TIM MAGUIRE

On this day in 1970, Apollo 13 blasted off on a mission to the moon
that was disrupted when an explosion crippled the spacecraft. The
three astronauts onboard consisted of James A. Lovell, Jr., John L. Swigert, Jr., and Fred W. Haise, Jr. All three managed to return
safely to Earth on April 17, six days after launch.

The crew of the Apollo 13 mission step aboard the U.S.S. Iwo Jima,
prime recovery ship for the mission, following splashdown and
recovery operations in the South Pacific. From left: astronauts Fred.
W. Haise, Jr., lunar module pilot; James A. Lovell Jr., commander;
and John L. Swigert Jr., command module pilot.

SANDY KOZEL

RMS Titanic was a British passenger liner that set sail from
Southampton on this day in 1912. It sank in the North Atlantic
Ocean after colliding with an iceberg four days into her maiden
voyage to New York City. Of the estimated 2,224 passengers and 
crew aboard, more than 1,500 died, making it one of modern
history’s deadliest commercial marine disasters during
peacetime.

Rare photo of the actual iceberg that sank Titanic!

Photo of Survivors in Lifeboats After Titanic sank.

SANDY KOZEL

NASA announced the selection of America’s first seven astronauts
on this day in 1959.

(Fox News) – In May 7, 1915, the British ocean liner Lusitania was torpedoed
and sunk by a German U-boat, resulting in the loss of more than 1,100
lives, The attack on the civilian vessel sent shockwaves around the world.

Now, almost 104 years after the deadly torpedo attack, an extremely rare
hardtack ship’s biscuit from one of the ship’s lifeboats is up for auction in
the U.K. Made from flour, salt and water, cracker-like hardtack biscuits are
designed to be long-lasting, and have historically been a feature of long
sea voyages and military campaigns.

The biscuit will be auctioned by Henry Aldridge and Son on April 27. The
Auctioneer Andrew Aldridge told Fox News that the biscuit comes with a
letter written by a British soldier in the Royal Engineers explaining how
he obtained the unusual item. The soldier got the biscuit from one of the
Lusitania’s lifeboats when the liner’s survivors reached Queenstown
(now called Cobh) in Ireland.

The biscuit (above) has a pre-sale estimate of $3,920 to $6,533.

Colored illustration of the sinking of the Cunard liner Lusitania.

ED DANAHUE

Henry Louis Aaron (nicknamed "Hammer" or "Hammerin’ Hank")
turned 85 on February 5th.