NASA has released a unique view of Earth recently captured by a spacecraft in orbit around the moon.
The composite image shows Earth appearing to rise over the lunar horizon from the viewpoint of the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter.
The large tan area in the upper right is the Sahara Desert, and just beyond is Saudi Arabia. The Atlantic and Pacific coasts of South America are visible to the left, according to the space agency.
“The image is simply stunning,” said Noah Petro, Deputy Project Scientist for the orbiter at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Maryland, in a statement.
“The image of the Earth evokes the famous ‘Blue Marble’ image taken by Astronaut Harrison Schmitt during Apollo 17, 43 years ago, which also showed Africa prominently in the picture.”
