Astronaut Circled Moon, Helped Create Iconic Image

Frank Borman, the commander of the first mission in which astronauts orbited the moon and returned safely to Earth has died. He was 95. NASA announced that the Apollo 8 commander, who ran Eastern Airlines later in his career, died Tuesday in Billings, Montana, the New York Times reports. "Astronaut Frank Borman was a true American hero," NASA Administrator Bill Nelson said in a statement, per the AP. Borman is remembered not just for his space and business accomplishments, but for the famous Earthrise image, taken on Christmas Eve 1968 and transmitted to Earth, accompanied by the crew reading Bible verses.

Borman was the first of the astronauts to spot Earth rising above the lunar horizon that night on their fourth orbit of the moon from more than 230,000 miles away, a sparkling blue and white body surrounded by blackness, per the Times. William Anders, who was on the crew along with James Lovell, was taking black-and-white photos but changed to color film. The crew sent the image back in black and white that night, and the Apollo astronauts read from the book of Genesis about Earth's creation to mark the moment and Christrmas Eve. A year later, NASA released the color version, which became the famous version and adorned a postage stamp. Borman ended the holiday telecast by saying, "Good night, good luck, a Merry Christmas and God bless all of you, all of you on the good Earth."

In 1976, Borman became chief executive of Eastern, which was near bankruptcy at the time. He cut costs, partly by eliminating perks for executives, and made the airline profitable again while appearing in Eastern commercials. A slide began with deregulation in 1978, per the Washington Post, and company morale fell during contentious salary negotiations with employees. Borman left in 1986 when the airline was sold. "For the first time in my life, I hadn't accomplished a mission," he wrote in his memoir. President Jimmy Carter presented him with the Congressional Space Medal of Honor, per the AP. (More obituary stories.)