The four-man crew of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration’s (NASA) Artemis II mission is heading back to earth after completing a historic lunar fly-by that saw them travel farther into space than any humans in history.
The astronauts, identified as Reid Wiseman, commander; Victor Glover, pilot; and mission specialists Christina Koch and Jeremy Hansen; reached a maximum distance of 252,756 miles (406,771 kilometres) from earth, surpassing the previous record set by the Apollo 13 crew in 1970.
The mission marks the first crewed flight of NASA’s Orion spacecraft under the Artemis programme, a key step towards future missions to land humans on the moon.
Speaking during the return journey, Wiseman said the crew “saw sights that no human has ever seen”, while Glover added that there are “no adjectives” to fully describe the experience.
During the fly-by, the spacecraft passed behind the moon, leading to a temporary loss of communication with NASA that lasted about 40 minutes.
When contact was restored, Koch said: “It is so great to hear from earth again.”
The astronauts also witnessed a total solar eclipse from their spacecraft, spending about an hour observing and documenting the rare event from deep space.
The milestone mission has drawn global attention, with US President Donald Trump commending the crew for their achievement.
“You have made history and made all America really proud,” Trump said in a brief call with the astronauts, while also inviting them to the White House upon their return.
The Artemis II crew is expected to complete the mission with a splashdown in the Pacific Ocean off the west coast of the United States on Friday.
0
