The Blue Marble

The Blue Marble is a photograph of Earth taken by the Apollo 17 crew on December 7, 1972, while traveling to the Moon. Its full disk shows cloud systems, oceans, and the African continent.

Apollo 17: The 1972 NASA mission that carried astronauts Eugene Cernan, Harrison Schmitt, and Ronald Evans to the Moon. The crew took this photograph during the mission’s journey toward the Moon.
Apollo 17 translunar coast: The phase of Apollo 17’s flight from Earth orbit toward the Moon. The spacecraft’s changing position made the full Earth visible to the crew.
Overview effect: A reported shift in perspective experienced by some astronauts when viewing Earth from space. The photograph helped communicate the planetary perspective associated with this experience.
AS17-148-22727: The NASA frame designation commonly associated with the original Blue Marble photograph. This cataloged frame identifies the familiar Apollo 17 image.
Eugene Cernan: An American astronaut who commanded Apollo 17 and became the last person to walk on the Moon. Cernan was aboard Apollo 17 when the crew photographed Earth.
Earth: The third planet from the Sun and the only known world with abundant surface liquid water and life. Its oceans, continents, and clouds form the recognizable subject of the photograph.
Environmentalism: A social and political movement seeking to protect the natural environment. The image’s finite, interconnected Earth became a potent environmental symbol.
The Blue Marble (2002): A NASA composite image of Earth assembled from satellite data and released in 2002. Unlike the Apollo photograph, it combines observations rather than showing one camera exposure.
Harrison Schmitt: An American geologist and astronaut who walked on the Moon during Apollo 17. Schmitt was one of the three crew members credited with taking the photograph.
Sunlight: Electromagnetic radiation emitted by the Sun, including visible light. Sunlight illuminates Earth and gives the image its bright, natural colors.

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