Apollo 13 (April 11–17, 1970) was the seventh crewed mission in the Apollo space program and the third meant to land on the Moon. The landing was aborted after an oxygen tank in the service module (pictured) failed two days into the mission. Apollo 13 was commanded by Jim Lovell with Jack Swigert as command module (CM) pilot and Fred Haise as lunar module (LM) pilot. Swigert was a late replacement for Ken Mattingly, who was grounded after exposure to rubella. After the explosion, the CM's systems had to be shut down to conserve resources, forcing the crew to transfer to the LM as a lifeboat. Although the LM was designed to support two men for two days, Mission Control improvised new procedures so it could support three men for four days. The astronauts' peril briefly renewed interest in the Apollo program; tens of millions watched the splashdown in the South Pacific Ocean by television. The story of Apollo 13 has been dramatized, most notably in the 1995 film Apollo 13..

Read more: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apollo_13_%28film%29

_______________________________ Today's selected anniversaries:

1713:

The main treaties of the Peace of Utrecht were signed in the city of Utrecht in the Dutch Republic, helping to bring an end to the War of the Spanish Succession. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peace_of_Utrecht

1913:

The cricket pavilion at the Nevill Ground was destroyed in an arson attack (damage pictured) that was attributed to militant suffragettes as part of a country-wide campaign co-ordinated by the Women's Social and Political Union. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nevill_Ground

1979:

Uganda–Tanzania War: The allied forces of Tanzania and the Uganda National Liberation Front captured the capital Kampala, deposing Ugandan president Idi Amin. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fall_of_Kampala

1993:

Prisoners at the Southern Ohio Correctional Facility near Lucasville, Ohio, rioted and took over the prison for 11 days, resulting in the deaths of one officer and nine inmates. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Southern_Ohio_Correctional_Facility

_____________________________ Wiktionary's word of the day:

flabbergast: (transitive) To overwhelm with bewilderment; to amaze, confound, or stun, especially in a ludicrous manner. https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/flabbergast

___________________________ Wikiquote quote of the day:

We who survived the Camps are not true witnesses. We are those who, through prevarication, skill or luck, never touched bottom. Those who have, and who have seen the face of the Gorgon, did not return, or returned wordless.   --Primo Levi https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Primo_Levi