Surprise · Space Exploration
A Journey Home Became the Mission
Apollo 13
The question
What happened to the planned Apollo 13 Moon landing?
- It was canceled after a spacecraft malfunction(correct answer)
- It landed without a crew
- It was delayed by one year
The answer: It was canceled after a spacecraft malfunction
Apollo 13 launched on 11 April 1970, bound for the Fra Mauro area of the Moon. About 56 hours into the flight, an oxygen tank in the service module blew up, crippling the spacecraft. The landing was abandoned, and the crew and mission control worked to bring the astronauts home. They splashed down safely on 17 April.
- Civilization
- United States (NASA)
- Region
- Earth–Moon space
- Period
- April 1970
- Featured in
- Daily Discovery #003 · 4 November 2026
Image: NASA (image source, opens in a new tab)
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