Was the “Earthrise” witnessed by Apollo 8 the first available “full” photo of the Earth?
up vote
36
down vote
favorite
Was the video/photos taken during the earth-rise on the Apollo 8 flight the first "blue marble"-esque photo? I've heard the image equated to the "earth's first selfie" and question the technical accuracy of that premise.
*Note to pedants:
Seeing other similar type questions on the site, please understand the concept of what I'm asking, if not the accuracy. Yes, you can only take, at best, a photo of only half the earth at a given time, and yes, during Apollo 8 the Earth was partially in shadow....
history photography earth
asked Nov 29 at 18:05
NKCampbell
33839
|
show 1 more comment
up vote
36
down vote
favorite
Was the video/photos taken during the earth-rise on the Apollo 8 flight the first "blue marble"-esque photo? I've heard the image equated to the "earth's first selfie" and question the technical accuracy of that premise.
*Note to pedants:
Seeing other similar type questions on the site, please understand the concept of what I'm asking, if not the accuracy. Yes, you can only take, at best, a photo of only half the earth at a given time, and yes, during Apollo 8 the Earth was partially in shadow....
history photography earth
asked Nov 29 at 18:05
NKCampbell
33839
4
those people are "pedants" ;)
– Hobbes
Nov 29 at 18:17
damn autocorrect!! @Hobbes
– NKCampbell
Nov 29 at 18:18
2
Hmmm, pedantic? That doesn't seem like the best fit. Perhaps donnish is better.
– Don Branson
Nov 29 at 18:32
1
Russel's answer is excellent, but it still is customary to wait 24 hours before clicking the accept checkmark, so other people (no, not me) have a chance to post answers.
– Dr Sheldon
Nov 29 at 21:40
1
as an aside - I love questions like this - they always result in lots of interesting and pretty images.
– Baldrickk
Nov 30 at 9:41
|
show 1 more comment
up vote
36
down vote
favorite
up vote
36
down vote
favorite
Was the video/photos taken during the earth-rise on the Apollo 8 flight the first "blue marble"-esque photo? I've heard the image equated to the "earth's first selfie" and question the technical accuracy of that premise.
*Note to pedants:
Seeing other similar type questions on the site, please understand the concept of what I'm asking, if not the accuracy. Yes, you can only take, at best, a photo of only half the earth at a given time, and yes, during Apollo 8 the Earth was partially in shadow....
history photography earth
asked Nov 29 at 18:05
NKCampbell
33839
Was the video/photos taken during the earth-rise on the Apollo 8 flight the first "blue marble"-esque photo? I've heard the image equated to the "earth's first selfie" and question the technical accuracy of that premise.
*Note to pedants:
Seeing other similar type questions on the site, please understand the concept of what I'm asking, if not the accuracy. Yes, you can only take, at best, a photo of only half the earth at a given time, and yes, during Apollo 8 the Earth was partially in shadow....
history photography earth
history photography earth
asked Nov 29 at 18:05
NKCampbell
33839
asked Nov 29 at 18:05
NKCampbell
33839
edited Nov 29 at 18:18
asked Nov 29 at 18:05
NKCampbell
33839
asked Nov 29 at 18:05
NKCampbell
33839
asked Nov 29 at 18:05
NKCampbell
33839
33839
4
those people are "pedants" ;)
– Hobbes
Nov 29 at 18:17
damn autocorrect!! @Hobbes
– NKCampbell
Nov 29 at 18:18
2
Hmmm, pedantic? That doesn't seem like the best fit. Perhaps donnish is better.
– Don Branson
Nov 29 at 18:32
1
Russel's answer is excellent, but it still is customary to wait 24 hours before clicking the accept checkmark, so other people (no, not me) have a chance to post answers.
– Dr Sheldon
Nov 29 at 21:40
1
as an aside - I love questions like this - they always result in lots of interesting and pretty images.
– Baldrickk
Nov 30 at 9:41
|
show 1 more comment
4
those people are "pedants" ;)
– Hobbes
Nov 29 at 18:17
damn autocorrect!! @Hobbes
– NKCampbell
Nov 29 at 18:18
2
Hmmm, pedantic? That doesn't seem like the best fit. Perhaps donnish is better.
– Don Branson
Nov 29 at 18:32
1
Russel's answer is excellent, but it still is customary to wait 24 hours before clicking the accept checkmark, so other people (no, not me) have a chance to post answers.
– Dr Sheldon
Nov 29 at 21:40
1
as an aside - I love questions like this - they always result in lots of interesting and pretty images.
– Baldrickk
Nov 30 at 9:41
4
4
those people are "pedants" ;)
– Hobbes
Nov 29 at 18:17
those people are "pedants" ;)
– Hobbes
Nov 29 at 18:17
damn autocorrect!! @Hobbes
– NKCampbell
Nov 29 at 18:18
damn autocorrect!! @Hobbes
– NKCampbell
Nov 29 at 18:18
2
2
Hmmm, pedantic? That doesn't seem like the best fit. Perhaps donnish is better.
– Don Branson
Nov 29 at 18:32
Hmmm, pedantic? That doesn't seem like the best fit. Perhaps donnish is better.
– Don Branson
Nov 29 at 18:32
1
1
Russel's answer is excellent, but it still is customary to wait 24 hours before clicking the accept checkmark, so other people (no, not me) have a chance to post answers.
– Dr Sheldon
Nov 29 at 21:40
Russel's answer is excellent, but it still is customary to wait 24 hours before clicking the accept checkmark, so other people (no, not me) have a chance to post answers.
– Dr Sheldon
Nov 29 at 21:40
1
1
as an aside - I love questions like this - they always result in lots of interesting and pretty images.
– Baldrickk
Nov 30 at 9:41
as an aside - I love questions like this - they always result in lots of interesting and pretty images.
– Baldrickk
Nov 30 at 9:41
|
show 1 more comment
2 Answers
2
active
oldest
votes
up vote
43
down vote
accepted
No; the first full views of Earth from high-altitude satellites predate Apollo 8 by at least two years.
This web page has a nice progression of pictures of Earth from space from 1959 on.
A Soviet satellite (possibly Molniya-1-3) took this crude picture on May 30, 1966:
DODGE took this picture in September of 1967; this is believed to be the first full-color, full-Earth picture:
ATS-III sent this photo in November of 1967, which famously became the cover image for the first edition of the Whole Earth Catalog (Apollo 8's much prettier Earthrise photo adorned later editions):
answered Nov 29 at 18:44
Russell Borogove
78.6k2258342
1
thanks! I suspected as much
– NKCampbell
Nov 29 at 18:47
3
The Whole Earth Catalog invented the internet before Al Gore did i.stack.imgur.com/30aHe.jpg This was a great book for certain "sitting rooms".
– uhoh
Nov 29 at 23:52
4
What part of Earth is depicted in the first photo? I have a hard time identifying any continents or oceans on it.
– d-b
Nov 30 at 0:03
1
@d-b Most likely the contrast is mostly cloud versus surface, not land versus water (squint at the other pictures to see what I mean). Assuming it’s in a Molniya orbit and near apogee, I’d expect it to be over the middle of greater Russia, but I don’t know which way the image is oriented.
– Russell Borogove
Nov 30 at 0:07
fyi I've just asked What are damper booms and how did they "get out of DODGE"?
– uhoh
Nov 30 at 0:30
|
show 5 more comments
up vote
20
down vote
Although not a blue marble as it's in black and white, Lunar Orbiter 1 took an earlier Earthrise photo on August 23, 1966. This is the first picture of the Earth from Lunar orbit.
In 2008, the Lunar Orbiter Image Recovery Project produced a higher-quality version of this image by reanalyzing the original data.
Lunar Orbiter 1 also took a second Earthrise picture on Aug. 25, 1966 (restored version shown.)
answered Nov 30 at 7:17
David Moews
3012
New contributor
David Moews is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
3
Thank you so much for this. This is the first time I heard of LOIRP and the restored images quite literally made me shudder and get goosebumps... it is amazing to see the high-res images and to realise that Nancy Evans's decision rescued this treasure of data. This for me ranks with the Prokudin-Gorsky image bank.
– MichaelK
Nov 30 at 14:50
add a comment |
2 Answers
2
active
oldest
votes
2 Answers
2
active
oldest
votes
active
oldest
votes
active
oldest
votes
up vote
43
down vote
accepted
No; the first full views of Earth from high-altitude satellites predate Apollo 8 by at least two years.
This web page has a nice progression of pictures of Earth from space from 1959 on.
A Soviet satellite (possibly Molniya-1-3) took this crude picture on May 30, 1966:
DODGE took this picture in September of 1967; this is believed to be the first full-color, full-Earth picture:
ATS-III sent this photo in November of 1967, which famously became the cover image for the first edition of the Whole Earth Catalog (Apollo 8's much prettier Earthrise photo adorned later editions):
answered Nov 29 at 18:44
Russell Borogove
78.6k2258342
1
thanks! I suspected as much
– NKCampbell
Nov 29 at 18:47
3
The Whole Earth Catalog invented the internet before Al Gore did i.stack.imgur.com/30aHe.jpg This was a great book for certain "sitting rooms".
– uhoh
Nov 29 at 23:52
4
What part of Earth is depicted in the first photo? I have a hard time identifying any continents or oceans on it.
– d-b
Nov 30 at 0:03
1
@d-b Most likely the contrast is mostly cloud versus surface, not land versus water (squint at the other pictures to see what I mean). Assuming it’s in a Molniya orbit and near apogee, I’d expect it to be over the middle of greater Russia, but I don’t know which way the image is oriented.
– Russell Borogove
Nov 30 at 0:07
fyi I've just asked What are damper booms and how did they "get out of DODGE"?
– uhoh
Nov 30 at 0:30
|
show 5 more comments
up vote
43
down vote
accepted
No; the first full views of Earth from high-altitude satellites predate Apollo 8 by at least two years.
This web page has a nice progression of pictures of Earth from space from 1959 on.
A Soviet satellite (possibly Molniya-1-3) took this crude picture on May 30, 1966:
DODGE took this picture in September of 1967; this is believed to be the first full-color, full-Earth picture:
ATS-III sent this photo in November of 1967, which famously became the cover image for the first edition of the Whole Earth Catalog (Apollo 8's much prettier Earthrise photo adorned later editions):
answered Nov 29 at 18:44
Russell Borogove
78.6k2258342
1
thanks! I suspected as much
– NKCampbell
Nov 29 at 18:47
3
The Whole Earth Catalog invented the internet before Al Gore did i.stack.imgur.com/30aHe.jpg This was a great book for certain "sitting rooms".
– uhoh
Nov 29 at 23:52
4
What part of Earth is depicted in the first photo? I have a hard time identifying any continents or oceans on it.
– d-b
Nov 30 at 0:03
1
@d-b Most likely the contrast is mostly cloud versus surface, not land versus water (squint at the other pictures to see what I mean). Assuming it’s in a Molniya orbit and near apogee, I’d expect it to be over the middle of greater Russia, but I don’t know which way the image is oriented.
– Russell Borogove
Nov 30 at 0:07
fyi I've just asked What are damper booms and how did they "get out of DODGE"?
– uhoh
Nov 30 at 0:30
|
show 5 more comments
up vote
43
down vote
accepted
up vote
43
down vote
accepted
No; the first full views of Earth from high-altitude satellites predate Apollo 8 by at least two years.
This web page has a nice progression of pictures of Earth from space from 1959 on.
A Soviet satellite (possibly Molniya-1-3) took this crude picture on May 30, 1966:
DODGE took this picture in September of 1967; this is believed to be the first full-color, full-Earth picture:
ATS-III sent this photo in November of 1967, which famously became the cover image for the first edition of the Whole Earth Catalog (Apollo 8's much prettier Earthrise photo adorned later editions):
answered Nov 29 at 18:44
Russell Borogove
78.6k2258342
No; the first full views of Earth from high-altitude satellites predate Apollo 8 by at least two years.
This web page has a nice progression of pictures of Earth from space from 1959 on.
A Soviet satellite (possibly Molniya-1-3) took this crude picture on May 30, 1966:
DODGE took this picture in September of 1967; this is believed to be the first full-color, full-Earth picture:
ATS-III sent this photo in November of 1967, which famously became the cover image for the first edition of the Whole Earth Catalog (Apollo 8's much prettier Earthrise photo adorned later editions):
answered Nov 29 at 18:44
Russell Borogove
78.6k2258342
edited Nov 29 at 19:12
answered Nov 29 at 18:44
Russell Borogove
78.6k2258342
answered Nov 29 at 18:44
Russell Borogove
78.6k2258342
answered Nov 29 at 18:44
Russell Borogove
78.6k2258342
78.6k2258342
1
thanks! I suspected as much
– NKCampbell
Nov 29 at 18:47
3
The Whole Earth Catalog invented the internet before Al Gore did i.stack.imgur.com/30aHe.jpg This was a great book for certain "sitting rooms".
– uhoh
Nov 29 at 23:52
4
What part of Earth is depicted in the first photo? I have a hard time identifying any continents or oceans on it.
– d-b
Nov 30 at 0:03
1
@d-b Most likely the contrast is mostly cloud versus surface, not land versus water (squint at the other pictures to see what I mean). Assuming it’s in a Molniya orbit and near apogee, I’d expect it to be over the middle of greater Russia, but I don’t know which way the image is oriented.
– Russell Borogove
Nov 30 at 0:07
fyi I've just asked What are damper booms and how did they "get out of DODGE"?
– uhoh
Nov 30 at 0:30
|
show 5 more comments
1
thanks! I suspected as much
– NKCampbell
Nov 29 at 18:47
3
The Whole Earth Catalog invented the internet before Al Gore did i.stack.imgur.com/30aHe.jpg This was a great book for certain "sitting rooms".
– uhoh
Nov 29 at 23:52
4
What part of Earth is depicted in the first photo? I have a hard time identifying any continents or oceans on it.
– d-b
Nov 30 at 0:03
1
@d-b Most likely the contrast is mostly cloud versus surface, not land versus water (squint at the other pictures to see what I mean). Assuming it’s in a Molniya orbit and near apogee, I’d expect it to be over the middle of greater Russia, but I don’t know which way the image is oriented.
– Russell Borogove
Nov 30 at 0:07
fyi I've just asked What are damper booms and how did they "get out of DODGE"?
– uhoh
Nov 30 at 0:30
1
1
thanks! I suspected as much
– NKCampbell
Nov 29 at 18:47
thanks! I suspected as much
– NKCampbell
Nov 29 at 18:47
3
3
The Whole Earth Catalog invented the internet before Al Gore did i.stack.imgur.com/30aHe.jpg This was a great book for certain "sitting rooms".
– uhoh
Nov 29 at 23:52
The Whole Earth Catalog invented the internet before Al Gore did i.stack.imgur.com/30aHe.jpg This was a great book for certain "sitting rooms".
– uhoh
Nov 29 at 23:52
4
4
What part of Earth is depicted in the first photo? I have a hard time identifying any continents or oceans on it.
– d-b
Nov 30 at 0:03
What part of Earth is depicted in the first photo? I have a hard time identifying any continents or oceans on it.
– d-b
Nov 30 at 0:03
1
1
@d-b Most likely the contrast is mostly cloud versus surface, not land versus water (squint at the other pictures to see what I mean). Assuming it’s in a Molniya orbit and near apogee, I’d expect it to be over the middle of greater Russia, but I don’t know which way the image is oriented.
– Russell Borogove
Nov 30 at 0:07
@d-b Most likely the contrast is mostly cloud versus surface, not land versus water (squint at the other pictures to see what I mean). Assuming it’s in a Molniya orbit and near apogee, I’d expect it to be over the middle of greater Russia, but I don’t know which way the image is oriented.
– Russell Borogove
Nov 30 at 0:07
fyi I've just asked What are damper booms and how did they "get out of DODGE"?
– uhoh
Nov 30 at 0:30
fyi I've just asked What are damper booms and how did they "get out of DODGE"?
– uhoh
Nov 30 at 0:30
|
show 5 more comments
up vote
20
down vote
Although not a blue marble as it's in black and white, Lunar Orbiter 1 took an earlier Earthrise photo on August 23, 1966. This is the first picture of the Earth from Lunar orbit.
In 2008, the Lunar Orbiter Image Recovery Project produced a higher-quality version of this image by reanalyzing the original data.
Lunar Orbiter 1 also took a second Earthrise picture on Aug. 25, 1966 (restored version shown.)
answered Nov 30 at 7:17
David Moews
3012
New contributor
David Moews is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
3
Thank you so much for this. This is the first time I heard of LOIRP and the restored images quite literally made me shudder and get goosebumps... it is amazing to see the high-res images and to realise that Nancy Evans's decision rescued this treasure of data. This for me ranks with the Prokudin-Gorsky image bank.
– MichaelK
Nov 30 at 14:50
add a comment |
up vote
20
down vote
Although not a blue marble as it's in black and white, Lunar Orbiter 1 took an earlier Earthrise photo on August 23, 1966. This is the first picture of the Earth from Lunar orbit.
In 2008, the Lunar Orbiter Image Recovery Project produced a higher-quality version of this image by reanalyzing the original data.
Lunar Orbiter 1 also took a second Earthrise picture on Aug. 25, 1966 (restored version shown.)
answered Nov 30 at 7:17
David Moews
3012
New contributor
David Moews is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
3
Thank you so much for this. This is the first time I heard of LOIRP and the restored images quite literally made me shudder and get goosebumps... it is amazing to see the high-res images and to realise that Nancy Evans's decision rescued this treasure of data. This for me ranks with the Prokudin-Gorsky image bank.
– MichaelK
Nov 30 at 14:50
add a comment |
up vote
20
down vote
up vote
20
down vote
Although not a blue marble as it's in black and white, Lunar Orbiter 1 took an earlier Earthrise photo on August 23, 1966. This is the first picture of the Earth from Lunar orbit.
In 2008, the Lunar Orbiter Image Recovery Project produced a higher-quality version of this image by reanalyzing the original data.
Lunar Orbiter 1 also took a second Earthrise picture on Aug. 25, 1966 (restored version shown.)
answered Nov 30 at 7:17
David Moews
3012
New contributor
David Moews is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
Although not a blue marble as it's in black and white, Lunar Orbiter 1 took an earlier Earthrise photo on August 23, 1966. This is the first picture of the Earth from Lunar orbit.
In 2008, the Lunar Orbiter Image Recovery Project produced a higher-quality version of this image by reanalyzing the original data.
Lunar Orbiter 1 also took a second Earthrise picture on Aug. 25, 1966 (restored version shown.)
answered Nov 30 at 7:17
David Moews
3012
New contributor
David Moews is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
answered Nov 30 at 7:17
David Moews
3012
New contributor
David Moews is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
answered Nov 30 at 7:17
David Moews
3012
answered Nov 30 at 7:17
David Moews
3012
3012
New contributor
David Moews is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
New contributor
David Moews is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
David Moews is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
3
Thank you so much for this. This is the first time I heard of LOIRP and the restored images quite literally made me shudder and get goosebumps... it is amazing to see the high-res images and to realise that Nancy Evans's decision rescued this treasure of data. This for me ranks with the Prokudin-Gorsky image bank.
– MichaelK
Nov 30 at 14:50
add a comment |
3
Thank you so much for this. This is the first time I heard of LOIRP and the restored images quite literally made me shudder and get goosebumps... it is amazing to see the high-res images and to realise that Nancy Evans's decision rescued this treasure of data. This for me ranks with the Prokudin-Gorsky image bank.
– MichaelK
Nov 30 at 14:50
3
3
Thank you so much for this. This is the first time I heard of LOIRP and the restored images quite literally made me shudder and get goosebumps... it is amazing to see the high-res images and to realise that Nancy Evans's decision rescued this treasure of data. This for me ranks with the Prokudin-Gorsky image bank.
– MichaelK
Nov 30 at 14:50
Thank you so much for this. This is the first time I heard of LOIRP and the restored images quite literally made me shudder and get goosebumps... it is amazing to see the high-res images and to realise that Nancy Evans's decision rescued this treasure of data. This for me ranks with the Prokudin-Gorsky image bank.
– MichaelK
Nov 30 at 14:50
add a comment |
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4
those people are "pedants" ;)
– Hobbes
Nov 29 at 18:17
damn autocorrect!! @Hobbes
– NKCampbell
Nov 29 at 18:18
2
Hmmm, pedantic? That doesn't seem like the best fit. Perhaps donnish is better.
– Don Branson
Nov 29 at 18:32
1
Russel's answer is excellent, but it still is customary to wait 24 hours before clicking the accept checkmark, so other people (no, not me) have a chance to post answers.
– Dr Sheldon
Nov 29 at 21:40
1
as an aside - I love questions like this - they always result in lots of interesting and pretty images.
– Baldrickk
Nov 30 at 9:41