Taken on December 7th, 1972 by the crew of Apollo 17, The Blue Marble is an image of Earth‘s surface. The photo shows the Earth from the Mediterranean Sea to Antarctica. Despite the large amount of clouds in the photo, this image was the first time the Apollo Program made it possible to photograph the south polar ice cap. What is unique about this image is that it is one of the few to show an almost fully illuminated Earth as the astronauts had the Sun behind them when they took the image. To the astronauts on Apollo 17, the Earth had the appearance and size of a glass marble, hence the name.

It has been mostly shown with Antarctica at the bottom, although the actual view the astronauts had was with Antarctica on top.

The photographer used a 70-millimeter Hasselblad camera with an 80-millimeter Zeiss lens. Although NASA credits the image to the entire Apollo 17 crew, evidence examined after the mission suggests that Schmitt was the photographer

The Blue Marble was not the first clear image of the Earth, but became a symbol of the environmental movement after its release. This is a result of the images depiction of Earth’s frailty, vulnerability, and isolation amid the vast expanse of space.

It is this image along with the Earthrise image, which have had and will continue to have a lasting and transcending impact on humanity. It is an absolutely amazing achievement that humanity went to the moon and returned men safely. But it is also worth noting that there is only 1 Earth, that there are no borders in space, and that humanity should come together to save the Earth and live as humanity. It is important to reach for the stars, but it is also important to do so together while preserving the planet.

References And Further Reading

https://www.nasa.gov/content/blue-marble-image-of-the-earth-from-apollo-17

https://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2011/04/the-blue-marble-shot-our-first-complete-photograph-of-earth/237167/