Réf. : AS11-44-6642 NON NASA print signed by Collins 20,4 x 25,6 cm / 8 x 10 inch
The photograph AS11-44-6642 was taken by Michael COLLINS from the Command and Service Modules CSM, while Neil ARMSTRONG and Buzz ALDRIN explored the surface of the Moon. We can see the lunar module where the two astronauts are, returning from the Moon and about to moor. Behind them the lunar surface is partially visible, we can also observe a large dark spot, it is the Sea of Smyth (Mare Smythii in Latin), named in honor of the British soldier and astronomer: William Henry SMYTH (1788-1865). In the background is the Earth, then populated by more than 3 billion human beings.
This photograph includes all of humanity except Michael COLLINS (who took the picture), the latter christened it with clairvoyance and humor: 3 billion + 2, adding the earth population to the two astronauts in their module. Michael COLLINS: "I remember most vividly the picture of the lunar horizon and then the LEM ascent stage in the foreground with these two guys in it, and then the Earth popping up at that instant… You’ve got 3 billion people over there, two people here and that’s it."
