A NASA astronaut who was faraway from the ill-fated Apollo 13 mission however helped convey its crew again residence safely because of his problem-solving efforts from floor management has died on the age of 87.
Thomas Okay. “TK” Mattingly handed away on October 31, the space agency mentioned in a press release Thursday.
His most dramatic function got here when he was assigned as command module pilot for the Apollo 13 flight however was grounded 72 hours previous to launch attributable to publicity to rubella, NASA Administrator Invoice Nelson mentioned.
After an explosion crippled the spacecraft on its strategy to the Moon, Mattingly, who didn’t in truth get sick, went to Mission Management and devised procedures to preserve energy so the car might efficiently re-enter the ambiance, guaranteeing astronauts James Lovell, Jack Swigert, and Fred Haise survived.
The mission was dramatized within the 1995 movie “Apollo 13” wherein Mattingly was performed by Gary Sinise.
Mattingly started his profession as a US Navy pilot earlier than being chosen to the astronaut class of 1966.
He later took on the function of command module pilot on the Apollo 16 mission and was the spacecraft commander in two Area Shuttle missions.
“TK’s contributions have allowed for developments in our studying past that of space,” mentioned Nelson.
© 2023 AFP
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