
NASA has shared the first breathtaking views of Earth taken from the Artemis II mission as the crew continues its journey toward the moon.
The photos reveal Earth behind the Orion spacecraft, our home planet aglow with aurora.
One photo of Earth, taken Thursday by Artemis II commander Reid Wiseman from the Orion window, shows the planet backlit, with auroras visible at the top right and bottom left, Lakiesha Hawkins, deputy director for NASA’s Artemis program, said Friday during a news conference.
A zodiacal light is also visible at the bottom right as the Earth eclipses the sun, she said.
Another photo of Earth, also taken by Wiseman, shows a terminator line, meaning the line separating daylight and nighttime on the planet.
“What an amazing shot that he shared with us here,” she said.
The photos were taken after completing the translunar injection burn Thursday.
Hawkins said Friday, the third day of the Artemis II mission, that so far systems are normal and “the crew is in great spirit.”
The four crew members — NASA astronauts Wiseman, Christina Koch and Victor Glover and Canadian astronaut Jeremy Hansen — launched Wednesday on the 10-day mission.
As of Friday, the crew is more than 100,000 miles from Earth, with about 150,000 miles to go to the moon.
The mission does not include a lunar landing, but is designed as a step toward a landing in 2028.
The next major milestone for the space pioneers will be Monday, when the crew is expected to fly around the moon.
That flyby could mark the farthest venture from Earth made by humans, surpassing the distance record of 248,655 miles set by the Apollo 13 astronauts in 1970.
This article was originally published on NBCNews.com
latest_posts
- 1
Massive supernova explosion may have created a binary black hole - 2
South Korea launches Earth-observation satellite on homegrown Nuri rocket - 3
He made a name for himself posting thirst traps on TikTok. Now he's the star of a wildly popular rom-com. - 4
Displaced Palestinian families suffer as heavy rains flood Gaza tent camps - 5
The most effective method to Make a Dazzling Site in 5 Basic Advances
7 Fun Plans to Make Film Evenings Seriously Energizing (You'll Cherish #5!)
7 Heavenly Espressos, One Do You Like?
Toyota Reports 2.3% Sales Drop as China Weakness Deepens
Purdue Pharma's deal means money for some victims, end of Purdue company name. Here's what to know
How HIV/AIDS got its name − the words Americans used for the crisis were steeped in science, stigma and religious language
Finding Your Motivation: Moves toward a Satisfying Life
What happened to Eleven after the ambiguous 'Stranger Things' series finale? Millie Bobby Brown knows — but 'swore herself to secrecy'
I went to Japan during peak cherry blossom season and found an easy way to escape the crowds at popular tourist attractions
Poland identifies two Ukrainian suspects in railway sabotage blast












