This 1968 photo, taken by William Anders of Apollo 8 — the first manned orbit of the Moon — is probably the most influential photo ever captured by humanity. Dubbed “Earthrise” by NASA, this was the very first time we’d ever seen Earth, in full color, from outer space; the first time we’d ever seen just how tiny we are, in comparison to the grand, infinite enormity of the universe. Depending on how romantic your opinion of humanity is, Earthrise can even be seen as the trigger that created the entire environmental/ecology movement that still dominates politics and society today.

For all the influence that Earthrise had, photos like it are exceedingly rare. To get a good shot of the Earth, you need to be a few thousand miles away — and somewhat depressingly, sending spacecraft into deep space just isn’t done very often. Other than the Apollo program — which ended more than 40 years ago — humanity has only sent a handful of spacecraft beyond low Earth orbit. The vast majority of space launches are used to put low-level satellites into place, or to send cargo to the International Space Station — and these are all much too close to get a full view of the Earth with the glorious Milky Way as a backdrop.

Fortunately, in recent years, there has been a renewed interest in going back to deep space — first with unmanned probes and rovers, and eventually with humans. Case in point: China’s Chang’e program. Last year China’s Chang’e 3 mission put the Yutu rover on the Moon — humankind’s first soft lunar landing in 40 years! — and now, Chang’e 5-T1 has completed a rare flyby of the far side of the Moon, capturing a stunning photo of both the far side of the Moon and Earth in a single frame.

After you’re done marveling at how weird the far side of the Moon looks, click through for a few more awesome photos of the Earth as seen from outer space — including the rather famous Blue Marble, and Carl Sagan’s beloved Pale Blue Dot, the most distant photo of Earth ever captured (and sadly, probably the most distant photo we’ll ever take of Earth for the next few decades).

Next page: The Blue Marble