Tom Hanks has paid an emotional tribute to Apollo 13 astronaut Jim Lovell following his death on Thursday, August 7. He was 97.
The Hollywood star, who played Lovell in the 1995 movie Apollo 13, took to Instagram just hours after the news broke to pen a heartfelt message to the late commander.
Tribute
“There are people who dare, who dream, and who lead others to the places we would not go on our own,” Tom began.
“Jim Lovell, who for a long while had gone farther into space and for longer than any other person of our planet, was that kind of guy.
“His many voyages around Earth and on to so-very-close to the moon were not made for riches or celebrity, but because such challenges as those are what fuels the course of being alive — and who better than Jim Lovell to make those voyages.”
He added: “On this night of a full moon, he passes on — to the heavens, to the cosmos, to the stars. Godspeed you, on this next voyage, Jim Lovell.”
Tom famously played Lovell in Apollo 13, which told the terrifying events of 1970 when three astronauts, including Lovell, were 200,000 miles away from Earth when an oxygen tank exploded.
© Instagram“Houston, we have a problem”
Happening 55 hours into their mission, astronaut John L. ‘Jack’ Swigert radioed to ground control: “Okay, Houston, we’ve had a problem here.”
“Houston, we’ve had a problem. We’ve had a Main B Bus Undervolt,” repeated Lovell when asked to “say again, please” by NASA Mission Control.
© Bettmann ArchiveNASA later confirmed that the explosion destroyed their command module and left the astronauts facing a shortage of water and power, as well as high levels of carbon dioxide.
Over the following days the astronauts worked with NASA engineers to complete their successful rescue, and six days later they splashed down in the Pacific Ocean.
In a statement, Lovell’s family highlighted his “amazing life” and spoke proudly of how, “most importantly, he was our Hero”.
© HUM Images/Universal Images Grou“But, to all of us, he was Dad, Granddad, and the Leader of our family. Most importantly, he was our Hero,” they said. “We will miss his unshakeable optimism, his sense of humor, and the way he made each of us feel we could do the impossible. He was truly one of a kind.”
NASA also paid tribute to Lovell, writing in a statement: “NASA sends its condolences to the family of Capt. Jim Lovell, whose life and work inspired millions of people across the decades.
© Getty Images“Jim’s character and steadfast courage helped our nation reach the Moon and turned a potential tragedy into a success from which we learned an enormous amount. We mourn his passing even as we celebrate his achievements.”
Acting NASA Administrator Sean Duffy said in a statement after his passing: “As commander of the Apollo 13 mission, his calm strength under pressure helped return the crew safely to Earth and demonstrated the quick thinking and innovation that informed future NASA missions.”
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