This was the first Apollo mission for James Lovell, who would later command Apollo 13, and the first to directly see the dark side of the moon.
To signal the end of a radio blackout, one participant  in this mission sent the radio message "please be informed that there is a Santa Claus." The decision by George Low to dramatically increase the scope of this mission, which was originally planned as a medium Earth orbit, may have been a response to the Soviet Zond 5 mission two months earlier. This mission was the last to be commanded by Frank Borman, who had earlier commanded Gemini 7. During this mission, astronaut William Anders took the photograph named "Earthrise", which was published in Life magazine and was later used by the environmental movement. The crew of this mission famously read the first ten verses of the Book of Genesis, which was broadcast to Earth on Christmas Eve. This was the first Apollo mission for James Lovell, who would later command Apollo 13, and the first to directly see the dark side of the moon. For 10 points, name this first manned mission to orbit the moon.
To signal the end of a radio blackout, one participant  in this mission sent the radio message "please be informed that there is a Santa Claus."
Apollo 8