BLUE MARBLE AGENDA

Apollo 17 was launched from the Kennedy Space Center at 12:33 am on 7 December. Around five hours later, when the spacecraft had left Earth orbit and begun its course towards the Moon, the three-man crew all began taking photographs with a 70-millimeter Hasselblad camera fitted with an 80-millimeter Zeiss lens. By this time they were approximately 29,000 kilometers (18,000 miles) away from Earth. This was far enough away for the entire planet to be seen through the spacecraft's windows. Since the on-board camera did not have a viewfinder, it was necessary to take a sequence of photographs with slightly different aim to ensure a successful image. Because of this the actual photograph was upside down with Antarctica at the top, but it still captured the entire globe from the Mediterranean Sea to the south polar ice cap. The image was released by NASA on 23 December, four days after the spacecraft splashed down in the Pacific Ocean. It was seized upon by the press, who printed The Blue Marble on front pages across the world. Subsequent analysis of the mission transcript suggests that Lunar Module Pilot Harrison 'Jack' Schmitt took the photograph, but NASA has always credited the crew as a whole while the astronauts themselves were also known to accept joint recognition. Apollo 17 was the final mission of the program, marking the last time humans travelled beyond low Earth orbit or set foot on the Moon. 

It is one of the most reproduced images in history. No human since has been far enough from Earth to photograph a whole-Earth image such as The Blue Marble, but whole-Earth images have been taken by many uncrewed spacecraft missions.