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Vintage NASA space photos up for auction

By Bryony Jones, CNN

Updated 1645 GMT (0045 HKT) February 25, 2015

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Nearly 700 photographs from the golden age of space exploration are being sold by Bloomsbury Auctions in London. The sale includes iconic images and a large number of rarely seen photographs from NASA. Seen here is the first photo from space, captured on October 24, 1946, by a camera attached to a V-2 missile and launched from New Mexico. The official boundary of space is the Karman line, which lies at an altitude of 62.5 miles.
Photos: Vintage NASA photos up for auction
Nearly 700 photographs from the golden age of space exploration are being sold by Bloomsbury Auctions in London. The sale includes iconic images and a large number of rarely seen photographs from NASA. Seen here is the first photo from space, captured on October 24, 1946, by a camera attached to a V-2 missile and launched from New Mexico. The official boundary of space is the Karman line, which lies at an altitude of 62.5 miles.
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Explorer 1 is launched on January 31, 1958. It was the first artificial satellite launched from the United States, signaling the birth of its space program. "There is beauty in space, and it is orderly. ... Everything in space obeys the laws of physics. If you know these laws, and obey them, space will treat you kindly," aerospace engineer Wernher von Braun said.
Photos: Vintage NASA photos up for auction
Explorer 1 is launched on January 31, 1958. It was the first artificial satellite launched from the United States, signaling the birth of its space program. "There is beauty in space, and it is orderly. ... Everything in space obeys the laws of physics. If you know these laws, and obey them, space will treat you kindly," aerospace engineer Wernher von Braun said.
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Astronaut Alan Shepard is pictured in his Mercury spacesuit aboard Freedom 7 during the United States' first human spaceflight on May 5, 1961.
Photos: Vintage NASA photos up for auction
Astronaut Alan Shepard is pictured in his Mercury spacesuit aboard Freedom 7 during the United States' first human spaceflight on May 5, 1961.
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During the Gemini 4 mission in June 1965, Ed White became the first American to perform a spacewalk. He floated in space 135 miles above Earth for 20 minutes.
Photos: Vintage NASA photos up for auction
During the Gemini 4 mission in June 1965, Ed White became the first American to perform a spacewalk. He floated in space 135 miles above Earth for 20 minutes.
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Traveling at 17,000 mph, the Gemini 6 crew flies to within inches of the orbiting Gemini 7 spacecraft in December 1965. It was the first rendezvous in space.
Photos: Vintage NASA photos up for auction
Traveling at 17,000 mph, the Gemini 6 crew flies to within inches of the orbiting Gemini 7 spacecraft in December 1965. It was the first rendezvous in space.
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Buzz Aldrin takes the first selfie in space during the Gemini 12 mission in November 1966.
Photos: Vintage NASA photos up for auction
Buzz Aldrin takes the first selfie in space during the Gemini 12 mission in November 1966.
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The first view of the Earth from the moon was taken by a spacecraft on August 23, 1966. It is a sight that has only ever been seen by the later Apollo astronauts as they came around the far side of the moon.
Photos: Vintage NASA photos up for auction
The first view of the Earth from the moon was taken by a spacecraft on August 23, 1966. It is a sight that has only ever been seen by the later Apollo astronauts as they came around the far side of the moon.
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The first color photograph of Earth was captured on November 10, 1967, five years before the astronauts of Apollo 17 could <a href="http://visibleearth.nasa.gov/view.php?id=55418" target="_blank">witness it with their own eyes</a>.
Photos: Vintage NASA photos up for auction
The first color photograph of Earth was captured on November 10, 1967, five years before the astronauts of Apollo 17 could witness it with their own eyes.
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The surface of Mars is seen by Mariner 9, the first unmanned spacecraft to orbit a planet. Between 1971 and 1972, the spacecraft mapped 85% of the Red Planet and returned 7,329 photos. The Martian Valles Marineris canyon system is named after Mariner 9, in honor of its achievements.
Photos: Vintage NASA photos up for auction
The surface of Mars is seen by Mariner 9, the first unmanned spacecraft to orbit a planet. Between 1971 and 1972, the spacecraft mapped 85% of the Red Planet and returned 7,329 photos. The Martian Valles Marineris canyon system is named after Mariner 9, in honor of its achievements.
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The crew of Apollo 7 is seen during the first live television broadcast from space in October 1968. There were seven telecasts that lasted just a few minutes each.
Photos: Vintage NASA photos up for auction
The crew of Apollo 7 is seen during the first live television broadcast from space in October 1968. There were seven telecasts that lasted just a few minutes each.
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Space food is seen on Apollo 8 in December 1968. On Christmas Day, the crew feasted on ready-to-eat turkey, gravy and cranberry sauce.
Photos: Vintage NASA photos up for auction
Space food is seen on Apollo 8 in December 1968. On Christmas Day, the crew feasted on ready-to-eat turkey, gravy and cranberry sauce.
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The space module "Charlie Brown" became the first spacecraft photographed in lunar orbit during the Apollo 10 mission in May 1969.
Photos: Vintage NASA photos up for auction
The space module "Charlie Brown" became the first spacecraft photographed in lunar orbit during the Apollo 10 mission in May 1969.
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In July 1969, Apollo 11's Neil Armstrong captured the first photo of a man standing on the moon: fellow astronaut Buzz Aldrin.
Photos: Vintage NASA photos up for auction
In July 1969, Apollo 11's Neil Armstrong captured the first photo of a man standing on the moon: fellow astronaut Buzz Aldrin.
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This now famous image of Aldrin's boot was taken to provide a visual record of the relative density of the moon's surface. "I felt buoyant and full of goose pimples when I stepped down on the surface," Aldrin said. "I immediately looked down at my feet and became intrigued with the peculiar properties of the lunar dust."
Photos: Vintage NASA photos up for auction
This now famous image of Aldrin's boot was taken to provide a visual record of the relative density of the moon's surface. "I felt buoyant and full of goose pimples when I stepped down on the surface," Aldrin said. "I immediately looked down at my feet and became intrigued with the peculiar properties of the lunar dust."
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This dramatic view shows an eclipse that occurred when the Earth moved between the sun and the Apollo 12 spacecraft in November 1969. It's a scene that can only be seen from space. "When the Earth completed eclipsing the sun, you could see a big white light right in the middle of the Earth moving across the ocean. We didn't know what that was," astronaut Alan Bean said. "When we got back, Rusty Schweickart pointed out that it was the moon right behind us reflecting off the Earth."
Photos: Vintage NASA photos up for auction
This dramatic view shows an eclipse that occurred when the Earth moved between the sun and the Apollo 12 spacecraft in November 1969. It's a scene that can only be seen from space. "When the Earth completed eclipsing the sun, you could see a big white light right in the middle of the Earth moving across the ocean. We didn't know what that was," astronaut Alan Bean said. "When we got back, Rusty Schweickart pointed out that it was the moon right behind us reflecting off the Earth."
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Jack Swigert works on the "mailbox" in the Apollo 13 lunar module Aquarius in April 1970. The service module that had been due to take the astronauts back to Earth was destroyed by an oxygen tank explosion. Speaking to mission control, Jim Lovell delivered the famous line: "Houston, we've had a problem." In order to purge carbon dioxide from the lunar module, an improvised contraption that became known as the mailbox was devised. "I never felt we were in a hopeless situation," Fred Haise said. "No, we never had that emotion at all. We never were with our backs to the wall, where there were no more ideas, or nothing else to try, or no possible solution. That never came."
Photos: Vintage NASA photos up for auction
Jack Swigert works on the "mailbox" in the Apollo 13 lunar module Aquarius in April 1970. The service module that had been due to take the astronauts back to Earth was destroyed by an oxygen tank explosion. Speaking to mission control, Jim Lovell delivered the famous line: "Houston, we've had a problem." In order to purge carbon dioxide from the lunar module, an improvised contraption that became known as the mailbox was devised. "I never felt we were in a hopeless situation," Fred Haise said. "No, we never had that emotion at all. We never were with our backs to the wall, where there were no more ideas, or nothing else to try, or no possible solution. That never came."
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Apollo 15's Alfred Worden completes the first deep-space spacewalk in August 1971. Every other spacewalk before then took place in low Earth orbit, never more than about 370 miles away from the home planet.
Photos: Vintage NASA photos up for auction
Apollo 15's Alfred Worden completes the first deep-space spacewalk in August 1971. Every other spacewalk before then took place in low Earth orbit, never more than about 370 miles away from the home planet.
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Earth is seen above Eugene Cernan and the antenna of the lunar rover during Apollo 17 in December 1972. It was the final mission of the Apollo program. "I thought about it when we left the surface," Cernan said. "I just felt it might very well be a generation before we get back to the moon. I'm probably going to be proven to be right."
Photos: Vintage NASA photos up for auction
Earth is seen above Eugene Cernan and the antenna of the lunar rover during Apollo 17 in December 1972. It was the final mission of the Apollo program. "I thought about it when we left the surface," Cernan said. "I just felt it might very well be a generation before we get back to the moon. I'm probably going to be proven to be right."
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Story highlights

  • Treasure trove of more than 600 NASA images from the space race are up for sale at auction in London.
  • Photographs include the first "selfie" in space, and an extremely rare picture of Neil Armstrong on the Moon.

London (CNN)An out-of-this-world collection of vintage NASA photos -- including the first "selfie" taken in space and a rare image of pioneering astronaut Neil Armstrong on the Moon -- are to go up for sale in London.

The treasure trove of more than 600 images, including some of the most significant moments in lunar exploration, was put together over decades by a dedicated collector.
    The pictures will go under the hammer at Bloomsbury Auctions in London on February 26, where they are expected to sell for between £300 ($465) and £10,000 ($15,525) -- a total of upwards of £500,000.
    Among the highlights of the sale is a photograph snapped by Buzz Aldrin -- later the second man to step onto the Moon -- during the Gemini 12 mission in November 1966, which is believed to be the first space "selfie." It is tipped to sell for £600 to £800 ($932 to $1,242).
    Aldrin also features in perhaps the most famous image in the sale: the so-called "visor photograph" showing him on the Moon on July 20,1969 during the Apollo 11 mission.
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    A spokesman for Bloomsbury Auctions said the picture, taken by Armstrong just minutes after he had made his "one small step" speech and featuring the pioneering astronaut reflected in his colleague's helmet visor, was likely to excite a lot of interest from bidders.
    NASA astronaut Ed White taking part in the first U.S. spacewalk on June 3, 1965. Photograph taken by fellow astronaut James McDivitt.
    NASA astronaut Ed White taking part in the first U.S. spacewalk on June 3, 1965. Photograph taken by fellow astronaut James McDivitt.
    "A picture like that still has enormous power today," the photography expert said.
    There's also an extremely rare picture taken by Aldrin showing his fellow explorer Armstrong on the lunar surface. Most of the photos from the Apollo 11 landing were taken by Armstrong himself, so there are very few of him actually on the Moon.
    "It is very rare to find a vintage print of that because it wasn't recognized by NASA at the time," explained the Bloomsbury Auctions spokesman.
    "They didn't realize it was Neil Armstrong, so they didn't release it to the press. It was found years later, and very few people have seen it, it hasn't been widely published, so that one is of obvious historic significance."
    But the collection is not limited to photos from the 1960s heyday of the space program. The oldest image in the sale is one dating all the way back to 1946; shot by a camera strapped to a V-2 rocket, it is the first to show the earth from space.
    In addition to photos of astronauts, there are also landmark mosaics and panoramas showing the lunar surface, and shots looking back at Earth from the darkness of space, including the iconic "Earthrise" image taken by Apollo 8's William Anders in December 1968, which Sara Wheeler, head of photographs at Bloomsbury Auctions, said "changed man's relationship with the cosmos forever."
    The auction house spokesman said previous sales of NASA images had proved hugely popular, both with space enthusiasts and photography aficionados.
    "Four years ago in 2011 we sold a private collection of NASA photos and I was surprised by the range of people who did buy them -- I'd say about half were interested in the aesthetics of the image, and the other half were looking for the significant moments in space history -- the classic images: the first 'earthrise', the first picture of the whole earth and so on."
    He said the fact that the pictures were vintage prints, dating back to the days of the space race only added to their allure.
    "They represent a golden age in the history of photography, when a few men went to the unknown to bring back awe-inspiring pictures," said Wheeler.

    The From the Earth to the Moon: Vintage NASA photographs sale takes place at Bloomsbury Auctions in London on Thursday February 26.