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On August 23, 1966, Lunar Orbiter 1 took the first photo of Earth as seen from lunar orbit. While a remarkable image at the time, the full resolution of the image was never retrieved from the data stored from the mission. In 2008, this earthrise image was restored by the Lunar Orbiter Image Recovery Project at NASA Ames Research Center. They obtained the original data tapes from the mission (the last surviving set) and restored original FR-900 tape drives to operational condition using both 60s era parts and modern electronics.

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On August 23, 1966, Lunar Orbiter 1 took the first photo of Earth as seen from lunar orbit. While a remarkable image at the time, the full resolution of the image was never retrieved from the data stored from the mission. In 2008, this earthrise image was restored by the Lunar Orbiter Image Recovery Project at NASA Ames Research Center. They obtained the original data tapes from the mission (the last surviving set) and restored original FR-900 tape drives to operational condition using both 60s era parts and modern electronics.
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Corey S Powell (coreyspowell@mastodon.social)'s status on Tuesday, 25-Aug-2026 13:43:20 JST Corey S Powell

The historic first Earthrise photo from the Moon was received 60 years ago today. It was shot on film, developed onboard the Lunar Orbiter 1 spacecraft, scanned, transmitted home...and then meticulously restored decades later.
https://www.lpi.usra.edu/features/lunarOrbiter/ #space #science #history #tech

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