Just before this BBC podcast gets underway, here's something you may not know.

My name's Linda Davies and I Commission Podcasts for BBC Sounds.

As you'd expect, at the BBC we make podcasts of the very highest quality featuring the most knowledgeable experts and genuinely engaging voices.

What you may not know is that the BBC makes podcasts about all kinds of things like pop stars,

poltergeist, cricket, and conspiracy theories and that's just a few examples.

If you'd like to discover something a little bit unexpected, find your next podcast over at BBC Sounds. This is the Witness History Podcast from the BBC World Service.

All this week we've been looking back through our archives to bring you stories of space exploration,

marking 50 years since the Apollo 13 mission to the Moon almost ended in tragedy.

In 1972, NASA launched its final Moon mission, Apollo 17. In 2012, Louise Hidalgo spoke to Harrison

Schmidt, one of the two astronauts who were the last people ever to set foot on the moon.

Roger, Houston, America has found some fair winds and following seas, and we're on our way home.

It's December the 19th, 1972, and the last manned mission to the moon is almost over.

Descending to stand by for splashtown.

He splash.

What? Recovery! Why?

What? Recovery, America, Stable Water and the crew is gone.

A great deal of cheering going on here in the Control Center.

As we spliced down was watched in real time from the recovery

heli-com-

On board the command module of Apollo 17 which splashed into the Pacific Ocean were three men. Ron Evans, Commander Eugene or Gene Cernan and

geologist Harrison Schmidt.

I don't think we were able to really relax until we had gotten into the Pacific Ocean, been picked up by the Navy SEALs, actually

...