ARLINGTON, Va. — Astronaut Thomas"Ken" Mattingly, who orbited the moon on NASA's Apollo 16 mission and narrowly missed the ill-fated Apollo 13 mission, died Tuesday at age 87,“We lost one of our country’s heroes on Oct. 31. NASA astronaut TK Mattingly was key to the success of our Apollo Program, and his shining personality will ensure he is remembered throughout history," NASA Administrator Bill Nelson said in a statement.
His first space flight was set to be on Apollo 13, during which he would orbit the moon in the command module while the other two astronauts, James Lovell and Fred Haise, explored the lunar surface. He was scratched from flight status 72 hours before launch because of exposure to Rubella, avoiding the massive explosion that crippled the spacecraft as it neared the moon.
"He stayed behind and provided key real-time decisions to successfully bring home the wounded spacecraft and the crew of Apollo 13," Nelson said. Apollo 16 astronauts Thomas Mattingly, John Young and Charles Duke after leaving their spaceship in the Pacific Ocean on April 27, 1972.
Entertainment Entertainment Latest News, Entertainment Entertainment Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Source: KVUE - 🏆 244. / 63 Read more »
Source: 9NEWS - 🏆 238. / 63 Read more »
Source: CBS8 - 🏆 335. / 59 Read more »
Source: KHOU - 🏆 330. / 59 Read more »
Source: FCN2go - 🏆 523. / 51 Read more »
Source: fox43 - 🏆 564. / 51 Read more »