NASA

Compare breathtaking photos of Earth from Apollo 8, Artemis II

USA TODAY

April 13, 2026, 11:08 a.m. ET

One of the most iconic photos of our little blue planet was taken in 1968, and gave people riding along Spaceship Earth one of its first views. Now, nearly 68 years later, another breathtaking photo of Earth has been released.

While aboard Apollo 8, the first crewed spacecraft to orbit the Moon, NASA astronaut Bill Anders captured a photo of the Earth rising on the Moon's horizon, according to NASA.

It's one of the photos many call to mind when they think about the Apollo missions that took place in the 20th century, which ended on December 19, 1972, after the Apollo 17 spacecraft splashed down in the ocean, according to the Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum.

But after Artemis II launched on April 1, its crew, NASA astronauts Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, and Christina Koch, and Canadian Space Agency (CSA) astronaut Jeremy Hansen, took even more photos from space, including one of the setting Earth on April 6, from aboard the Orion spacecraft.

Compare Apollo 8 Earthrise to Artemis II Earthset

Artemis II Earthset:

Earthset. The Artemis II crew captured this view of an Earthset on April 6, 2026, as they flew around the moon. The image is reminiscent of the iconic Earthrise image taken by astronaut Bill Anders 58 years earlier as the Apollo 8 crew flew around the moon. The Apollo 8 mission was the first crewed spacecraft to circumnavigate the moon. The Artemis II crew broke records for the farthest distance traveled from Earth — reaching a maximum distance of 252,756 miles from Earth during their journey. At their closest point, the Artemis II crew was within about 4,070 miles from the lunar surface.

Apollo 8 Earthrise:

William Anders took the iconic “Earthrise” photo while in lunar orbit on Dec. 24, 1968.

Artemis II breaks record

The crew of Artemis II traveled farther from Earth than any human has before, and ventured 252,756 miles from our planet, according to NASA.

The crew's 10-day trip around the moon ended when the crew splashed down in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of San Diego, according to NASA. From launch to splashdown, the crew traveled a total of 694,481 miles during their mission.

Both Apollo 8 and Artemis II missions to precede a moon landing

Like Apollo 8 before it, Artemis II is meant to precede a moon landing attempt in the years ahead.

In the case of Apollo 8, two more missions came before astronauts Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin became the first humans to set foot on the moon in July 1969 during Apollo 11. That included Apollo 9 in March 1969 – during which two astronauts piloted a lunar module in Earth orbit – and Apollo 10 later in May, which was another moon-orbiting mission.

NASA had originally planned for a moon landing mission to follow Artemis 2 before leaders at the space agency announced an overhaul to the program at the end of February.

Before a moon landing is attempted during Artemis 4 in 2028, astronauts in the Orion capsule are due to meet and dock in Earth orbit with at least one of the lunar landers being developed by Jeff Bezos' Blue Origin and Elon Musk's SpaceX. That new mission, targeted for 2027, is known as Artemis 3.

Julia Gomez is a Trending reporter for USA TODAY and covers popular toys, space phenomena, scientific studies, natural disasters, holidays, and trending news. Connect with her on LinkedIn, X, Instagram, and TikTok: @juliamariegz, or email her at [email protected].

Eric Lagatta is the Space Connect reporter for the USA TODAY Network. Reach him at [email protected]

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