July
17, 2009: Forty years ago, Apollo astronauts set
out on a daring adventure to explore the Moon. They ended
up discovering their own planet.
How
do you discover Earth … by leaving it? It all started with
a single photograph:
![](images/discoveringearth/earthrise_strip.jpg)
Apollo
8 was the first crewed Saturn V launch and the first time
humans were placed in lunar orbit. Mission plans called for
the astronauts to photograph possible landing sites for future
missions. Before this, only robotic probes had taken images
of the Moon's far side.
As
the astronauts in their spacecraft emerged from behind the
Moon, they were surprised and enchanted by an amazing view
of Earth rising over the lunar horizon. Bill Anders quickly
snapped a picture of the spectacular Earthrise – it was not
in the mission script.
His
timing could not have been better. It was Christmas Eve, 1968,
the close of one of the most turbulent, fractured years in
U.S. and world history. The picture offered a much needed
new perspective on "home."
For
the first time in history, humankind looked at Earth and saw
not a jigsaw puzzle of states and countries on an uninspiring
flat map – but rather a whole planet uninterrupted by boundaries,
a fragile sphere of dazzling beauty floating alone in a dangerous
void. There was a home worthy of careful stewardship.
The
late nature photographer Galen Rowell described this photo
as "the most influential environmental photograph ever
taken."
"It
changed humanity's entire orientation," says Kristen
Erickson of NASA headquarters in Washington, DC. "And
similar photos taken by the Apollo 11 through 17 crews reinforced
the impact of this first view."
Apollo
photos of the big blue marble energized grass-roots green
movements and led directly to the modern fleet of Earth observing
satellites NASA uses to monitor and predict weather, examine
ozone holes, investigate climate change, and much more.1
Like Anders' camera, these satellites have transformed the
way we view the planet we call Earth.
Right:
40 years after Apollo, a fleet of satellites encircle Earth,
monitoring and studying our home planet. Image credit: NASA
We
gained all this by shooting for the Moon.
The
Apollo astronauts were, by their own admissions, profoundly
moved and changed when they gazed upon Earth from their unique
position in space.
"It
changed my life,"2 said Rusty Schweickart,
Apollo 9 astronaut.
"…You
only see the boundaries of nature from there…not those that
are manmade," said Eugene Cernan of Apollos 10 and 17.
"It is one of the deepest, most emotional experiences
I have ever had."3
Apollo
17 was the last crewed Moon mission. Since then, no humans
have been to the place where they can float and gaze at the
whole Earth. The crew of the International Space Station has
a beautiful view of Earth, but not the whole Earth. Because
the space station is in low-Earth orbit, only a portion of
the planet can be seen at any one time. For the big picture
view, the Moon can't be beat.
Soon,
we'll be back. Right now, the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter
is circling the Moon gathering critical data NASA scientists
need to plan for renewed human exploration. NASA is once again
charting a daring mission to the Moon -- this time to stay.
![](images/discoveringearth/bluemarble_apollo17_strip.jpg)
Above:
"The Big Blue Marble." This is one of the last Apollo
photos of the whole Earth, taken by the crew of Apollo 17.
[more]
There
are many compelling reasons to return. Former space shuttle
astronaut Joseph Allen thinks our own planet is one of them:
"With
all the arguments, pro and con, for going to the Moon, no
one suggested that we should do it to look at the Earth. But
that may in fact be the most important reason."4
In
his recent confirmation hearing to take NASA's helm as administrator,
former astronaut Charles F. Bolden Jr. said, "I dream
of a day when any American can launch into space and see the
magnificence and grandeur of our home planet."
Until
then, a few astronauts will take the ride for all of us, and
they'll be carrying cameras a thousand times more advanced
than Apollo.
What
the space agency shows us will surely expand our vision. It
always has.
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Author: Dauna Coulter
| Editor:
Dr. Tony Phillips | Credit: Science@NASA
end
notes |
(1)
The new ecology awareness the whole Earth view engendered
in the nation, with the resulting advances in Earth
science, was just one aspect of the technology surge
that originated with the Apollo Program. In fact, every
scientific and technological discipline was advanced
during Apollo. (2)
Schweickart's quote is taken from The overview effect:
space exploration and human evolution, by Frank White,
1987, p. 200.
(3)
Cernan's quote is taken from White's book, p. 207.
(4)
Allen's quote is taken from White's book, p.235.
Other
Sources:
The
Sciences Nov/Dec 1998
Genesis:
The Story of Apollo 8 by Robert Zimmerman. (pub
Four Walls Eight Windows)
NASA's
Future: US
Space Exploration Policy |
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