science
Artemis II nears moon and sends striking Earth photos
Four astronauts on NASA’s Orion mission passed midflight toward the moon and sent back photos as they prepare to enter the moon's gravitational sphere for a far-side flyby.
Apr 5th 2026 · United States
Insights
- Artemis II crossed the halfway point of its 10-day mission and was about 322,000 km from Earth and 132,000 km from the moon on day four.
- NASA released interior and external Orion images showing a full view of Earth and views of the moon.
- The four-person crew includes commander Reid Wiseman, pilot Victor Glover, mission specialist Christina Koch and Canadian Jeremy Hansen.
- Orion is due to enter the lunar sphere of influence overnight from Sunday into Monday US time ahead of a far-side lunar flyby.
- If the planned flyby succeeds, the crew could travel farther from Earth than any humans in history.
Sources
- Artemis crew enter day four with plans to take manual control of spacecraft www.abc.net.au
- Nasa’s Orion spaceship four days into Artemis II mission: in pictures www.theguardian.com
- Earth in rear-view of Artemis II astronauts www.aljazeera.com
- Where is Artemis II? NASA astronauts near the moon for first time in more than 50 years www.scientificamerican.com
- What NASA is looking for in the coming days as Artemis II loops around the moon www.cbsnews.com
- Artemis II y la cara oculta de la Luna: "Eso es algo que nunca hemos visto antes" www.libertaddigital.com
- Los astronautas de la misión Artemis II ya han visto la cara oculta de la Luna www.elconfidencial.com
- Artemis II crew take new photo of far side of the moon www.cbsnews.com
- Artemis II astronauts get closer to the moon www.france24.com