Ed Smylie, Who Saved the Apollo 13 Crew with Duct Tape, Dies at 95(nytimes.com)
nytimes.com
Ed Smylie, Who Saved the Apollo 13 Crew with Duct Tape, Dies at 95
https://www.nytimes.com/2025/05/16/science/space/ed-smylie-dead.html
35 comments
If you ever have the opportunity, visit the Cosmosphere in Hutchinson, Kansas. They have the actual Apollo 13 Command Module on display.
FWIW I find it to be a much better museum than the more-famous one in Huntsville, AL. That one's badly run-down and is about 50% some kind of gross defense contractor permanent trade-show installation—though the blown-apart Saturn V they've got suspended in a hangar is notably amazing to see.
The Cosmosphere's got a more impressive collection (though that Saturn V makes up a lot of ground for Huntsville) and the presentation is much better.
There's an OK zoo (great, adjusting for where it is, really) nearby, worth a stop if you're there with kids anyway, but not much else I know of in the area. It's weird that there's such a good museum so far from everything, including from the most-traveled highway through-routes for the state.
The Cosmosphere's got a more impressive collection (though that Saturn V makes up a lot of ground for Huntsville) and the presentation is much better.
There's an OK zoo (great, adjusting for where it is, really) nearby, worth a stop if you're there with kids anyway, but not much else I know of in the area. It's weird that there's such a good museum so far from everything, including from the most-traveled highway through-routes for the state.
Sad to hear about how much the Space & Rocket center has been let to deteriorate. That place really sparked my interest in science & engineering as a child. Even went to Space Camp there way back in the day.
Yeah, I remember going as a kid (the Saturn V and "rocket garden" are what stuck with me and how I realized I'd been there before) and thinking it was great, but going again a couple years ago it was a huge let-down. So much of it was just ugly MIC sales powerpoint infographics with not-great accompanying displays of missiles and such, there was a whole area that seemed to just be a warfare drone military contractor showroom (which could be cool, but the presentation was about as boring as possible in this case), a bunch of the interactive bits were broken, most of the handful still working cost extra (and admission was not what I'd call cheap), and in general it just felt like a place struggling to survive. It gave an almost ex-Warsaw-Pact vibe of being well past its prime and decaying in place. The Saturn V is still amazing, though, but even there the little bit of the hangar floor and wall space that they actually bothered to use was given over to kinda-lame material about things like the SLS that also had a strong "this came straight from a contractor's marketing department" feeling.
I'd also been to the Cosmosphere as a kid (the SR-71 in the lobby is how I recognized that one when I returned, haha, don't see that every day) and have been about three more times over the last 15 years, as an adult, and it's still great.
I'd also been to the Cosmosphere as a kid (the SR-71 in the lobby is how I recognized that one when I returned, haha, don't see that every day) and have been about three more times over the last 15 years, as an adult, and it's still great.
> It's weird that there's such a good museum so far from everything, including from the most-traveled highway through-routes for the state.
It was built near the most-traveled highway through-route in Kansas, considering it was originally established in 1962.
It's only a couple of miles from US-50. Much of US-50 aligns with the first transcontinental highway, the Lincoln Highway; and for much of the 20th century US-50 was one of the primary east-west highways. It looks like it currently skirts around Hutchinson, but I'd bet 50 years ago it passed directly through the middle of town, very close if not adjacent to the Cosmosphere.[1]
The construction of I-70 in Kansas started in the mid 1950s, but didn't completely cross Kansas until 1970. And it would have taken decades for development patterns to shift from the US-50 corridor to the I-70 corridor.
[1] At least as of 1939 it appears to pass directly through the downtown: https://www.davidrumsey.com/luna/servlet/detail/RUMSEY~8~1~2... (EDIT: 1962 map shows the same: https://www.ksdot.gov/home/showpublisheddocument/4727/638724...)
It was built near the most-traveled highway through-route in Kansas, considering it was originally established in 1962.
It's only a couple of miles from US-50. Much of US-50 aligns with the first transcontinental highway, the Lincoln Highway; and for much of the 20th century US-50 was one of the primary east-west highways. It looks like it currently skirts around Hutchinson, but I'd bet 50 years ago it passed directly through the middle of town, very close if not adjacent to the Cosmosphere.[1]
The construction of I-70 in Kansas started in the mid 1950s, but didn't completely cross Kansas until 1970. And it would have taken decades for development patterns to shift from the US-50 corridor to the I-70 corridor.
[1] At least as of 1939 it appears to pass directly through the downtown: https://www.davidrumsey.com/luna/servlet/detail/RUMSEY~8~1~2... (EDIT: 1962 map shows the same: https://www.ksdot.gov/home/showpublisheddocument/4727/638724...)
And if you ever find yourself in Alamagordo, New Mexico, the NM Air and Space Museum is nice: https://nmspacemuseum.org/#
They have, IIRC, one of the Gemini capsules, but also some really cool demonstrations. It is worth it to time that and one of the Trinity test site tours if you're interested in nuclear history as well, then take a trip north to Albuquerque for the Nat'l Nuclear History Museum and (for the kids and kidlike adults) Explora is a neat little hands on museum.
They have, IIRC, one of the Gemini capsules, but also some really cool demonstrations. It is worth it to time that and one of the Trinity test site tours if you're interested in nuclear history as well, then take a trip north to Albuquerque for the Nat'l Nuclear History Museum and (for the kids and kidlike adults) Explora is a neat little hands on museum.
That place looks great - they appear to also have an SR-71. I wish I'd known about it last time I did the long drive through KS...
They built the lobby around the SR-71. It's friggin' cool.
The National Museum of the USAF in Dayton, OH is also a must-visit, the primary focus is WWI-WII aircraft but they have many Space Race era artifacts as well.
Neil Armstrong’s Museum in Wapakoneta, OH isn’t that much further away, but much smaller.
Neil Armstrong’s Museum in Wapakoneta, OH isn’t that much further away, but much smaller.
Best startup engineers ever.
As part of a race to do doing something previously impossible, they built the MVP, and when some random showstopper happened, they worked creatively within tight constraints, to succeed.
As part of a race to do doing something previously impossible, they built the MVP, and when some random showstopper happened, they worked creatively within tight constraints, to succeed.
This is the Hacker Newsiest comment I've ever read on Hacker News.
Wait till you see how I appropriate NASA's greatness for my LinkedIn thought-leader post.
(I'm typing the text into Photoshop right now, like a quote, with my name, over an image of me looking like an inspirational keynote speaker, in hopes that my LinkedIn post image will be shared rather than unattributed copypasta.)
(I'm typing the text into Photoshop right now, like a quote, with my name, over an image of me looking like an inspirational keynote speaker, in hopes that my LinkedIn post image will be shared rather than unattributed copypasta.)
It'd be cooler if you were typing it into a prompt to allow genAI to make that slide deck for you. Photoshop is so 1990s old and busted with hand in pocket rent seeking subscription. We'll just ignore the subscription necessary to use genAI as that doesn't serve the purpose of the comment.
When I read the oral history linked in the obit I was surprised how scrappy/startup-y NASA was in the early days. Flying to Cape Canaveral and handing a technician a part you just made without any paperwork would probably not fly nowadays
They pivoted to duct tape
Clip of an interview with Ed Smylie by the Smithsonian Channel
How Duct Tape Saved the Lives of the Apollo 13 Crew
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eeEM_IBUv70
How Duct Tape Saved the Lives of the Apollo 13 Crew
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eeEM_IBUv70
The one time when using duct tape on a duct was okay.
> Duct Tape
NASA says gray tape.
You'll find some documents say duct tape, but here it was gray, transcript -
https://www.nasa.gov/wp-content/uploads/static/history/alsj/...
"space-age baling wire" I think is velcro
NASA says gray tape.
You'll find some documents say duct tape, but here it was gray, transcript -
https://www.nasa.gov/wp-content/uploads/static/history/alsj/...
"space-age baling wire" I think is velcro
For fans of "quick fix in a pinch" resources like duct tape, velcro, etc. There's another kind of tape that can be very useful: it's sometimes called 'Gaffer Tape' as it is used by Hollywood movie set gaffers (where time is literally money and everything must be temporary). It's a high-quality cloth tape with strong adhesive that generally won't leave residue when removed within 72 hours. It also (usually) won't strip off paint as long as it's removed carefully (not like ripping a band-aid). Due to the cloth weave pattern being square, the tape can be torn by hand horizontally or vertically into straight strips. Traditional gray duct tape is generally plastic coated and the adhesive will leave residue and take paint (and even wall texture) with it.
I learned about gaffer tape working on sets decades ago and the all the experienced gaffers had a couple of rolls of it on a rope loop hanging off their tool belt. White for labeling stuff with a Sharpie, black for securing or hiding stuff that might be on camera. I've had a similar loop on my tool pouch ever since because it's so useful. It's sold a lot of places but quality can vary. Studio supply houses only sell the top grade stuff.
I learned about gaffer tape working on sets decades ago and the all the experienced gaffers had a couple of rolls of it on a rope loop hanging off their tool belt. White for labeling stuff with a Sharpie, black for securing or hiding stuff that might be on camera. I've had a similar loop on my tool pouch ever since because it's so useful. It's sold a lot of places but quality can vary. Studio supply houses only sell the top grade stuff.
+1 gaffer tape.
Related: if you want the tapiest tape to ever tape, "bi-filament tape". It's sticky as hell, cannot be torn, and you can get it in 12in (or wider!) rolls.
Related: if you want the tapiest tape to ever tape, "bi-filament tape". It's sticky as hell, cannot be torn, and you can get it in 12in (or wider!) rolls.
> the tapiest tape to ever tape, "bi-filament tape"
An excellent description. Fiberglass reinforced, adhesive that's closer to a resin than a tape adhesive. You can use it like it's cargo strapping — around sharp corners, to reinforce things (product descriptions describe reinforcing steel drums with it), etc. — wild stuff.
An excellent description. Fiberglass reinforced, adhesive that's closer to a resin than a tape adhesive. You can use it like it's cargo strapping — around sharp corners, to reinforce things (product descriptions describe reinforcing steel drums with it), etc. — wild stuff.
3M VHB (very high bond) is right up there. I use it to secure things like Thunderbolt docks and their power bricks (which can get very hot which messes with many adhesives) to the underside of a desk. It often requires me to insert an oscillating tool to remove without damaging the device.
You just clarified something I’ve unknowingly wondered about for years! Hardware stores here sell duct tape as you describe it, but it’s commonly referred to as «gaffer tape» in my native tongue (Norwegian: gaffateip). I’ve never come across the cloth tape you describe, but I now realise it’s not a skill issue when I can never seem to tear clean strips of the stuff. I’ll keep my eyes open for proper «gaffer's tape» from now on.
Somewhat related - remember having to try and source labels that we could stick on Sony Walkmans in an electronic repair shop - sticky enough to stay on reliably (customer name, ID etc), but able to be removed without residue! Took quite a few tries but we got there.
Ha, I thought that duct tape was gaffer tape (not a native speaker of English).
I do not think there is a named for it in French, we call it the thick tape you can tear by hand :)
I do not think there is a named for it in French, we call it the thick tape you can tear by hand :)
Did "duct" tape become the standard nomenclature at some point? I learned many years ago that "duck" really is the correct term, because the tape was originally made of cotton duck cloth.
Lots of people assume that "duck" is actually the misunderstanding, and that it must be a slurring of "duct", but there's no history of using duck tape on ducts. It's the wrong tool for the job, and the wrong name for the material. I'm surprised to see that sources like the NYT and Wikipedia are using "duct tape" as the preferred term.
Lots of people assume that "duck" is actually the misunderstanding, and that it must be a slurring of "duct", but there's no history of using duck tape on ducts. It's the wrong tool for the job, and the wrong name for the material. I'm surprised to see that sources like the NYT and Wikipedia are using "duct tape" as the preferred term.
> there's no history of using duck tape on ducts.
There is. Post-WWII the tape was marketed and sold by the Melvin A. Anderson Company for air ducting.
https://www.duckbrand.com/about
There is. Post-WWII the tape was marketed and sold by the Melvin A. Anderson Company for air ducting.
https://www.duckbrand.com/about
I stand corrected. That makes the current terminology make a whole lot more sense.
> Lots of people assume that "duck" is actually the misunderstanding
Present! Thanks for ruining my adulthood ;-)
Present! Thanks for ruining my adulthood ;-)
there is also a pretty popular brand “Duck Brand” duct tape likely adding to the “duck vs duct” confusion
And the company that started selling the tape for ducts and calling it "duct tape" is the corporate predecessor of that same company.
Yes, that's what color the duct tape was. Gray.
"good old-fashioned American gray tape"
https://airandspace.si.edu/stories/editorial/duct-tape-auto-...
The tape and its many varieties have many names. "Duct tape" is commonly used today, but was not as common then, and wasn't in the dictionary until part way through the Apollo program.
"good old-fashioned American gray tape"
https://airandspace.si.edu/stories/editorial/duct-tape-auto-...
The tape and its many varieties have many names. "Duct tape" is commonly used today, but was not as common then, and wasn't in the dictionary until part way through the Apollo program.
https://en.m.wiktionary.org/wiki/steely-eyed_missile_man