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VOYAGER 1, a space probe launched in 1977 to visit Jupiter and Saturn,
has sent back a ‘family photograph’ of the planets in the Solar System.
The probe, now heading out of the Solar System, has continued to send back
data. This February, scientists at NASA reactivated its cameras so that
they would ‘look back’ and photograph the 64 images (see Diagram) that would
provide the mosaic portrait of the Solar System.

Voyager 1 was uniquely positioned to take the photographs. NASA published
photographs of individual planets, though all appeared as tiny ‘dots’. Planet
Earth was blue. Carl Sagan, speaking at the launch of the pictures last
week, said: ‘This is where we live, on a blue dot. (We are just) a small
stage in the great cosmic Universe.’

Sagan continued: ‘Perhaps this view of Earth underscores our responsibility
to preserve and cherish that blue dot.’