Blue Marble returns: Artemis II captures first human view of Earth in 54 years

NASA has released a rare image of Earth captured by the Artemis II crew during their journey to the Moon. This is the first photograph of the "full" Earth taken by humans in 54 years. It mirrors the historic "Blue Marble" photograph taken by Harrison Schmitt and the crew of Apollo 17 in 1972. That iconic image remains one of the most famous photographs in history, and this new Artemis II version marks the start of a new era of lunar exploration.

The Orion spacecraft, carrying a crew of four, lifted off atop the giant SLS rocket from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Thursday morning (IST). While the SLS rocket provided the power for the launch, the astronauts are traveling inside the Orion capsule. The mission is led by Commander Reid Wiseman (NASA), with Pilot Victor Glover (NASA) and Mission Specialists Christina Koch (NASA) and Jeremy Hansen (CSA) on board.