William A. Anders, who took “Earthrise”, dies at 90
His photo shook the world. Known as “Earthrise,” it was reproduced in a 1969 postage stamp bearing the words, “In the beginning God...” It was an inspiration for the first Earth Day
Published: 06:06 PM,Jun 08,2024 | EDITED : 10:06 PM,Jun 08,2024
Maj William A. Anders, who flew on the first manned space mission to orbit the moon, the Apollo 8 “Genesis Flight” of Christmas Eve 1968, and took the colour photograph “Earthrise” credited with inspiring the modern environmental movement, died on Friday when a small plane he was piloting alone dove into the water near Roche Harbor, Washington, northwest of Seattle. He was 90. His son Greg confirmed his death.
Anders, along with Col Frank Borman, both of the Air Force, and Capt James A. Lovell Jr. of the Navy, was part of the first group of spacemen to leave the bounds of Earth’s orbit. During their mission, they took photos and motion pictures of the lunar surface in preparation for the Apollo 11 fight, when men first stepped on the moon, and they were the first astronauts sent aloft by a giant Saturn V rocket.
Beyond those tremendous milestones, their mission was viewed as briefly reviving the spirits of an America stunned by rising casualties in the Vietnam War, the assassinations of the Martin Luther King Jr. and Robert F. Kennedy, and tumultuous anti-war protests and racial disturbances.
On Christmas Eve, during their 10 orbits of the moon, the three astronauts, whose movements were telecast to millions around the world, took photos of Earth as it rose over the lunar horizon, appearing as a blue marble amid the blackness of the heavens. But only Anders, who oversaw their spacecraft’s electronic and communications systems, shot colour film.
His photo shook the world. Known as “Earthrise,” it was reproduced in a 1969 postage stamp bearing the words, “In the beginning God...” It was an inspiration for the first Earth Day, in 1970, and it appeared on the cover of Life magazine’s 2003 book “100 Photographs That Changed the World.” Just moments before Anders began snapping away, the astronauts could be heard, as captured by the onboard recorder, expressing their awe over what they saw.
Decades later, in a 2015 interview with Forbes magazine, Anders said of “Earthrise,” “The view points out the beauty of Earth, and its fragility. It helped kick start the environmental movement.”
Anders was the first reader: “In the beginning, God created the heaven and the Earth. And the Earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep.”
William Alison Anders was born on October 17, 1933, in Hong Kong, where he was living with his mother, Muriel Adams Anders, while his father, Lt Arthur Anders, a career Navy man, was serving as an officer on the gunboat Panay on patrol along China’s Yangtze River.
William Anders returned to the United States, attended Grossmont High School in San Diego County, California, and became fascinated by tales of world-famous explorations. Following the path his father pursued, he entered the Naval Academy and graduated in 1955, planning to become a pilot. He obtained a commission in the Air Force, viewing it as more attuned than the Navy to breakthroughs in aeronautical science.
While at Nasa, Anders became a specialist in space radiation, whose effects were considered to be a potential hazard for future astronauts. He also trained in a module that would be used to carry astronauts from a moon-orbiting capsule to the lunar surface, the future lunar lander.
Apollo 8 was designed to orbit the Earth with the module, which Anders would flight-test. But its development was delayed, so the mission was reprogrammed as a moon orbit, without the module, a premature and risky bid to beat the Russians in circling the lunar surface. The mission was a huge success and its astronauts were hailed at parades in New York, Chicago and Washington and appeared before a joint session of Congress.
Richard Goldstein
The author is a contributing writer at the New York Times
Anders, along with Col Frank Borman, both of the Air Force, and Capt James A. Lovell Jr. of the Navy, was part of the first group of spacemen to leave the bounds of Earth’s orbit. During their mission, they took photos and motion pictures of the lunar surface in preparation for the Apollo 11 fight, when men first stepped on the moon, and they were the first astronauts sent aloft by a giant Saturn V rocket.
Beyond those tremendous milestones, their mission was viewed as briefly reviving the spirits of an America stunned by rising casualties in the Vietnam War, the assassinations of the Martin Luther King Jr. and Robert F. Kennedy, and tumultuous anti-war protests and racial disturbances.
On Christmas Eve, during their 10 orbits of the moon, the three astronauts, whose movements were telecast to millions around the world, took photos of Earth as it rose over the lunar horizon, appearing as a blue marble amid the blackness of the heavens. But only Anders, who oversaw their spacecraft’s electronic and communications systems, shot colour film.
His photo shook the world. Known as “Earthrise,” it was reproduced in a 1969 postage stamp bearing the words, “In the beginning God...” It was an inspiration for the first Earth Day, in 1970, and it appeared on the cover of Life magazine’s 2003 book “100 Photographs That Changed the World.” Just moments before Anders began snapping away, the astronauts could be heard, as captured by the onboard recorder, expressing their awe over what they saw.
Decades later, in a 2015 interview with Forbes magazine, Anders said of “Earthrise,” “The view points out the beauty of Earth, and its fragility. It helped kick start the environmental movement.”
Anders was the first reader: “In the beginning, God created the heaven and the Earth. And the Earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep.”
William Alison Anders was born on October 17, 1933, in Hong Kong, where he was living with his mother, Muriel Adams Anders, while his father, Lt Arthur Anders, a career Navy man, was serving as an officer on the gunboat Panay on patrol along China’s Yangtze River.
William Anders returned to the United States, attended Grossmont High School in San Diego County, California, and became fascinated by tales of world-famous explorations. Following the path his father pursued, he entered the Naval Academy and graduated in 1955, planning to become a pilot. He obtained a commission in the Air Force, viewing it as more attuned than the Navy to breakthroughs in aeronautical science.
While at Nasa, Anders became a specialist in space radiation, whose effects were considered to be a potential hazard for future astronauts. He also trained in a module that would be used to carry astronauts from a moon-orbiting capsule to the lunar surface, the future lunar lander.
Apollo 8 was designed to orbit the Earth with the module, which Anders would flight-test. But its development was delayed, so the mission was reprogrammed as a moon orbit, without the module, a premature and risky bid to beat the Russians in circling the lunar surface. The mission was a huge success and its astronauts were hailed at parades in New York, Chicago and Washington and appeared before a joint session of Congress.
Richard Goldstein
The author is a contributing writer at the New York Times