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Lot 382
[Apollo 15] "DOUBLE EARTHRISE": an extraordinary UV photograph of the Earth rising over the Moon Alfred Worden, 26 July - 7 August 1971
14 – 28 April 2025, 12:00 CEST
Paris, Avenue HocheSold for €768 inc. premium
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[Apollo 15] "DOUBLE EARTHRISE": an extraordinary UV photograph of the Earth rising over the Moon
Alfred Worden, 26 July - 7 August 1971
Printed 1971.
Vintage gelatin silver print on fibre-based paper [NASA image AS15-99-13441].
Numbered "NASA AS15-99-13441" in black in the top margin (issued by NASA Manned Spacecraft Centre, Houston, Texas).
25.4 x 20.3 cm. (10 x 8 in.)
Historical context
"Double Earthrise": a unique ultraviolet view of Earth over the Moon
This extraordinary and exceptionally rare image captures a "Double Earthrise" over the lunar horizon, taken by Apollo 15 Command Module Pilot Alfred Worden during the spacecraft's 24th revolution around the Moon. Using a Hasselblad camera fitted with a special ultraviolet-transmitting 105-mm lens and a UV-sensitive film housed in magazine N, Worden captured this otherworldly scene from an altitude of approximately 120 km.
The unique optical effect, created by the combination of lens properties, exposure time, and specialized filters, gives the illusion of two Earths rising over the stark lunar surface, producing an image of remarkable abstract beauty.
While mission commander David Scott and lunar module pilot James Irwin spent 66 hours exploring the Moon's Hadley-Apennine region, Worden orbited solo in the Command Module Endeavour, taking scientific observations and reflecting on the grand scale of space and Earth's fragile beauty.
"Now I know why I'm here. Not for a closer look at the Moon, but to look back at our home, the Earth."
—Alfred Worden (Kelley, plate 52).
Printed 1971.
Vintage gelatin silver print on fibre-based paper [NASA image AS15-99-13441].
Numbered "NASA AS15-99-13441" in black in the top margin (issued by NASA Manned Spacecraft Centre, Houston, Texas).
25.4 x 20.3 cm. (10 x 8 in.)
Historical context
"Double Earthrise": a unique ultraviolet view of Earth over the Moon
This extraordinary and exceptionally rare image captures a "Double Earthrise" over the lunar horizon, taken by Apollo 15 Command Module Pilot Alfred Worden during the spacecraft's 24th revolution around the Moon. Using a Hasselblad camera fitted with a special ultraviolet-transmitting 105-mm lens and a UV-sensitive film housed in magazine N, Worden captured this otherworldly scene from an altitude of approximately 120 km.
The unique optical effect, created by the combination of lens properties, exposure time, and specialized filters, gives the illusion of two Earths rising over the stark lunar surface, producing an image of remarkable abstract beauty.
While mission commander David Scott and lunar module pilot James Irwin spent 66 hours exploring the Moon's Hadley-Apennine region, Worden orbited solo in the Command Module Endeavour, taking scientific observations and reflecting on the grand scale of space and Earth's fragile beauty.
"Now I know why I'm here. Not for a closer look at the Moon, but to look back at our home, the Earth."
—Alfred Worden (Kelley, plate 52).