Anders Was One Of The First Three People To Orbit The Moon

William Anders, Astronaut Who Captured 'Earthrise' Photo, Dies at 99

Anders Was One of the First Three People to Orbit the Moon

Earthrise Photo Captivated the World, Changed Humanity's View of Itself

William Anders, the former Apollo 8 astronaut who took the iconic "Earthrise" photo showing the planet as a shadowed blue marble against the backdrop of the lunar surface, died Friday at the age of 99.

Anders was one of the first three people to orbit the moon, along with Frank Borman and Jim Lovell. The Apollo 8 mission, launched on December 21, 1968, was the first crewed mission to leave Earth's orbit and travel to the moon. The mission was a success, and the astronauts returned to Earth safely on December 27.