Apollo 13 Commander James Lovell Dies at 97

James Lovell, the U.S. astronaut who famously led the Apollo 13 mission through one of NASA’s most dramatic rescues, has died at the age of 97. He passed away Thursday in Lake Forest, Illinois, NASA confirmed.

Lovell, a veteran of four spaceflights — Gemini 7, Gemini 12, Apollo 8, and Apollo 13 — was known for his steady leadership under pressure. In 1968, as part of the Apollo 8 crew, he helped achieve the first flight to orbit the Moon, a mission that brought the world the iconic “Earthrise” photograph and a Christmas Eve broadcast that became a symbol of hope during a turbulent year.

Two years later, Lovell was set to become the fifth man to walk on the Moon. But mid-flight, Apollo 13’s service module suffered an oxygen tank explosion. Lovell, alongside crewmates Fred Haise and Jack Swigert, was forced to abandon the Moon landing and focus solely on survival. The crew endured four cold, power-starved days in the lunar module, using it as a lifeboat while NASA engineers worked around the clock on an improvised return plan.

That tense mission inspired the 1995 film Apollo 13, in which Tom Hanks portrayed Lovell and delivered the now-famous line, “Houston, we have a problem.”

A retired Navy captain, Lovell accumulated 715 hours in space during his career, a record at the time. Colleagues described him as calm, measured, and deeply committed to teamwork.