1944 – Harvard University President James Conant wrote to IBM founder Thomas Watson Sr. to let him know that the Harvard Mark I was operating smoothly. It was used in conjunction with the US Navy Bureau of Ships.
http://www.computerhistory.org/tdih/April/17/
1967 – The Surveyor 3 spacecraft was successfully launched from Cape Kennedy, Florida on its mission to the Moon. It was the first to carry a surface soil sampling scoop.
http://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/nmc/spacecraftDisplay.do?id=1967-035A
1970 – The Apollo 13 spacecraft returned safely to Earth after a frightening malfunction caused the team to abort landing on the Moon and instead scramble to keep themselves alive.
http://science.ksc.nasa.gov/history/apollo/apollo-13/apollo-13.html
Read Tom’s science fiction and other fiction books at Merritt’s Books site.