American aerospace hero: William "Bill" Anders dies in plane crash

Iconic photo "Earthrise"

The "Earthrise" photo by William "Bill" Anders, taken during the Apollo 8 mission on Christmas Eve 1968, is one of NASA's most famous images. As it was taken by a US government organisation (NASA), it is in the public domain. This means that it can be used without restrictions.

Thomas Wirth, 7 June 2024, USA, San Juan Islands/Jones Island - The former astronaut on the Apollo 8 mission, William "Bill" Anders, has died in a tragic aircraft accident. Born in 1933, Anders was the pilot of the lunar module and made a lasting name for himself with the iconic "Earthrise" photo he took during the Apollo 8 mission in 1968. This image, which shows the Earth rising above the moon's horizon, is considered one of the most influential and most copied photos in history and the catalyst for the global environmental movement.

Bill Anders (†90) was part of the legendary Apollo 8 team, consisting of James Lovell (96), the pilot of the command module, and Frank Borman (†95), the commander of the mission. Together, they were the first humans to orbit the moon and delivered breathtaking images that changed humanity's understanding and perspective of our home planet.

The Apollo 8 mission was a decisive step on the way to the first manned moon landing. On Christmas Eve 1968, some 400,000 kilometres from Earth, Anders took the famous "Earthrise" photo, which showed the fragile beauty of our planet amidst the infinite darkness of space.

In 2015, Anders reflected on this moment in an interview with US radio station NPR: "Borman turned the spaceship, and I was the first one to see the Earth rise, and I realised, 'Wow, look at that!" The Earth was blue and white, shining across the barren lunar horizon. This photo was the first colour image of Earth from space and became a symbol of the vulnerability and uniqueness of our planet.

The news of Anders' death was met with great sadness. Police report that an older aircraft Anders was on crashed on Friday. NASA and numerous figures in the space world have expressed their shock and condolences. "Bill was a great pilot and we will miss him terribly," they said in a statement.

With the passing of Bill Anders, the world loses an outstanding space pioneer and a man whose work and dedication inspired generations of scientists, environmental activists and space enthusiasts. His legacy lives on through the images and stories he left behind, and not least in the ONE GLOBE.NEWS logo, which for legal reasons does not resemble the famous photo 1:1, but is deliberately modelled on the original photo.

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