Historic Astronomy Images

5 images.

• Three towering columns of dark, dense gas and dust silhouetted against glowing greenish nebulosity.

  Eagle Nebula (Messier 16)

  Public Domain

  Pillars of Creation (Hubble, 1995)

  NASA, ESA, STScI

• The blue-and-white Earth rising above the grey, cratered lunar horizon against black space.

  Earth, from lunar orbit

  Public Domain

  Earthrise

  NASA / William Anders

• A fully-lit Earth showing Africa, Antarctica, and swirling white clouds against black space.

  Earth, from Apollo 17

  Public Domain

  The Blue Marble

  NASA / Apollo 17 crew

• A grainy image with scattered light bands, in which Earth appears as a single tiny bright dot.

  Earth, from 6 billion km

  Public Domain

  Pale Blue Dot

  NASA/JPL-Caltech

• A dark mosaic of narrow frames, each containing a tiny point of light marking a planet.

  The Solar System, from Voyager 1

  Public Domain

  The Solar System Family Portrait

  NASA/JPL-Caltech