Apollo 8 was launched on December 21, 1968 with Astronauts Frank Borman, the commander; James A. Lovell, Jr., the command module pilot; and William A. Anders, the lunar module pilot. The primary purpose of the mission was to further progress toward the goal of landing men on the Moon by gaining operational experience and testing the Apollo systems.

One of the prime scientific tasks was to photograph the lunar surface in anticipation of the early Apollo landings. Apollo 8 was the first manned spacecraft to leave the earth's orbit and to photograph earth from space.

In this exhibition we present photographs of the training, launch, and mission, and the astronauts who participated in this enduring moment in history.

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