Famed astronaut William Anders, known for “Earthrise” photo, passes away at age 90

William A. Anders, the astronaut credited with taking the iconic photograph of our planet from space, has passed away at the age of 90.

On Friday morning, Anders, who had retired from the Air Force Reserve as a major general, tragically crashed his plane into the waters near Roche Harbor, Wash. His son Greg confirmed his passing.

Anders, a major at the time, was part of the Apollo 8 mission in 1968, the first manned flight to orbit the moon. This also made him one of the first people to venture beyond the confines of Earth’s orbit.

“On Christmas Eve, all three Apollo crewmembers took photos of Earth as it rose over the moon’s horizon, but Anders was the only one shooting on color film,” recalls former astronaut and friend Tom Stafford. The iconic photograph, named “Earthrise,” captured the solitude and delicacy of our planet in a way that had never been seen before. In the ship’s onboard tape, Anders can be heard exclaiming, “Oh my God, look at that picture over there! There’s the Earth comin’ up. Wow, is that pretty!”

The image of Earth, suspended in the vastness of space, had a profound impact on the nascent environmental movement. On the 50th anniversary, Earth Day Network President Kathleen Rogers wrote, “This photo confirmed our conviction that the Earth’s environment was common to all of us, that the Earth’s natural resources were finite, and that 150 years of unfettered industrial development were having a profound impact on our planet.”

In a 2015 interview, Anders reflected on his famous photo, remarking, “Here we came all the way to the moon to discover Earth.”

The iconic photograph, immortalized as a symbol of our planet’s fragility, will forever be remembered as a powerful reminder of our shared home in the universe.