NASA questions Apollo 13 cmdr's right to sell list

MIAMI, FL -- NASA is questioning whether Apollo 13 commander James Lovell has the right to sell a checklist from the flight that includes his handwritten calculations crucial in guiding the damaged spacecraft back to Earth.

The document was sold by Heritage Auctions in November for more than $388,000. The checklist gained great fame in the 1995 film "Apollo 13" when actor Tom Hanks, playing Lovell, used it to make the calculations.

The sale was suspended after NASA contacted Lovell and Heritage to ask whether Lovell had title to the checklist.

NASA says only the space agency can authorize the sale of such an item. Lovell has not returned a phone call seeking comment.

The Apollo 13 moon mission was aborted when an oxygen tank exploded in 1970.

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