RUSTY SCHWEICKART - EPHEMERA SIGNED - HFSID 293401

RUSSELL SCHWEICKART
Apollo 13 flown couch fabric from the lunar module Odyssey, enclosed in a 3¼-inch tall Lucite cylinder. From the Personal Collection of Mission Lunar Module Pilot Rusty Schweickart.
Ephemera signed: "From My Personal Collection/Rusty Schweickart" in black felt tip. Base of item mentions that this was initially a part of Fred Haise's collection. Apollo 13 flown couch fabric from the lunar module Odyssey, 1x¾-inch, enclosed in a 3¼-inch tall truncated Lucite cylinder (2¾-inch diameter). Color mission insignia for Apollo XIII at bottom, with a message typed on the insignia's verso. In full: "2009 Space Artifact Series This fabric flew to the moon aboard Apollo 13 as the backing material of the astronauts' couches in the Command Module, Odyssey. The April 11-17, 1970 mission epitomized a nation's strength as the U.S. bought the crew and their crippled spaceship home safely. Created exclusively by the Astronaut Scholarship Foundation". Haise was the lunar module pilot of Apollo 13.Apollo 13 was launched on April 11, 1970. After Commander Lovell informed Mission Control: "Houston, we have a problem", the world watched and prayed until the three-man crew returned safely to Earth on April 17, 1970 aboard the lunar module Odyssey. Russell "Rusty" Schweickart (born1935) became an astronaut in 1963. As the Lunar Module pilot on the Apollo 9 mission, he was to have performed various tests but began to suffer from space sickness-forcing postponement; he did complete the first separation and docking of the lunar module (LEM). Schweickart was awarded the NASA Exceptional Service Metal in 1973 and an Emmy Award in 1969 for the transmission of the first live television pictures from outer space. This piece is from his Personal Collection. Fine condition.