Apollo 8

space exploration · Moon · 1960s · historic

First crewed Moon mission. Apollo 8 launched on December 21, 1968, carrying astronauts Frank Borman, Jim Lovell, and William Anders on a bold journey to orbit the Moon. This was the first time humans had ever traveled far enough to escape Earth's gravitational pull and reach another world.

Earthrise photo moment. While orbiting the Moon, astronaut William Anders took one of the most famous photographs ever taken: a picture of Earth rising above the Moon's horizon. This image showed people back home just how small and precious our planet looks from space.

Saw the far side first. The Apollo 8 crew became the first humans to see the Moon's far side, the side that always faces away from Earth. They orbited the Moon ten times, taking detailed photographs and sending back descriptions of what they saw.

Christmas message from space. On Christmas Eve 1968, the astronauts read from the Book of Genesis during a live broadcast watched by millions of people around the world. Their message from the Moon was one of the most-watched television events in history.

Paved the way for landing. Apollo 8 proved that humans could safely travel to the Moon and return home, which gave NASA the confidence to send Apollo 11 to actually land on the Moon just seven months later.