[Apollo 12] FIRST CRESCENT EARTHRISE Pete Conrad or Alan Bean, November 14-24, 1969

[Apollo 12] FIRST CRESCENT EARTHRISE Pete Conrad or Alan Bean, November 14-24, 1969 Printed 1969. Vintage chromogenic print on fibre-based Kodak paper [NASA image AS12-47-6874]. With 'A Kodak Paper' watermark on the reverse, numbered 'NASA AS12-47-6874' in red in the top margin (issued by NASA Manned Spacecraft Centre, Houston, Texas). 20.3 x 25.4 cm. (8 x 10 in.) Historical context The first crescent Earthrise photographed by humans, showing Earth as a delicate crescent rising over the barren Moon's horizon. This extraordinary wide-angle view was captured with the 60mm lens and the transparent glass reseau plate of the lunar surface Hasselblad data camera from the LM Intrepid (whose thruster is visible at the bottom right). The photograph was taken shortly after Revolution 12 Acquisition of Signal (AOS) with Earth. At this moment, Intrepid, carrying Pete Conrad and Alan Bean, remained docked with CSM Yankee Clipper, piloted by Richard Gordon, before its undocking and descent to the lunar surface on the next orbit. The far side highlands east of Crater Pasteur are visible in the foreground. 'I don't think any of us ever tired of looking out the window and watching the world or the Moon go by. One of the best things that our photography has done is come close to giving people down here an idea of what the hell it looks like from up there.' — Pete Conrad (Schick and Van Haaften, p. 40) Footnotes: Literature Moon, Man's greatest adventure, Thomas, ed., cover (variant) Watch more CLICK HERE: Apollo 12 - Pinpoint For Science (1970) For further information on this lot please visit Bonhams.com For further information about this lot please visit the lot listing