Deke Slayton (center) shows the adapter improvised by Ed Smylie so that
carbon dioxide accumulating in
Apollo 13's
Lunar Module (LM) cabin could be removed using the
Command Module's (CM) differently shaped
lithium hydroxide canisters. After the spacecraft's oxygen tank exploded on April 13, 1970, the crew โ
Jim Lovell,
Jack Swigert, and
Fred Haise โ faced severely limited power, a loss of cabin heat, a shortage of potable water, and a critical excess of carbon dioxide. They spent four days in the "two-person" LM, then returned to the CM and splashed down safely in the Pacific Ocean.
From left to right, members of Slayton's audience are Milton Windler, Bill Tindall, Sigurd Sjoberg, Christopher Kraft, and Robert Gilruth.Photograph: NASA