This island Earth in the vastness of space, as seen for the first time by humans, 21-27 December 1968

Vintage chromogenic print on fiber-based paper, printed 1968, numbered "NASA AS8-14-2519" (NASA MSC) in red in top margin, with "A KODAK PAPER" watermark on verso, 20,3 x 25,4 cm

The Apollo 8 astronauts were the first humans to contemplate the life-changing view of their home planet as a small island of life hanging in the dark void of space, smaller than the thumb in the window of the spacecraft. To this day only 24 human beings (24 Apollo astronauts of Apollo 8 to 17 except 9) were able to witness such a view.

This incredible photograph was taken with the 80mm lens as the spacecraft was about 97,000 nautical miles away from Earth out in deep space on the way back from the Moon. South America is visible in the center of the picture.

“The biggest philosophy, foundation-shaking impression was seeing the smallness of the Earth. [...] Even the pictures don’t do it justice because they always have this frame around them. But when you put your eyeball to the window of the spacecraft, you can see essentially half of the universe. [...] That’s a lot more black and a lot more universe than ever comes through a framed picture. [...] It’s not how small the Earth was, it’s just how big everything else was. [...] I don’t think we’ve ever really gotten it across to people through the photography about what I call the perspective of it. That you’ve to got to see all the black, all the nothing [...] in order to get totally appreciative of the smallness, aloneness, insignificance of this pretty little ball you’re looking at.”
William Anders (Chaikin, Voices, p. 159)

“The fact that you can put your thumb up to the window of the spacecraft and completely put the Earth behind your thumb is a concept that gives you the insignificance of your own existence with respect to the universe.”
James Lovell (Chaikin, Voices, p. 45)