Jim Lovell, the former astronaut who commanded the iconic Apollo 13 mission to the moon in 1970, has died at 97, NASA announced Friday.

“NASA sends its condolences to the family of Capt. Jim Lovell, whose life and work inspired millions of people across the decades,” acting NASA Administrator Sean Duffy said in a statement. Lovell died on Thursday in Lake Forest, Illinois, Duffy said.

“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. We mourn his passing even as we celebrate his achievements.”

Lovell’s Gemini 7 mission in 1965 set the record for the longest space flight at the time, at 14 days. He was also among the first group of humans to leave Earth’s orbit, on his Apollo 8 venture.

In 1970, during his famous Apollo 13 mission, Lovell uttered the words that transcended spaceflight and entered popular consciousness: “Houston, we’ve had a problem…”

NASA’s announcement of Lovell’s death on Friday included a statement from his family on the indelible mark he left on those closest to him:

“We are 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.”

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