Famed Apollo 8 astronaut William Anders, 90, dies in horror crash when his plane nose-dives into waters

William Anders, an Apollo astronaut who snapped the iconic 1968 “Earthrise” photo of the Earth while orbiting the moon, died in a plane crash near the San Juan Islands on Friday.

Greg Anders, the astronaut’s son, confirmed to the Associated Press his father died in the crash.

William Anders was piloting the plane, according to Fox 13 Seattle, citing social media posts from friends and family of the former astronaut.

The plane, according to flight data and FAA records obtained by the outlet, was a vintage Air Force T-34 Mentor owned by Anders, who lived in San Juan County.

A search and rescue mission is underway at the crash site.

Unverified video circulating on social media, purportedly of the crash, shows a small aircraft heading straight down towards the surface of the water near Orcas Island, then skidding along the surface and exploding in a ball of fire.

Personnel from the San Juan County Sheriff’s Office, US Coast Guard, and Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife are responding to the crash, according to county officials.

The National Transportation Safety Board and the FAA are investigating the crash.

Anders was part of the Apollo 8 mission, which orbitted the Moon before returning to Earth.

The mission circled the Moon for 20 hours, the first time a human entered lunar orbit.

“Earthrise” is one of the most famous photos in history and is credited with helping inspire the growing environmental movement of the late 1960s.

This is a breaking news story and will be updated with new information.

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