Final answer:
The first images from space were taken by the Soviet Luna 3 mission in 1959. Subsequent notable images include the 'Blue Marble' photograph from Apollo 17 in 1972. These early space missions laid the groundwork for future observational technologies.
Step-by-step explanation:
The first images collected from space were taken in the 1950s. The Soviet Union's Luna missions were pioneering endeavors in space exploration. Specifically, Luna 3 was the first to successfully take photographs of the Moon's far side in 1959. Although the images were of poor quality, they represented a significant milestone. The Apollo 16 mission in 1972 took this a step further by capturing the first astronomical images from the lunar surface, which included the use of a Far Ultraviolet Camera. Notably, the iconic "Blue Marble" image of Earth from space was taken by the Apollo 17 astronauts in 1972.
Early ultraviolet observations began with V2 rockets just after World War II, and subsequent advancements included infrared observations from airplanes in the 1960s and the utilization of corrected optics for space-based instruments like the Hubble Space Telescope in 1993. These developments paved the way for high-energy observatories to observe the cosmos in wavelengths beyond the visible, which could only be done from above the Earth's atmosphere.