Apollo 8 became the first crewed spacecraft to orbit the Moon in December 1968.
Launched on December 21, 1968, Apollo 8 carried Frank Borman, James Lovell, and William Anders. The mission was originally planned as a lower-Earth-orbit test, but NASA changed its objective as the lunar landing program accelerated and concerns grew about Soviet lunar ambitions.
The spacecraft entered lunar orbit on December 24 and made ten orbits before returning safely to Earth. The crew also captured the famous “Earthrise” photograph, showing Earth rising above the lunar horizon. Their Christmas Eve broadcast from lunar orbit became one of the most memorable communications of the Space Race.
Apollo 8 did not land on the Moon. Apollo 10 rehearsed the landing approach in lunar orbit, while Apollo 11 carried out the first crewed lunar landing in July 1969.