Memories of the Earth as Seen From Space

Only two dozen people have seen our planet in its entirety from space. For Earth Day, the Associated Press asked them to recall the view, and a common theme emerged:

"We're living on a tiny little dust mote in left field on a rather insignificant galaxy. And basically this it for humans. It strikes me that it's a shame that we're squabbling over oil and borders."

--Bill Anders, Apollo 8, whose photos of Earth became famous.

"The sheer beauty of it just brought tears to my eyes.... If people can see Earth from up here, see it without those borders, see it without any differences in race or religion, they would have a completely different perspective. Because when you see it from that angle, you cannot think of your home or your country. All you can see is one Earth...."

--Anousheh Ansari, Iranian-American space tourist who flew last year to the international space station.

Astronauts Recall View Before Earth Day [Associated Press]
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Image: NASA Earth Observatory*