire saturn V rocket was a pogo stick. So the engines needed to be fired microseconds apart to prevent damage or asymmetrical thrust. The Saturn V had been launched a handful of times, but they were still trying to figure out the optimal firing pattern because the difference in patterns not only could prevent damage, but also thousands of pounds of fuel and oxidizer.

[@pamelamays4186]

Well done! When one of your favorite movies is condensed down to under twenty minutes. Tom Hanks: Houston we have a problem. Tim Allen: To infinity and beyond!

[@bateman2112]

I haven't even watched this yet and I love that the thumbnail makes it look like Simon's about to run screaming through the control room because Apollo 13 just broke the moon.

[@g4r8f3j4l8g]

I'd love to see a mega projects video on "Project Habakkuk" the British aircraft carrier made mostly of ice(pykrete)

[@cravenmoordik]

I've listened to the entire mission recordings from launch to recovery. Those three guys, TOTALLY FUCKING COOL the entire time. Correction, though, at 12:02 you said they use the DPS which was designed to go to the moon and then back up. The DPS was only for descent. After a successful landing and EVA the descent stage would stay on the lunar surface and the ascent stage would separate to bring the LM back to redock with the CSM and would therefor be using the APS or Ascent Propultion System.

[@wrightmf]

I remember reading early 1970s book by Henry SF Cooper "The Flight That Failed" in later 1970s. Obviously following the space program Apollo 13 was noted. A year before the movie release, Jim Lovell was at Moffett Field (his carrier wing was based there so him and Marilyn lived in Mountain View before he got accepted to NTPS). He gave a talk, signed autographs on his new book "Lost Moon." I remember there was some talk about Ron Howard will soon release a movie about this particular mission. My reaction why would someone like Ron Howard make a movie as esoteric for people that don't follow the space program. Next thing I knew it seemed Lovell was the most famous of the Apollo astronauts. I also read the release of "Marooned" in 1969, that many at NASA and contracting companies thought the whole plot was ridiculous, there are many ways to ignite the CSM engine and many quadruple backup systems. After Apollo 13, well there can be significant systems failure. We also see North American did an outstanding job redesigning the CM after Apollo 1. The module can be cold started in 45 minutes by three guys where it usually takes armies of technicians and engineers over two weeks to power it up. But then there were armies of technicians and engineers pulling all-nighters preparing the power up checklist, and other checklists for flying with out the SM plus entry procedures.

[@12hairyjohn]

No one who lived through it will ever forget it.

[@icu_corey_rn_903]

The engineers building a co2 filter with literal duct tape and telling the astronauts how to do it and everything working is insanely impressive.

[@JacobAAllen]

Check out the Catalina 22. It either a megaproject or at least a side project. More Catalina 22 sailboats have been made than any other sailboat in history. There about 16,000 of them in the world and they are still being built to this day.

[@BedsitBob]

The mission slogan "Ex Luna Scientia" was developed from the Navy moto, "Ex Scientia Tridens", which was appropriate, given the prime crew (Lovell, Mattingly and Haise) were Navy and Marine pilots.

[@patrickbrookings]

Oh man, that is one of my favourite movies ever! I am a space geek, but well, that's how it is.

[@-Awareness]

Don’t forget to have your vaccination...

[@kevintucker1491]

Mr. Lovell spent part of his life in Wisconsin. He did an amazing interview for the anniversary last year. He sounds like such a humble man.

[@NM-yu3fc]

While you’re in Houston, the Astrodome could be a mega project. Designed to withstand more than the worst hurricane in history which also makes it extremely complicated to remove!

[@kenshores9900]

Yes Simon, I did and do find this an interesting topic. You did an excellent job in telling the tale. It was one of the greatest Engineering and Scientific successful failures. It shows the efforts that can be exerted do solve very difficult and seemingly unsolvable problems.

[@Nowhereman10]

It was only the single center engine on the S-II 2nd stage shut down early and the stage burned longer and then the longer burn on the S-IVB 3rd stage that put the stack into its proper initial low Earth orbit.

[@Doctor699]

You didn't mention it, but another thing to do a direct abort would have required them to abandon the LM (Lunar Module), and cut it loose in deep space. So the CSM (Command and Service Module) would have a mass small enough to turn around come back to Earth safely. That would also mean firing the SPS engine on the Service Module and spending the rest of the mission on Service Module life support, which had vanished by that point. Simply too many unknowns and too big a risk after the explosion to consider it.

[@OhioGuy82]

Simon is one of the few youtubers I could bing watch.

[@chadwasinger5762]

Simon - we'd love to see a Megaprojects on the Svalbard Satellite Station on Svalsbard Island. Thanks!

[@Sutterjack]

I had the honor of having lunch with Jim Lovell years ago and he was amazing. If I was going to be stuck in a damaged spacecraft 1/4 million miles from earth, I would hope it would be with him. Those astronauts were amazing - they could be looking at death in 5 minutes and still be disciplined on procedure and not panic.

[@robertruark8797]

I was 15 years old at the time and I remember this well.

[@Sandy.J.Lloyd.Sr.]

What a lot of people don’t know is the “mailbox” procedure and the “re-start” procedure had been practiced before the launch of Apollo 8. NASA tries to think of everything that could possibly go wrong and comes up with a fix. I don’t think they thought the service module would blow up but they did calculate for the loss of oxygen, power, and the abundance of carbon dioxide.

[@Thesnakerox]

For anyone curious, Apollo 13's reentry blackout was so much longer than expected because they were reentering the atmosphere at a much shallower angle than expected, so the types of reentry events that caused disruption to the comms simply occurred for a longer duration.

[@TheJediCaptain]

"You, sir, are a steely-eyed missile man." This was one of my favorite movies.

[@BedsitBob]

The backup crew member who got the measles, was Charlie Duke, who had been the Capcom for the Apollo 11 Lunar landing.