Apollo 8 Chart for Lunar Photography

Apollo Target of Opportunity Flight Chart (ATO), Apollo Mission 8, 21 December 1968 Launch Date. Aeronautical Chart and Information Center of the USAF for NASA. December 2, 1968. First Edition. 14 by 58 inches. Scale 1:7,500,000. Small date stamp of “Mar 27, 1970” on verso at far lower left corner.

Boldly INSCRIBED and SIGNED: "First Manned Lunar Orbit Photography, JAMES LOVELL, Apollo 8."

Apollo 8 astronauts Frank Borman, James Lovell, and Willian Anders used an identical chart from this production on their 1968 lunar flight. They captured some of the most stunning photographs of the entire Apollo Program, especially the Earth rise above the lunar horizon. That image latter became part of the six cent U.S. postage stamp issued just before the Apollo 11 lunar landing of 1969.

Photography of the lunar surface to locate new and verify the surroundings of currently planned Apollo landing sites was one of the top objectives for the Apollo 8 crew during their ten lunar orbit mission. This chart defines locations of "targets of opportunity" with multi-colored arrows and geometric markings. A legend block defines photography methods relating to shutter speeds, f-stops, and camera lens sizes. Those include several multi-colored target markers defining the use of 80 and 250 mm lens.