The coroner has released the cause of death for James Lovell, the famed commander of the Apollo 13 moon mission, who died in Lake Forest in August as the Navy held a funeral for him last week.
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) announced on August 8 that James Lovell died on August 7 in Lake Forest.
Lake County Chief Deputy Coroner Steve Newton told Lake and McHenry County Scanner this week that an investigation showed Lovell died as a result of complications of a hip fracture.
The injury occurred during a fall in his residence and he was transported to the hospital where he later died. Newton said cardiovascular disease was a contributing condition in the death.
Lovell was a veteran of the Gemini 7, Gemini 12 and Apollo 8 missions before becoming the commander for the nearly disastrous Apollo 13 mission to the Moon.
“NASA sends its condolences to the family of Capt. Jim Lovell, whose life and work inspired millions of people across the decades. Jim’s character and steadfast courage helped our nation reach the Moon and turned a potential tragedy into a success from which we learned an enormous amount,” Acting NASA Administrator Sean Duffy said.
Duffy said that Lovell helped the nation forge a historic path in space that “carries us forward” to upcoming Artemis missions to the Moon and beyond.
Lovell was the Command Module Pilot for Apollo 8 where he and his crewmates became the first to lift off on a Saturn V rocket and orbit the Moon, proving that the lunar landing was within reach.
Lovell was also the commander of the Apollo 13 mission where his “calm strength under pressure” helped return the crew safely to Earth and demonstrated the “quick thinking and innovation that informed future NASA missions,” Duffy said.
Lovell, who joined NASA in 1962 as part of its second group of astronauts, was nicknamed “Smilin’ Jim” by his fellow astronauts because he was quick with a grin when he had a particularly funny comeback.
“Jim also served our country in the military, and the Navy has lost a proud academy graduate and test pilot. Jim Lovell embodied the bold resolve and optimism of both past and future explorers, and we will remember him always,” Duffy said.
Lovell’s family said in a statement that they were “enormously proud” of his “amazing life and career accomplishments, highlighted by his legendary leadership in pioneering human space flight.”
“But, to all of us, he was Dad, Granddad, and the Leader of our family. Most importantly, he was our Hero. We will miss his unshakeable optimism, his sense of humor, and the way he made each of us feel we could do the impossible. He was truly one of a kind,” his family said.
Lovell’s first space flight was Gemini 7. He logged 715 hours in space during his four career missions, a record held until it was surpassed by Skylab crew members in 1973.
The U.S. Naval Institute said a funeral and committal were held on Thursday for Lovell at the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland.