Apollo 13: 4. Power brokers

Apollo astronauts freeze in darkness, struggling to save power. If the battery dies, so do the space crew. And as the damaged spacecraft loses its navigation systems, they must rely on the Sun for guidance. The astronauts' plight becomes a national crisis. Millions across the world tune in to the television coverage. Meanwhile, Nasa mission control faces a race against time to devise a plan, launching one of the greatest rescue missions in the history of space exploration.

Hosted by Kevin Fong.

Archive: NasaJohnson Space Center Oral History Project

Starring:Gerry GriffinJim KellyGene Kranz, courtesy of the Johnson Space Center Oral History Project John AaronJim Lovell Fred HaiseDave ReedJerry BostickChuck DeiterichMerlin MerrittBill Peters

Written by Kevin Fong and Mark Rickards

Theme music by Hans Zimmer and Christian Lundberg for Bleeding Fingers Music.

Produced by the BBC Radio Science Unit for the BBC World Service.

Epic space stories. From the first Moon landing, to Apollo 13, to the Space Shuttle. Told by the people who made them happen.

NEW: Season 3: The Space Shuttle. A sci-fi dream that changed spaceflight forever. From the boldest test flight in history to one of Nasa’s darkest days – the Challenger disaster. Space scientist Maggie Aderin-Pocock tells the awe-inspiring story of the programme that brought triumph and tragedy. Some scenes in this series use recreated sound effects.

Season 2: Apollo 13. Apollo 13 should have been the third Moon landing, but after an explosion, it almost ended in tragedy. Told by the people who flew it and saved it. Presented and co-written by Kevin Fong.

Season 1: 13 Minutes to the Moon. The first Moon landing. In the final dramatic 13-minute descent to the Moon, the Apollo 11 mission came close to going badly wrong. Communication was breaking down, technology was failing and fuel was running out. This is the story of how the first Moon landing was saved. Presented by Kevin Fong.

13 Minutes is produced by the BBC Audio Science Unit for the BBC World Service.

Season 3 theme music by Hans Zimmer and Christian Lundberg and produced by Russell Emanuel, for Bleeding Fingers Music.

• No. of episodes: 29
• Latest episode: 2025-07-14
• Technology

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