The blue marble 英文参考文献.docVIP

Petsko Genome Biology 2011, 12:112 /2011/12/4/112 CO MMENT The blue marble Gregory A Petsko* It is one of the most iconic images - not just of our time, but of all time. e picture of the earth as seen from 28,000 miles (45,000 km) out in space - often called ‘the blue marble’ because it resembles the spherical agates we used to play with as children - was taken on 7 December 1972 by the crew of the spacecraft Apollo 17 (it is reproduced here). e Arabian Peninsula is clearly visible at the top, with the east coast of Africa extending down towards Antarctica, t