On April 13, 1970, on the third day of the flight, when the three astronauts of the crew of the manned spacecraft Apollo 13 were at a distance of 330,000 kilometers from Earth, an oxygen tank exploded in the service module and disabled 2 of the 3 fuel cell batteries, thereby depriving the ship is able to use the main engine...
Apollo is one of NASA's largest and most famous programs. In 1961, shortly after the flight of Yuri Gagarin, US President John Kennedy set the task of landing a man on the Moon, and this man was to be an American. But first, it was necessary to create a rocket that could launch into orbit everything necessary for a flight to the Moon and back. The famous German designer Wernher von Braun, one of the founders of rocket science, took on the solution to this problem. The result of his work was the creation of the Saturn V. This rocket to this day remains the heaviest, most lifting, largest and most powerful rocket created by man.
And the 3-seater Apollos, named after the ancient Greek deity, were specially created to send astronauts to the Moon. Since 1968, 15 successful launches have been made in seven years.
The Apollo 13 spacecraft consisted of three main modules: the command module (call sign "Odyssey"), the service module and the lunar module (call sign "Aquarius"). The weight of the ship at the start was about 50 tons, the height was about 15 meters, the diameter was about 4 meters, the volume of the living compartments was almost 13 m³. The volume of food, water and regeneration units for oxygen restoration provided three astronauts with no more than 14 days of autonomous flight. Almost the entire flight, the astronauts were located in the command compartment, where all the necessary equipment for controlling the spacecraft and conducting observations was located. It is this command compartment that ultimately returns to earth and lands by parachute along with the entire crew. The lunar module served only for maneuvers in the immediate vicinity of the lunar surface, landing on it and subsequent take-off. It was designed to accommodate two astronauts for 75 hours.
Experienced astronaut James Lovell, who had already completed three flights by this time, including a flight to the Moon on Apollo 8, was appointed crew commander. The command module pilot was John Swigert, the lunar module pilot was Fred Hayes. The astronauts were well trained and had excellent support from a team of engineers and scientists on Earth.
Their flight was supposed to ensure another landing on the Moon.
Apollo 13 launched on April 11, 1970 from Merritt Island in Florida. The entry into Earth orbit took place as usual with minimal deviations in speed and altitude. After two and a half hours of flight, the third stage of the Saturn V turned on and accelerated the Apollo to the second escape velocity on the trajectory towards the Moon. After the acceleration was completed, the main block (command and service modules) separated from the third stage, and Jack Swigert, turning the ship 180 degrees, docked with the lunar module and removed it from the rocket's transport container. From this moment, fully assembled, Apollo 13 entered the main phase of the flight.
After 5 days they had a difficult landing on the Moon, exciting work on the surface, and then a long journey home.
On the third day of the flight, after 47 hours of normal operation, the first signs of trouble began. Sensors showed an increased level of liquid oxygen in tank No. 2 of the service module, which was a fuel oxidizer for the engines. Such readings were expected, since in conditions of weightlessness the contents of the tanks are stratified, and the sensors begin to produce incorrect data. To solve this problem, the ship's designers provided micro-turbines in each tank, with the help of which it is possible to mix the gas and liquid phases of the gas and thus achieve the correct readings.
But the sensor data continued to grow - the pressure in the tank increased. The order was received to start mixing in the tanks. Swigert flipped the switches and the procedure began. Sixteen seconds later, at 55:55:09 flight time, Apollo 13 was rocked by a powerful explosion. Crew commander James Lovell reports an emergency to mission control in Houston, beginning his report with the now famous words: “Houston, we have a problem.” He talks about the voltage drop on the control panels and that after the explosion some kind of gas is leaking from the engine compartment and this jet stream changes the orientation of the ship.
After three minutes, the voltage on power line B, supplying the systems and equipment of the command module, completely drops. The flight control center instructed the crew to reduce power consumption to a minimum, the crew began to turn off the power to all secondary instruments, but this did not help - very soon the voltage in power line A began to drop, and the power supply system of the command module completely failed. The oxygen pressure in tank No. 2 dropped to zero, and in the damaged tank No. 1 it reached 50% of the value and continued to fall. This meant that the life support system of the command compartment would be able to ensure the survival of the crew only for 15 minutes - this is exactly how much energy the emergency batteries lasted.
Operators in Houston immediately gave a remote command to shut down two of the three fuel cells, hoping to stop the leak from two oxygen tanks. This automatically meant the abandonment of plans to land on the Moon, since in order to maneuver around the Moon, the service module had to have two working fuel cells.
It was necessary to take quick and decisive measures to save the crew - Lovell and Hayes went to the Aquarius lunar module and initiated life support systems in it, Swigert at that moment recorded all flight parameters in the main computer of the ship and turned off all systems of the command module.
And on Earth, dozens of NASA's best specialists began urgently developing solutions for the return flight, going through all possible options. To their credit, it must be said that very little time was spent on this work - what usually takes weeks of complex calculations, this time they did it in less than a day.
The main problem was the inability to use the main liquid-propellant engine of the service module, which was intended for maneuvers on the way to the Moon and back. Due to the explosion of one of the oxygen tanks, its use could cause even greater destruction, and they preferred to avoid such a risk, intending to use the lunar module engine for all maneuvers. However, the design of the engine - and more importantly, the fuel tanks - was intended for one-time and short-term use near the lunar surface. Fuel was supplied using compressed helium, which pressed on a soft membrane inside the tank, displacing the fuel itself. Over time, the pressure in the tanks increased so much that the helium broke through the specially designed diaphragm and evaporated into the vacuum, after which the use of the engine became impossible.
Another problem was complications with navigation and orientation of the ship. During the explosion, the ship spun around and lost orientation, but what is most unpleasant is that it was surrounded by a whole cloud of small debris, particles of plating, paint and gas. All this sparkled and glowed, reflecting the sunlight, and making it impossible to navigate by the stars.
The third and, perhaps, the most important problem was the life support of the crew members. The fact is that the lunar module was designed for two people to stay in it for a maximum of 75 hours, but now a third astronaut joined them, and the flight time was obviously longer than planned. If things were in order with oxygen and nutrition, then with the amount of fresh water (now it was required more to cool all systems) and with the absorption of exhaled carbon dioxide, things were bad. Moreover, it soon became clear that due to strict energy savings (this resource was the most important for a safe return home), the cabin heating had to be turned off and the temperature began to drop catastrophically quickly. As a result, during the entire flight the temperature in the cabin remained around 11°C, and the crew members were very cold due to the lack of warm clothing and the inability to move in the cramped cabin of the Aquarius to warm up.
NASA specialists developed several options for returning the ship to Earth, but given the modest fuel supply and limited life support resources of Aquarius, it was necessary to find a compromise option that would ensure a faster return of living astronauts to the Earth's atmosphere. To do this, it was necessary to correct the trajectory, fly around the Moon and accelerate on the way to Earth. The first correction was carried out the morning of the next day after the accident. Now the countdown to the failure of the lunar module engine has begun - a membrane breakthrough in its tanks was predicted between the 105th and 110th hour of Apollo's flight time. There were approximately 40 hours left before this event. The correction was successful, the ship set on the desired course and began to fly around the Moon.
As Apollo 13 passed over the far side of the Moon, Hayes and Swigert rushed to the windows with their cameras, eagerly capturing images of the craters passing below them and the light-filled desert plains of the lunar seas. Lovell had already seen this on the previous flight and was not so enthusiastic. Again the teasing Luna eluded him, not allowing him to bathe his boots in her dust. He will never have such an opportunity again.
On the way to Earth, it was necessary to turn on the engines a second time to increase the speed of the ship and reduce the time the crew spent in difficult conditions with expiring life support resources. This correction was also carried out successfully, and the astronauts rushed to the saving blue ball, which shimmered with bright, full of life colors in the middle of the ominous cosmic darkness.
A working atmosphere reigned in the cabin of the lunar module: in clouds of exhaled steam, among drops of condensation, hunched over in a cramped space, three astronauts worked diligently, checking and rechecking instrument readings, following instructions from Earth and setting up equipment. They understood that their return home depended on their actions and accurate execution of commands from Houston.
But not everything depended on the actions of people. In the cramped cabin of the Aquarius, not intended for three, the percentage of carbon dioxide was growing. The regeneration systems could not cope with its processing, and when the gas content reached 13%, a real threat to the life of the crew appeared. Unfortunately, it was impossible to use the absorption system filters from the command module - it was de-energized. On board and at mission control in Houston, they frantically searched for a solution.
The savior was NASA specialist Ed Smiley - he proposed a scheme for creating an adapter for these filters from scrap materials available on the ship. It was first tested on the ground, and then detailed instructions were given to the crew. For the adapter, we used the cooling suit shell from the lunar spacesuit and its hoses, cardboard covers from the flight plan, a piece of Hayes towel and adhesive tape. Lovell reported to Earth: “It doesn’t look very nice, but it seems to work...” The crazy hands worked wonderfully, and soon the carbon dioxide content began to fall, the astronauts breathed more freely.
But the most difficult and important stage of the return lay ahead: the final trajectory correction, transition to the command module, undocking and direct entry into the Earth’s atmosphere.
Before the third adjustment operation, Apollo 13 suffered a new setback - one of the batteries of the landing stage of the lunar module suddenly exploded, the voltage dropped slightly, but in Houston it was considered uncritical and no emergency action was required.
The crew successfully corrected the trajectory and at the 108th hour of the flight, a membrane ruptured in the tank of the lunar module, and the engine, having completed all the tasks assigned to it, finally turned out to be useless. On April 17, the last trajectory correction was carried out using low-power lunar module orientation engines. The astronauts began moving necessary equipment and supplies into the command module in preparation for landing. It was 137 hours into their flight.
After Lovell, Swigert and Hayes boarded the Odyssey, they needed to undock from the useless service bay. This complex operation, which included two turns, went brilliantly, and through the windows the astronauts were finally able to see what had happened to the service module. One of the panels, about four meters long and more than one and a half meters wide, covering the service compartment systems, was torn out by the explosion, the engine nozzle was damaged, and almost all the equipment in this part of the compartment was disabled.
The last operation was a farewell to the Aquarius lunar module, which had served as home to three astronauts for the past four days. The hatches between the modules were battened down, the tightness of the connection and the atmosphere inside the command module were checked, all life support systems were powered up and operating normally. All that remained was to undermine the pyrobolts of the connection and wave the handle to the smoothly retreating “Aquarius”, which was never destined to fulfill its main purpose and visit the Moon.
On April 17, at 18:07:41 (142:56:46 flight time), Apollo 13 splashed down safely 7.5 kilometers from the waiting rescue team vessel. All crew members were rescued and airlifted to the Hawaiian Islands.
Lovell, Hayes and Swigert, of course, not without the help of specialists from NASA ground services, got out alive from such a mess that no one had ever gotten into before. The Houston astronauts and ground crews were awarded the Medal of Freedom, the highest US civilian award, for their courage and exceptionally professional work.
It is perhaps worth noting that this accident, which came very close to the status of a cosmic catastrophe, served the three Americans well. Due to the fact that the trajectory of a free flight around the Moon was used to rescue them, the Apollo 13 spacecraft unplannedly set a record for the distance of a manned vehicle from the Earth - 401,056 km, and its crew became the most famous in the entire history of NASA flights.
No one had ever flown so far before them.
Not everyone has heard of the capital of Texas, but Houston, of course, is familiar to everyone by the common phrase “Houston, we have a problem!” from the movie "Apollo 13". In fact, the astronauts’ line sounded a little different, but it was this version that took root in popular culture.
Houston is rightly called the Space City: the Lyndon Johnson Space Center is located in its suburbs. NASA uses it for astronaut training, mission control, spacecraft development, medical research, and so on. In addition, there is now a museum there where you can look at shuttles, pieces of the Moon and other evidence of human space flights.
Otherwise, it is an ordinary American metropolis, very large (4th most populous in the USA after New York, Los Angeles and Chicago) and quite dirty. Local smog and poor water are especially notorious, although in recent decades Houston has been gradually introducing green manufacturing, energy production and transport.
Houston experienced real problems in the 80s, when, amid the oil crisis, the city lost 220 thousand jobs and could simply die out. He was saved by the accelerated diversification of the economy: dependence on the “oil needle” was halved (from 87 to 44%), and the main emphasis was on the aerospace industry and healthcare.
01. Downtown is small, there are several rather old skyscrapers. This “opener” in the center is CenterPoint Energy Plaza, built in 1974, and the “pencil” on the left is 1600 Smith Street, built in 1984.
02. There are historical buildings in the center, but there are very few of them, and they look clearly superfluous among the primitive skyscrapers... This is the main building of the Houston Public Library (1926). 
03. City Hall resembles a truncated classic skyscraper. It's like there was something here that looked like the Empire State Building, but then the top was cut off. 
04.
05. The center is somewhat abandoned in places, there are unkempt buildings. Really reminds me of Detroit. 
06. The bollards give an idea of what buildings were at this intersection before. Of course, the nightstand is decorated with a Lone Star. To make the star not so lonely, there are two of them. 
07. Downtown sometimes looks deserted. Pay attention to the multi-level parking! We will return to them later. 
08. Bicycle rental. The bike stations here have names. 
09. Like the state capital, Houston has a network of dedicated bike lanes. In general, in the USA, all major cities have taken a course towards cycling) 
10. A regular bus running on gas. But for polluted Houston, it's progress. Now there are two routes that serve the central part of the city, travel seems to be free. 
11. In 2004, Houston opened a small light rail system called METRORail. Two lines are currently operating, another one is being completed, and traffic should be launched on it this year. 
12. The compositions are used as locally produced (Urbos LRV Spanish development)... 
13. And purely European ones (Siemens S70). 
14. This is the main street of the city, which was recently reconstructed. You'll be surprised, but it's called Main Street) 
15. The reconstruction project was called Midtown Houston and affected several streets at once. 
16. Concrete on central streets is gradually being replaced with tiles and bricks. The intersection is paved in such a way as to clearly mark the tram tracks. Drivers automatically slow down before such an intersection. 
17. For the movement of cars, one lane was left here in each direction. 
18. The paths are separated, there are flower beds between them. In general, there is less and less space left for cars))) 
19. The parking is not continuous, but there are rare pockets. 
20. Tram tracks, landing platform, bike station and only one lane for cars. This is how a modern street in a big city should look. 
21. Many American cities are now being reconstructed, driving motorists off the streets, and creating pedestrian spaces. 
22. Houston is no exception, despite Texans' passion for cars. 
23. Not bad. 
24. Not just a stop, but a full-fledged platform. 
25. There are paid and free zones on the routes. Houstonians can buy something like our "Troika" and in some cases "earn" free trips. But between such signs there are obviously no exceptions for payment. 
26. Payment before boarding at such machines. 
27.
28.
29. Car traffic in the center is in some cases one-way. Here I would like to say that automobile cities are becoming a thing of the past, but read the post to the end;) 
30. Improvement 
31.
32. A non-obvious solution with trees in the center of the sidewalk. 
34. Instead of open ground, there are plants and wood shavings. 
35. An attempt to make the city car-friendly leads to the construction of such multi-story parking lots right in the center. 
36. There are a lot of multi-level parking lots in Houston, but even they are not enough. There is nothing good from such parking lots. 
37. Prices, of course, are lower than in Manhattan: an hour - only 284 rubles, 2 hours - 568 rubles. 
38. All vacant lots are also usually occupied by parking lots. 
39. The transition is marked with paving. 
40. Houston storm drain manhole. Pelican and fish promote clean water. 
41. Some hatches indicate exactly where the drain leads. Makes you wonder whether to dump some nasty stuff here if your children are swimming in this bay tomorrow. 
42.
43. Many American cafes have iPads. It is suggested to give a tip in the amount of 10 to 25% of the bill. One of the reasons... 
44. This is the so-called Rothko Chapel; 14 works by Mark Rothko in black are displayed on its walls. In front of the entrance is the "Broken Obelisk", also known as the "Black Needle". 
Interiors: 
45. Sign in front of the Houston mandir (Hindu temple) 
46. And here is the temple itself. It's unexpected to see something like this in a typical American city. 
47. It is believed to be the first traditional mandir in North America. It was opened in 2004. To create it, 33,000 individual elements were hand-cut in India, which were then transported to the USA and assembled in Texas as a construction set. 
48. And this is classic Houston, without any trams and bicycles. 
49. Only highways, only hardcore. 
50. And giant interchanges. 
51.
52. Look at the console with traffic lights! Moreover, it is elegantly topped with a lantern! 
53. One-story America 
Travel notes:
Modern culture is permeated with references to certain works. Some particularly popular phrases can be found in dozens of different films, songs and literary works. Over time, it becomes too difficult to understand where exactly the original phrase was, and where is just a quote and another reference? An example of this would be: “Houston, we have problems” - from which only a few people can answer the phrase correctly.
Phrase: "Houston, we have problems"
Most will say that the saying was originally belongs to Bruce Willis, from the epic science fiction film " Armageddon»:
- A huge asteroid is flying towards the Earth.
- Scientists calculated that it would collide with the planet and inevitably destroy all life.
- A squad of astronauts and drillers ventured on a suicidal rescue mission.
- Once on the asteroid itself, the main character is faced with an unforeseen problem, which he informs others about with a legendary phrase.
- Any further statements will reveal the film's denouement to those who have not yet seen it.
But what does Houston have to do with it and who is he anyway? Oddly enough, this is not a person or even a group of people, but town name, which houses NASA's mission control center. Therefore, by turning to the air in this way, the astronaut immediately communicates information to all observers who can help him with advice from Earth.
First disaster during a mission to the Moon
But as you might guess, the first astronaut in US history was not Bruce Willis. The most serious space program of this country was associated with the exploration of the Moon.
If the Union preferred to explore orbit and distant planets with the help of unmanned vehicles, then the Americans came up with the idea of sending a person to the satellite of our planet.
The idea is ambitious and controversial; millions of people still adhere to the conspiracy theory that the American government filmed the entire landing somewhere in the Nevada deserts.
Be that as it may, not all NASA expeditions were so successful; the mission forever entered popular culture in the West Apollo 13:
- An oxygen tank on board exploded.
- The disaster resulted in a failure in the fuel system and a loss of more than 60% of capacity.
- The ship lost the opportunity to visit the Moon.
- On the way back, the crew had to navigate solely by the stars to get to Earth.
- The landing itself can hardly be called soft and safe.
- Throughout the flight, the astronauts constantly risked their own lives.
It was in such a tense situation that James Lowell issued the well-known phrase about problems on board. The catastrophic situation on the ship was described in a few words.
First mention of "Houston"
Some believe that the quote actually came from the first astronaut to land on the moon. But Neil already went down in history with his “big step for humanity,” so let him give a little glory to someone else.
By the way, in 1964 the film “ Robinson Crusoe on Mars“It was in this film that the cherished phrase was first heard from wide screens. It was later used in the historical drama Apollo 13, in the science fiction film Armageddon, and in a huge number of lesser-known works. Modern culture is indeed largely based on quoting and references to the past.
Some argue that such a “step back” will not lead to anything good, that the lack of fresh ideas will not benefit society.
But let's see what happens in 5-10 years; so far there is no serious crisis in art.
Prospects for space exploration
Any human achievement is not immune from accidents and mistakes:
- All equipment designed for atmospheric and space flights undergoes multiple checks.
- During testing, completely unexpected malfunctions are often discovered and people even die.
- But even such precautions do not guarantee that at the most crucial moment everything will go exactly as planned.
- Therefore, during such serious programs, it is important to admit your mistakes and try to correct the situation according to the situation.
- Examples of well-coordinated rescue operations of pilots and astronauts form the basis of books and films.
- Rescue of pilots, even in a failed mission, significantly increases the prestige of the state.
Unfortunately or fortunately, the era of space exploration ended before it really began:
- Projects for manned flights to the Moon were curtailed until better times.
- Man has not set foot on any planet in our system.
- Most large projects were canceled due to enormous costs.
- No country, except Russia, currently has working rockets capable of launching cargo and crew into orbit of the planet.
Where did the “Houston, we have problems” come from?
For the first time about its problems the ground base informed by James Lowell:
- Everything happened during the next lunar expedition.
- An oxygen tank on board suddenly exploded.
- The ship was able to return to Earth with living crew members only thanks to the coordinated actions of the crew and the rescue team.
- This phrase did not gain much popularity among us, since the USSR did not strive to get ahead of the Americans on the Moon.
Even before the disaster phrase was used in the 1964 film. This is not some kind of prediction, it’s just that Houston is a mission control center, and the film itself was on a space theme - “Robinson Crusoe on Mars.”
Subsequently, the quote was reflected in the popular culture of the West, the impetus for its popularization was the film “Apollo 13”, and the film “Armageddon” gave a second life. But even while listening to music or reading books, you can, at the most unexpected moment, stumble upon this expression, which has already become a catchphrase.
We all grew up in Russian culture and may not know: “Houston, we have problems” - where the phrase comes from and where it was first said. The information may not be the most useful, but on the other hand, you can always argue with a person who watched “Armageddon” and is confident that he is right.
Video with this phrase
This video contains an excerpt from the film “Apollo 13”, in which actor Tom Hanks will say the famous phrase “Houston, we have a problem”:
Almost everyone has probably heard the expression: “Houston, we have problems.” Or perhaps even used this expression. But few people know who owns this phrase and how it gained wide fame and popularity. This story is fascinating and quite tragic. So where does the phrase “Houston, we have problems” come from? And what does it mean?
Where did the phrase “Houston, we have problems” come from?
Space is something mysterious and attractive, scary and beautiful at the same time. Man has always been attracted by stars and unattainable horizons, and he looked for ways to reach them. And then one day Apollo 11 finally reached the surface of the Moon. The event itself is borderline fantastic. Now every child and adult knows about it. After this flight there were other expeditions. Apollo 12 also completed its mission and made the second landing on the lunar surface in history. But another ship from this series became known for another reason, a very tragic one. Apollo 13 had the same goal as its predecessors - an expedition to the Moon.
But during the flight, a sudden serious accident occurred on board. An oxygen tank exploded and several fuel cell batteries failed.
But where does the phrase “Houston, we have problems” come from and what does it mean? The space center that directed the flight was located in the city of Houston. The crew commander was James Lovell, an experienced astronaut. He reported the accident to the center. He began his report with a phrase that can be translated into Russian as “Houston, we have problems.” This accident crossed out all plans and became an obstacle to landing on the Moon. Moreover, it jeopardized a normal return to Earth. The crew did a great job. I had to change the flight path. The ship had to go around the Moon, thereby setting a record for the largest distance of an aircraft from the Earth. Of course, such a record was not planned, but still. The crew was able to return safely to earth, and it was a huge success.
This flight also helped to identify the ship's weaknesses, so the next expedition was postponed due to the need to make some modifications.
"Apollo 13" in cinema
This accident was a large-scale, exciting event. Many people watched with bated breath as events unfolded and hoped for the safe return of the astronauts. This all sounds incredible, like the plot of a movie. The events of this story actually later formed the basis of the film. The film was named after the ship, and when asked where the phrase "Houston, we're in trouble" comes from, he is quite capable of answering it. The picture turned out to be quite detailed and believable; it also contains a dialogue between the ship commander and the Space Center and a well-known phrase is heard. The main role in the film was played by famous actor Tom Hanks. The film made a great impression on the audience, and the phrase uttered by the ship’s commander became so popular that almost everyone knows it.
Using a quotation as a stable expression
Having understood where the phrase “Houston, we have problems” comes from, we can consider how it is used now. It has become a stable expression, one might say, a phraseological unit, and is used in everyday communication when it is necessary to say that some unexpected problems or malfunctions have suddenly arisen. These words can also often be found on the Internet in the context of various jokes. However, it is worth remembering that behind these words lies a story of brave people.
