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55 Years Ago: Preps for Apollo 13 and 14, Apollo 12 Crew on World Tour
- With two months to go before the Apollo 13 mission in April 1970, the crew and backups continued training and preparations for the lunar landing mission in the Fra Mauro highlands region of the Moon.
- Engineers at Kennedy Space Center completed the Flight Readiness Test for Apollo 13's Saturn V rocket, clearing the way for a countdown dress rehearsal.
- Apollo 13 astronauts practiced lunar landing and moonwalks using simulators and training vehicles, while the Apollo 14 crew participated in geology field trips for their upcoming mission targeted for October 1970.
- Training included Lunar Landing Training Vehicle flights for descent practice and Lunar Landing Research Facility sessions for landing module pilots.
- Moonwalk training involved parabolic flights, rehearsal of deploying equipment, and improving spacesuits for comfort during extended spacewalks.
- Apollo 13 planned experiments during their Moon stay included measuring lunar environment elements and deploying the Solar Wind Composition experiment.
- Apollo 14 crew, including Alan Shepard, conducted simulators training and took part in a geology field expedition in northern Mexico as part of their mission preparations.
- NASA released Apollo 12 lunar samples to scientists globally and the Apollo 12 crew embarked on a Presidential goodwill tour around Latin America, Europe, Africa, and Asia.
- The Apollo missions brought groundbreaking science, setting up retroreflectors on the Moon for laser measurements, which continues to aid in lunar research for NASA's Artemis program.
- The precise measurements facilitated by the retroreflectors have significantly advanced our understanding of the Moon's shape and distance from Earth, crucial for lunar exploration.
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