Mission insignia and call signs

Apollo 13 flown silver Robbins medallion

The Apollo 13 mission insignia depicts the Greek god of the Sun, Apollo, with three
horses pulling his chariot across the face of the Moon, and the Earth seen in the
distance. This is meant to symbolize the Apollo flights bringing the light of knowledge
to all people. The mission motto, Ex luna, scientia ("From the Moon, knowledge"),
appears. In choosing it, Lovell adapted the motto of his alma mater, the Naval
Academy, Ex scientia, tridens ("From knowledge, sea power").[46][47]

On the patch, the mission number appeared in Roman numerals as Apollo XIII. It did
not have to be modified after Swigert replaced Mattingly, as it is one of only two
Apollo mission insignia – the other being Apollo 11 – not to include the names of the
crew. It was designed by artist Lumen Martin Winter, who based it on a mural he had
painted for the St. Regis Hotel in New York City.[48] The mural was later purchased by
actor Tom Hanks,[49] who portrayed Lovell in the movie Apollo 13, and it is now in
the Captain James A. Lovell Federal Health Care Center in Illinois.[50]

The mission's motto was in Lovell's mind when he chose the call sign Aquarius for
the lunar module, taken from Aquarius, the bringer of water.[51][52] Some in the media
erroneously reported that the call sign was taken from a song by that name from the
musical Hair.[52][53] The command module's call sign, Odyssey, was chosen not only for
its Homeric association but to refer to the recent film, 2001: A Space Odyssey, based
on a short story by science fiction author Arthur C. Clarke.[51] In his book, Lovell
indicated he chose the name Odyssey because he liked the word and its definition: a
long voyage with many changes of fortune.[52]

Due to the accident and the last minute crew change of Jack Swigert replacing Ken
Mattingly three days prior to launch, the Apollo 13 Robbins medallions flown aboard
the mission were melted down and reminted after the mission to reflect the correct
crew, and the absence of a lunar landing date.[54]

Space vehicle

CSM-109 Odyssey in the Operations and Checkout Building

The Saturn V rocket used to carry Apollo 13 to the Moon was numbered SA-508, and
was almost identical to those used on Apollo 8 through 12.[55] Including the spacecraft,
the rocket weighed in at 2,949,136 kilograms (6,501,733 lb).[56] The S-IC first stage's
engines were rated to generate 440,000 newtons (100,000 lbf) less total thrust than
Apollo 12's, though they remained within specifications.[57] To keep its liquid
hydrogen propellent cold, the S-II second stage's cryogenic tanks were insulated; on
earlier Apollo missions this came in the form of panels that were affixed, but
beginning with Apollo 13, insulation was sprayed onto the exterior of the tanks.
[58]
Extra propellant was carried as a test, since future J missions to the Moon would
require more propellant for their heavier payloads. This made the vehicle the
heaviest yet flown by NASA, and Apollo 13 was visibly slower to clear the launch
tower than earlier missions.[57]

The Apollo 13 spacecraft consisted of Command Module 109 and Service

Module 109 (together CSM-109), called Odyssey, and Lunar Module 7 (LM-7),
called Aquarius. Also considered part of the spacecraft was the launch escape
system, which would propel the command module (CM) to safety in the event of a
problem during liftoff, and the Spacecraft–LM Adapter, numbered as SLA-16, which
housed the lunar module (LM) during the first hours of the mission.[59][60]

The LM stages, CM and service module (SM) were received at Kennedy Space
Center (KSC) in June 1969; the portions of the Saturn V were received in June and
July. Thereafter, testing and assembly proceeded, culminating with the rollout of the
launch vehicle, with the spacecraft atop it, on December 15, 1969.[59] Apollo 13 was
originally scheduled for launch on March 12, 1970, but that January NASA
announced the mission would be postponed until April 11, both to allow more time for
planning and to spread the Apollo missions over a longer period.[61] The plan was to
have two Apollo flights per year and was in response to budgetary constraints[62] that
had recently seen the cancellation of Apollo 20.[63]

Training and preparation

Lovell practices deploying the flag

The Apollo 13 prime crew undertook over 1,000 hours of mission-specific training,
more than five hours for every hour of the mission's ten-day planned duration. Each
member of the prime crew spent over 400 hours in simulators of the CM and (for
Lovell and Haise) of the LM at KSC and at Houston, some of which involved the flight
controllers at Mission Control.[64] Flight controllers participated in many simulations of
problems with the spacecraft in flight, which taught them how to react in an
emergency.[17] Specialized simulators at other locations were also used by the crew
members.[64]

The astronauts of Apollo 11 had minimal time for geology training, with only six
months between crew assignment and launch; higher priorities took much of their
time.[65] Apollo 12 saw more such training, including practice in the field, using a
CAPCOM and a simulated backroom of scientists, to whom the astronauts had to
describe what they saw.[66] Scientist-astronaut Harrison Schmitt saw that there was
limited enthusiasm for geology field trips. Believing an inspirational teacher was
needed, Schmitt arranged for Lovell and Haise to meet his old
professor, Caltech's Lee Silver. The two astronauts, and backups Young and Duke,
went on a field trip with Silver at their own time and expense. At the end of their week
together, Lovell made Silver their geology mentor, who would be extensively involved
in the geology planning for Apollo 13.[67] Farouk El-Baz oversaw the training of
Mattingly and his backup, Swigert, which involved describing and photographing
simulated lunar landmarks from airplanes.[68] El-Baz had all three prime crew
astronauts describe geologic features they saw during their flights between Houston
and KSC; Mattingly's enthusiasm caused other astronauts, such as Apollo 14's CMP,
Roosa, to seek out El-Baz as a teacher.[69]

Concerned about how close Apollo 11's LM, Eagle, had come to running out of
propellant during its lunar descent, mission planners decided that beginning with
Apollo 13, the CSM would bring the LM to the low orbit from which the landing
attempt would commence. This was a change from Apollo 11 and 12, on which the
LM made the burn to bring it to the lower orbit. The change was part of an effort to
increase the amount of hover time available to the astronauts as the missions
headed into rougher terrain.[70]

The plan was to devote the first of the two four-hour lunar surface extravehicular
activities (EVAs) to setting up the Apollo Lunar Surface Experiments
Package (ALSEP) group of scientific instruments; during the second, Lovell and
Haise would investigate Cone crater, near the planned landing site.[71] The two
astronauts wore their spacesuits for some 20 walk-throughs of EVA procedures,
including sample gathering and use of tools and other equipment. They flew in the
"Vomit Comet" in simulated microgravity or lunar gravity, including practice in
donning and doffing spacesuits. To prepare for the descent to the Moon's surface,
Lovell flew the Lunar Landing Training Vehicle (LLTV) after receiving helicopter
training.[72] Despite the crashes of one LLTV and one similar Lunar Landing Research
Vehicle (LLRV) prior to Apollo 13, mission commanders considered flying them
invaluable experience and so prevailed on reluctant NASA management to retain
them.[73]