Apollo 8 Astronaut Anders Who Took 'Earthrise' Photo 55 Years Ago Passes Away

Passed away at age 90... Died in a plane crash
Accident occurred while piloting a plane alone on San Juan Island

William Anders (90), an astronaut of the US spacecraft Apollo 8 who took the 'Earthrise' photo capturing the Earth rising above the lunar horizon, died in a plane crash.

On the 6th (local time), AP News reported that Anders died while flying a plane alone over San Juan Island, Washington State. Earlier, the San Juan County Sheriff announced that they received a report of a vintage plane crash around 11:40 a.m. that day. The US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) stated that Anders was the sole occupant of the small aircraft at the time of the accident. The FAA is investigating the cause of the accident together with the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB).

The 'Earthrise' photo taken by William Anders on Apollo 8 in 1968 [Photo by NASA, AP Yonhap News]

Born in 1933, Anders graduated from the Naval Academy and served as an Air Force fighter pilot. In 1968, he flew aboard Apollo 8 with Frank Borman and Jim Lovell, carrying out the first mission to orbit the Moon. During this mission, Anders took the historic photo 'Earthrise,' capturing the Earth rising above the lunar surface. This photo is significant as the first color photograph of Earth taken from space. Notably, the photo was taken on December 24, Christmas Eve, and has been regarded as a Christmas gift to humanity. Since then, the photo has remained a monumental work in the history of space exploration, and Anders himself said during his lifetime that this photo was his greatest contribution to the space program.

William Anders in life
Photo by AP Yonhap News

AP described this photo as "one of the most meaningful photos in modern history that changed the way humans view Earth," adding that "it revealed how fragile and isolated Earth appears from space, sparking the environmental movement."

Apollo 8 was the first mission to successfully enter lunar orbit. In a 1997 interview with NASA, Anders said, "I did not think the Apollo 8 mission was without risk, but there were important national, patriotic, and exploratory reasons to move forward." He added, "I thought there was about a one in three chance we would not return to Earth, but the odds were probably even lower when Christopher Columbus set sail." His son, Greg Anders, told AP, "My father was an excellent pilot, and we will all miss him."