This famous photograph was taken on Christmas Eve, 1968, by Apollo 8 astronaut William Anders. It’s usually rotated by 90 degrees, but apparently this view is what Anders actually saw. (Don’t ask me how they know that.)
Peace on this tiny little ball!
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8 responses to “Merry Christmas Earthlings!”
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It is beautiful isn’t it?
Merry Christmas, and peace and goodwill to all mankind.
Well, I assume that the orbital plane of Apollo 8 was close to the plane of the eclliptic which would be approximately perpendicular to the terminator which would explain the orientation.
I think the more common orientation gives the impression of the earth “rising” above the lunar surface rather than appearing from around the back side and for whatever reasons, that orientation has become preferred.
Dear Sean,
Merry Christmas to you to. Cosmic Variance is on its way to becoming as good as Preposterous Universe once was (I know that nostalgia seems an odd thing on as ephemeral a medium as the net, but what do you know, it’s there!). I just had a baddish Christmas, which doesn’t matter much to me, since as a Muslim (I know you know I am an atheist, but there is also the matter of cultural identity), it was never a part of my childhood or anything like that, but I feel bad for my wife. (It wasn’t I who made it bad.)
Anyhow, all the best for the new year. I shall remain,
Very respectfully yours,
Abbas
That’s “Merry Christmas to you too.”
Pointless remark of the day: but William Anders was floating around in 0g, so he could really have been oriented any way he fancied when he took that picture.
Here’s an explanation of the orientation:
http://www.abc.net.au/science/moon/earthrise.htm
Erin
words from my friend John Perry Barlow–
Picture a bright blue ball, just spinning, spinnin free,
Dizzy with eternity.
Paint it with a skin of sky,
Brush in some clouds and sea,
Call it home for you and me.
A peaceful place
or so it looks from space,
A closer look reveals the human race.
Full of hope, full of grace
Is the human face,
But afraid
we may lay
our home to waste.