An “Earthrise” For Our Time

Over the past decade I’ve spent at Living on Earth, there has been more than one weekly editorial meeting when Steve Curwood – Host, Founder, and Executive Producer – has sat at the head of the conference table and rhapsodized about the significance of the iconic “Earthrise” photo, snapped by astronaut Bill Anders on Christmas Eve of 1968 as Apollo 8 made a flyby of the Moon. Steve evocatively describes how, for the first time, we “Earthlings” got a vantage point of our planet as a small orb floating in the vast blackness of space. One planet, on which every human, ever, had been born and lived out their lives. One planet we all shared that was facing growing environmental threats. 

And in sharing how novel that photo was, Steve highlights the clear throughline to about a year and a half later on Earth Day, when some 20 million Americans gathered in cities across the country to celebrate our planet and call for protecting it (something you can hear all about in Steve’s interview with environmental historian Adam Rome this week!). There was already rising awareness about environmental pollutants thanks to Rachel Carson’s Silent Spring, a massive 1969 oil spill in Santa Barbara, and more. But the way “Earthrise” resonated emotionally with people gave them a powerful image to rally around. In fact, we may never have had Earth Day without “Earthrise.”

So I knew about that history for some time, and it made a lot of intellectual sense as to how “Earthrise” sparked Earth Day, and I thought it was a cool picture. 

But here’s the thing – the 60’s and 70’s weren’t a time this 90’s kid was around to witness. There’s only so much you can absorb from learning about history. What’s especially missing is the raw emotional connection to what others actually lived through. Gen Alpha and Gen Beta, and Gen Z to some extent, won’t know what it was like to live through 9/11; the first iPod, iPhone and podcast; the election of America’s first Black president; or the Harry Potter book releases. So, I knew about “Earthrise” the way I knew about the Renaissance. It happened some time ago. It was important. People still talked about it. It was something I had to remember in order to do well on a history test. There was an emotional distance from the subject itself. I wished I could share that same abiding connection to “Earthrise” that Steve clearly did, but it felt out of reach, locked away in a time I would never know.

Then on April 1, 2026, the Artemis II crew launched into space and straight into many of our hearts. 

The astronauts shared moments of their lives aboard the Orion spacecraft with viewers and listeners at home (in much higher fidelity than was possible during the Apollo era!). They unleashed a graceful jar of Nutella into zero gravity, and gently passed the adorable “Rise” moon plushie back and forth. They made detailed scientific observations on Flyby Day, utterly delighting the lunar science lead of the Artemis II mission, Kelsey Young (be sure to listen to my colleague Aynsley O’Neill’s interview with her!). They waxed poetic about the beauty of the Earth and how special it is. They honored a loved one, Commander Reid Wiseman’s late wife Carroll, by naming a moon crater after her (before watching that unforgettable moment I had no idea tears could be contagious from that far away). 

And yes, they snapped iconic photos of their own, including a gorgeous “Earthset” photo mirroring the 1968 “Earthrise,” that I can’t stop looking at in wonder. 

Suddenly, I got it. Maybe a lot of you did, too. Thanks to the photos, the poetry, and the pure humanity of these four humans living together on board a tiny spaceship no bigger than two minivans. We lived through that history – our own taste of “Moon joy” – and I truly believe it did bring us a little closer together and remind us of the goodness of humanity, the incredible things we can accomplish when we work together, and the stakes when it comes to peacefully and respectfully sharing this Earth we all call home. 

It would be phenomenal if we someday look back and point to this moment as pivotal, a turning point in our care for the planet and each other. Perhaps we will; or perhaps the throughline won’t be so clear. Either way, we witnessed something spectacular, a bright spot that I believe will stand out in our memories, just as bright as Carroll Crater, or that little blue gem of a planet hanging in the void.

To honor Earth Day today, take a long look at those gorgeous photos from NASA. Make them your smartphone or laptop’s wallpaper – something they didn’t do back in the Apollo days! – and gaze at that blue marble that we somehow find ourselves on. And have a wonderful Earth Day. Go outside, honor the Earth in whatever way feels right to you, and remember just how lucky we are to be here.

Jenni Doering

Managing Producer

P.S. Did you know that not one but two of our producers actually share a birthday with Earth Day?! (No, that’s not why we hired them, but I can’t get over how perfect it is.) Happy birthday, El and Bella!