Apollo 13 Commander Jim Lovell Dies

NASA astronaut Jim Lovell, the commander of the Apollo 13 mission, has died at the age of 97. He passed away on August 7, 2025, in Lake Forest, Illinois.

Key Highlights

• Apollo 13: Lovell is best known for his leadership during the Apollo 13 mission in 1970, where an oxygen tank explosion crippled the spacecraft en route to the Moon. Through his calm command and the quick thinking of his crew and mission control, he guided the damaged spacecraft back to Earth, turning a potential disaster into a successful recovery.
• Apollo 8: He was also part of the historic Apollo 8 mission in 1968, which was the first crewed flight to orbit the Moon.
• “First Man to Go to the Moon Twice”: Lovell was one of only 24 people to have flown to the Moon and the first person to do so twice, but he never actually landed on the lunar surface.
• Other Missions: Lovell was a veteran of four spaceflights in total, also flying on Gemini 7 and Gemini 12, and held the world record for the longest time in space for a period in the 1970s.

(Source: AIR)