More than 57 years after the first photo of an Earth rising taken by an Apollo 8 astronaut, their successors on Artemis II have immortalized an Earth setting behind the Moon, a photograph published Tuesday by NASA.
The crew is made up of Americans Reid Wiseman, Christina Koch and Victor Glover, as well as Canadian Jeremy Hansen.
The photo was taken on Monday when their Orion capsule was circling the Moon.
The image immediately evokes the legendary photo of Apollo 8, taken on December 24, 1968 by the American Bill Anders during the first flyby of the Moon by humans, with his compatriots Frank Borman and Jim Lovell.
Apollo 8 had circled the Moon ten times without landing, and during one orbit, Bill Anders had immortalized the brilliant blue of the Earth against the vast darkness of space, amplified by the desolate, monochromatic horizon of the Moon in the foreground.
“We came all this way to explore the Moon, and the most important thing is that we discovered the Earth,” declared Bill Anders upon his return to Earth.
The "Earthrise" photo is often included in selections of the most memorable historical images and was included in Life magazine's 2003 book "100 Photographs That Changed the World."
The legacy of Apollo 8 accompanied the Artemis II astronauts on Monday. They started their day by receiving a recorded message from Jim Lovell, before his death in August 2025.
“It’s a historic day, and I know how busy you will be, but don’t forget to enjoy the view,” the pioneer told them.
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