Question

Apollo 13 Moon Landings

10 different reliable sources and APA referencing

• What was the team's extraordinary achievement? Why was it so significant?
• What was their philosophy / approach toward teamwork that allowed them to meet their objective?
• What difficulties did the team face?
• How were they able to overcome these difficulties? What happened?
• What are the lessons that we can learn from this team about effective teamwork?

Answer 1

Apollo 13 was the 7th crewed mission in the Apollo space program, It was launched from Kennedy Space Center. However, the lunar landing mission was aborted due to the unseen circumstances as there was burst in the oxygen tank which led to the shortage of oxygen and other critical systems failed. Due to the stir in the oxygen tank, it damaged the cable network inside the cabin. This caused an explosion which resulted in the damage of the service modules.

The most remarkable achievement of the team was developing the procedures to power up the Command Module after the damage due to the explosion of an oxygen tank. At that point command module has to start to get the remaining process done and which ensures the safe return of them to the earth. The Command Module was filled with water droplets and has the potential risk of causing a short circuit in the module. Four hours prior to landing crew had shut down this command module and protected this from severe consequences that may arise due to the unprotected expose. This was very significant as this helped to get the team on to the earth very safely and has very safely landed.

This team had a very limited supply of oxygen into the cabin and there was no portable water. They had to survive for 2 days with the limited oxygen supplies they got. As oxygen was very less. It was difficult for them to breathe and to run the propellers which were used to generate electricity. Even the command system was failed and it did not start on time Due to the cold in space and water droplets all over the cabin. They had to live 2 days in those situations.

They had to survive with the limited resources they had and has to get the command module to function as this could be helpful to get the mission to land on the earth. They tried and repaired the command module in less time with the teamwork and was successful in getting back to the earth.

From this mission, we can see that even during the difficult times we should never step back. We should find ways with the limited resources we have at that point in time and mainly we have to coordinate with the team. If there are no coordination decisions will be delayed which in turn affects the decision-making time and may have to see worst situations. We have to coordinate and make decisions that impact or change the scenario and helps us to move to a safe zone. This will ensure success not only in the product development but also in our life.