Tom Hanks has paid tribute to astronaut Jim Lovell, who passed away on August 7th at the age of 97, per The Hollywood Reporter. Born in Cleveland, Ohio, the NASA commander and former Navy pilot flew four missions for the space program, notably Apollo 13, where, after the explosion of an oxygen tank, Lovell and fellow astronauts Fred Haise and Jack Swigert were forced to abandon landing on the moon and had to overcome several obstacles to return to Earth. Lovell later dubbed it “a successful failure”.

Now, Tom Hanks, who portrayed Lovell in Ron Howard’s 1995 film Apollo 13, penned a tribute to him on Instagram:

“There are people who dare, who dream, and who lead others to the place we would not go on our own. Jim Lovell, who for a long while had gone farther into space and for longer than any other person of our planet, was that kind of guy. His many voyages around Earth and on to so-very-close to the moon were not made for riches or celebrity, but because such challenges as those are what fuels the course of being alive — and who better than Jim Lovell to make those voyages. “On this night of a full Moon, he passes on — to the heavens, to the cosmos, to the stars. Godspeed you, on this next voyage, Jim Lovell.”

Along with Hanks, the biopic also starred Bill Paxton, Kevin Bacon, Gary Sinise, Ed Harris, and Kathleen Quinlan, and was a box office and critical success, grossing $355 million worldwide and winning two Oscars for Best Sound and Best Editing.

Lovell and Hanks crossed paths several more times after working on the film, including when President Clinton presented the former with the Congressional Space Medal of Honor at the White House and when Lovell’s portrait was unveiled when he was awarded the Lincoln Leadership prize in Chicago.

Howard also penned a tribute to Lovell:

“Simply knowing Jim has been a tremendous honor. His combination of intellect, courage, and commitment to duty made him one of the most remarkable individuals I’ve ever met…Thank you, sir, for your service to our country and to humankind.”

The Apollo 13 film celebrates its 30th anniversary this year and will be re-released to IMAX theaters on September 19th.