6. Apollo 13 revitalized American interest in the Space Program temporarily
Before Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin walked on the moon, Americans watched each manned space mission with avid interest. Apollo 12 repeated the feat, and with traveling to the moon evidently routine, public interest waned. Some in Congress wanted to end the program and save its costs. In April, Apollo 13 on the way to be the third team of Americans on the moon, suffered a catastrophic explosion. Suddenly spaceflight was dramatic again, and for the next few days Americans, as well as the rest of the world, watched as the story unfolded. NASA engineers and astronauts came up with innovative solutions to each of the problems encountered to bring the astronauts home.
News of the astronauts scrolled across Times Square’s ribbon board. Newspapers (Americans still read newspapers in 1970) carried dramatic headlines. The three networks covered every aspect of the dangers faced and the solutions achieved. It became a four-day miniseries on television. The astronauts returned safely to earth four days after the accident, and the American Space Program received a shot in the arm. The success brought national pride in the bravery of the astronauts and the ingenuity which brought them home. Tens of millions watched their recovery on television. By the time of Apollo 14’s launch at the end of the following January, interest had waned once again.