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Bruce Murray Space Image Library

Earth and the Moon as seen by Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter CTX

Earth and the Moon as seen by Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter CTX
Earth and the Moon as seen by Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter CTX As it sped away from Earth on September 8, 2005, Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter turned to the crescent-phase Earth-Moon system, focusing on the Moon to test and calibrate its cameras. NASA / JPL / MSSS

The exposure of this Context Camera (CTX) image was set for the relatively dim Moon, so Earth is overexposed. Earth and the Moon were about 10 million kilometers from the spacecraft when this image was taken.