Bill Anders, the Apollo 8 astronaut renowned for capturing the iconic ‘Earthrise’ photograph, has tragically died in a plane crash at the age of 90. The small aircraft he was piloting crashed into the sea off the coast of Washington state.
The accident occurred around 11:40 PDT, according to the US National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB). Anders was flying a Beechcraft A45, also known as a T-34, which crashed approximately 80 feet from the coast of Jones Island. His body was recovered on Friday afternoon.
In a statement, his son Greg confirmed the devastating news: “The family is devastated. He was a great pilot. He will be missed.”
Witness Philip Person described seeing the plane attempt a loop before becoming inverted and crashing. “I could not believe what I was seeing,” he told Seattle’s King-TV. “It looked like something right out of a movie, with the large explosion and flames.”
Anders is best remembered for his role as the lunar module pilot on the Apollo 8 mission, the first crewed space flight to leave Earth and orbit the Moon. During this mission on Christmas Eve 1968, he took the ‘Earthrise’ photograph, an image showing Earth rising above the lunar horizon. This photo is credited with inspiring the global environmental movement and leading to the creation of Earth Day.
Reflecting on the moment, Anders once said, “We came all this way to explore the Moon, and the most important thing that we discovered was the Earth.” He regarded the ‘Earthrise’ photograph as his most significant contribution to the space program.
After retiring from NASA in 1969, Anders worked in the aerospace industry and served as the US Ambassador to Norway in the 1970s. Despite his varied career, he remained most celebrated for his achievements during the Apollo 8 mission.
NASA Administrator Bill Nelson paid tribute to Anders, saying, “In 1968, during Apollo 8, Bill Anders offered to humanity among the deepest of gifts an astronaut can give. He traveled to the threshold of the Moon and helped all of us see something else: ourselves.”
Buzz Aldrin, the second man to walk on the Moon, called Anders “an inspiration,” while former astronaut and current US Senator Mark Kelly noted on X, formerly Twitter, that Anders “inspired me and generations of astronauts and explorers. My thoughts are with his family and friends.”
Anders’ legacy is immortalised through his contributions to space exploration and the enduring impact of his ‘Earthrise’ photograph, which continues to remind humanity of our planet’s beauty and fragility.
