{"id":23550,"date":"2026-04-06T19:51:37","date_gmt":"2026-04-06T11:51:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wp-productionenv-bjg9h2g2bgg5b8aa.southeastasia-01.azurewebsites.net\/news\/artemis-ii-breaks-record-conducts-lunar-flyby\/"},"modified":"2026-04-06T19:51:37","modified_gmt":"2026-04-06T11:51:37","slug":"artemis-ii-breaks-record-conducts-lunar-flyby","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/news\/artemis-ii-breaks-record-conducts-lunar-flyby\/","title":{"rendered":"Artemis II breaks record, conducts lunar flyby"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Orion spacecraft Integrity, carrying astronauts Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, Christina Koch, and Jeremy Hansen, successfully passed behind the Moon on Flight Day 6 of the Artemis II mission, losing communications with Earth for approximately 40 minutes while the crew observed spectacular, never-before-seen views of the lunar surface with human eyes.<\/p>\n<p>The milestone moment also included the crew breaking the record for the farthest humans have traveled from Earth.\n<\/p>\n<\/p>\n<p><iframe title=\"Inside Artemis II\u2019s Epic Lunar Flyby | Never-Before-Seen Views + More Toilet Drama\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/IfJRdQdEa2A?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen=\"\" name=\"fitvid0\" data-gtm-yt-inspected-14=\"true\" data-gtm-yt-inspected-21=\"true\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>The flyby marked a major achievement for the first crewed Artemis mission, which launched atop SLS from 39B on April 1, 2026.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n<h4 class=\"widget-title penci-border-arrow\">See Also<\/h4>\n<ul>\n<li>Artemis II Updates<\/li>\n<li>L2 Artemis Section<\/li>\n<li>Artemis Archives<\/li>\n<li>Click here to Join L2<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>During the roughly 40-minute communications blackout\u2014caused by the Moon blocking the signal path to Earth\u2019s Deep Space Network\u2014the spacecraft reached its maximum distance from Earth, surpassing the previous record set by Apollo 13 in 1970.<\/p>\n<p>Prior to the closest approach, Orion coasted approximately 400,000 kilometers (about 248,500 miles) following the Trans-Lunar Injection burn on Flight Day 2.<\/p>\n<p>Three planned trajectory correction burns were planned, but two were ultimately canceled due to the exceptional precision of the European Service Module\u2019s initial insertion. A third, OTC-3, was conducted, allowing the spacecraft to enter the Moon\u2019s sphere of influence on a near-perfect path roughly 185 kilometers (115 miles) above the lunar surface at its closest point.<\/p>\n<p>NASA mission patches<path d=\"M7.59009 18.59L9.00009 20L17.0001 12L9.00009 4L7.59009 5.41L14.1701 12\" style=\"animation: initial !important; background: initial !important; border: 0px !important; box-shadow: none !important; color: inherit !important; cursor: inherit !important; direction: inherit !important; display: inline !important; fill: currentcolor !important; filter: initial !important; float: none !important; margin: 0px !important; opacity: initial !important; outline: 0px !important; overflow: initial !important; padding: 0px !important; stroke: initial !important; transform: initial !important; vertical-align: initial !important; visibility: inherit !important;\"><\/path>Space Shuttle models<path d=\"M7.59009 18.59L9.00009 20L17.0001 12L9.00009 4L7.59009 5.41L14.1701 12\" style=\"animation: initial !important; background: initial !important; border: 0px !important; box-shadow: none !important; color: inherit !important; cursor: inherit !important; direction: inherit !important; display: inline !important; fill: currentcolor !important; filter: initial !important; float: none !important; margin: 0px !important; opacity: initial !important; outline: 0px !important; overflow: initial !important; padding: 0px !important; stroke: initial !important; transform: initial !important; vertical-align: initial !important; visibility: inherit !important;\"><\/path>Spaceflight news subscription<path d=\"M7.59009 18.59L9.00009 20L17.0001 12L9.00009 4L7.59009 5.41L14.1701 12\" style=\"animation: initial !important; background: initial !important; border: 0px !important; box-shadow: none !important; color: inherit !important; cursor: inherit !important; direction: inherit !important; display: inline !important; fill: currentcolor !important; filter: initial !important; float: none !important; margin: 0px !important; opacity: initial !important; outline: 0px !important; overflow: initial !important; padding: 0px !important; stroke: initial !important; transform: initial !important; vertical-align: initial !important; visibility: inherit !important;\"><\/path>\n<p>     (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});<\/p>\n<p>The outbound journey was not without minor challenges. Toilet issues resurfaced during the coast, this time related to the plumbing vent line between the toilet and the vacuum of space. Mission Control suspected a clog from frozen waste and reoriented the spacecraft to expose the vent to sunlight, successfully thawing the blockage.<\/p>\n<p>The crew temporarily relied on Collapsible Contingency Urinals (reusable, sealable containers that manage urine using capillary forces). Later, venting proceeded at a slower-than-normal rate, but the system was deemed usable for solid waste, with NASA instructing the crew to keep the waste tank approximately half-full as a precaution.<\/p>\n<p>On Flight Day 3, the astronauts took a memorable selfie, floating to Orion\u2019s windows and posing for cameras mounted on the service module\u2019s solar arrays.<br \/>\n<img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-112779\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nasaspaceflight.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/NSF-2026-04-07-04-21-06-644.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1591\" height=\"886\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nasaspaceflight.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/NSF-2026-04-07-04-21-06-644.jpg 1591w, https:\/\/www.nasaspaceflight.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/NSF-2026-04-07-04-21-06-644-350x195.jpg 350w, https:\/\/www.nasaspaceflight.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/NSF-2026-04-07-04-21-06-644-628x350.jpg 628w, https:\/\/www.nasaspaceflight.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/NSF-2026-04-07-04-21-06-644-768x428.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.nasaspaceflight.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/NSF-2026-04-07-04-21-06-644-1170x652.jpg 1170w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1591px) 100vw, 1591px\">As the Moon grew larger in their view\u2014appearing at times as large as a basketball held at arm\u2019s length\u2014the crew conducted extensive observations, photographing features from pole to pole along a more lofted trajectory than Apollo missions. This allowed them to see lunar regions never before witnessed directly by humans.<\/p>\n<p>The crew entered the Moon\u2019s gravitational sphere of influence on Flight Day 5, where lunar gravity became the dominant force shaping their path.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n<p><iframe title=\"Watch Artemis II's Closest Approach to The Moon\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/Fbpd2YB8seo?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen=\"\" name=\"fitvid1\" data-gtm-yt-inspected-14=\"true\" data-gtm-yt-inspected-21=\"true\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>The highlight came on April 6 as the crew stowed gear and prepared the windows for lunar sightseeing. They captured detailed photos and made naked-eye observations of the far side and illuminated features.<\/p>\n<p>The day opened with a heartfelt recorded \u201cWelcome to my old neighborhood\u201d message, recorded in 2025 by late astronaut Jim Lovell, the pilot of Apollo 8.<\/p>\n<p>Thanks to the April 1 launch date, an unexpected opportunity arose: from Orion\u2019s unique vantage point between the Moon and Sun just after emerging from behind the lunar far side, the crew directly observed a solar eclipse.<\/p>\n<p><iframe id=\"twitter-widget-1\" scrolling=\"no\" frameborder=\"0\" allowtransparency=\"true\" allowfullscreen=\"true\" class=\"\" style=\"position: static; visibility: visible; width: 550px; height: 281px; display: block; flex-grow: 1;\" title=\"X Post\" src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/embed\/Tweet.html?creatorScreenName=NASASpaceflight&amp;dnt=true&amp;embedId=twitter-widget-1&amp;features=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%3D%3D&amp;frame=false&amp;hideCard=false&amp;hideThread=false&amp;id=2041315569329160293&amp;lang=en&amp;origin=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.nasaspaceflight.com%2F2026%2F04%2Fartemis-ii-breaks-record-lunar-flyby%2F&amp;sessionId=bf1c85a5ee80b6b879127e1ca5e97d370a8ecd35&amp;siteScreenName=NASASpaceflight&amp;theme=light&amp;widgetsVersion=6a3ad42b224df%3A1778106238597&amp;width=550px\" data-gtm-yt-inspected-14=\"true\" data-gtm-yt-inspected-21=\"true\" data-tweet-id=\"2041315569329160293\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>They viewed the Sun\u2019s corona and studied how solar wind and radiation electrostatically charge and loft ultra-fine lunar regolith into short hops or a hazy exosphere on the airless surface.<\/p>\n<p>The observations provided valuable data on lunar dust transport and surface processes, with the crew reporting \u201cabsolutely spectacular\u201d views of features such as the Orientale basin.<\/p>\n<p>To commemorate the Artemis II mission, the astronauts proposed renaming certain features on the Moon to honor the Orion spacecraft, named Integrity. However, the most touching naming was for Commander Reid Wiseman\u2019s late wife, Carroll.<\/p>\n<p>As Orion begins its return coast toward Earth, up to three additional trajectory correction burns remain available if needed.<\/p>\n<p><iframe id=\"twitter-widget-2\" scrolling=\"no\" frameborder=\"0\" allowtransparency=\"true\" allowfullscreen=\"true\" class=\"\" style=\"position: static; visibility: visible; width: 550px; height: 624px; display: block; flex-grow: 1;\" title=\"X Post\" src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/embed\/Tweet.html?creatorScreenName=NASASpaceflight&amp;dnt=true&amp;embedId=twitter-widget-2&amp;features=eyJ0ZndfdGltZWxpbmVfbGlzdCI6eyJidWNrZXQiOltdLCJ2ZXJzaW9uIjpudWxsfSwidGZ3X2ZvbGxvd2VyX2NvdW50X3N1bnNldCI6eyJidWNrZXQiOnRydWUsInZlcnNpb24iOm51bGx9LCJ0ZndfdHdlZXRfZWRpdF9iYWNrZW5kIjp7ImJ1Y2tldCI6Im9uIiwidmVyc2lvbiI6bnVsbH0sInRmd19yZWZzcmNfc2Vzc2lvbiI6eyJidWNrZXQiOiJvbiIsInZlcnNpb24iOm51bGx9LCJ0ZndfZm9zbnJfc29mdF9pbnRlcnZlbnRpb25zX2VuYWJsZWQiOnsiYnVja2V0Ijoib24iLCJ2ZXJzaW9uIjpudWxsfSwidGZ3X21peGVkX21lZGlhXzE1ODk3Ijp7ImJ1Y2tldCI6InRyZWF0bWVudCIsInZlcnNpb24iOm51bGx9LCJ0ZndfZXhwZXJpbWVudHNfY29va2llX2V4cGlyYXRpb24iOnsiYnVja2V0IjoxMjA5NjAwLCJ2ZXJzaW9uIjpudWxsfSwidGZ3X3Nob3dfYmlyZHdhdGNoX3Bpdm90c19lbmFibGVkIjp7ImJ1Y2tldCI6Im9uIiwidmVyc2lvbiI6bnVsbH0sInRmd19kdXBsaWNhdGVfc2NyaWJlc190b19zZXR0aW5ncyI6eyJidWNrZXQiOiJvbiIsInZlcnNpb24iOm51bGx9LCJ0ZndfdXNlX3Byb2ZpbGVfaW1hZ2Vfc2hhcGVfZW5hYmxlZCI6eyJidWNrZXQiOiJvbiIsInZlcnNpb24iOm51bGx9LCJ0ZndfdmlkZW9faGxzX2R5bmFtaWNfbWFuaWZlc3RzXzE1MDgyIjp7ImJ1Y2tldCI6InRydWVfYml0cmF0ZSIsInZlcnNpb24iOm51bGx9LCJ0ZndfbGVnYWN5X3RpbWVsaW5lX3N1bnNldCI6eyJidWNrZXQiOnRydWUsInZlcnNpb24iOm51bGx9LCJ0ZndfdHdlZXRfZWRpdF9mcm9udGVuZCI6eyJidWNrZXQiOiJvbiIsInZlcnNpb24iOm51bGx9fQ%3D%3D&amp;frame=false&amp;hideCard=false&amp;hideThread=false&amp;id=2041342340481143007&amp;lang=en&amp;origin=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.nasaspaceflight.com%2F2026%2F04%2Fartemis-ii-breaks-record-lunar-flyby%2F&amp;sessionId=bf1c85a5ee80b6b879127e1ca5e97d370a8ecd35&amp;siteScreenName=NASASpaceflight&amp;theme=light&amp;widgetsVersion=6a3ad42b224df%3A1778106238597&amp;width=550px\" data-gtm-yt-inspected-14=\"true\" data-gtm-yt-inspected-21=\"true\" data-tweet-id=\"2041342340481143007\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>Due to the bandwidth limitations, the live views did not provide the stunning views eloquently described by the crew during the events. However, an array of stunning footage has been taken by the crew.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignleft wp-image-112781 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nasaspaceflight.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/IMG_6175.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"485\" height=\"370\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nasaspaceflight.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/IMG_6175.jpg 485w, https:\/\/www.nasaspaceflight.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/IMG_6175-350x267.jpg 350w, https:\/\/www.nasaspaceflight.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/IMG_6175-459x350.jpg 459w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 485px) 100vw, 485px\">This will be sent down to Earth when the communications links allow, and a sneak preview could be seen during the live views from inside the spacecraft.<\/p>\n<p>The images on screen appear to include an incredible \u201cEarth rise\u201d that NASA will publish when the imagery arrives on the ground.<\/p>\n<p>UPDATE: Those images are now arriving! https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/gallery\/lunar-flyby\/<\/p>\n<p>A highlight for the crew will be a ship-to-ship call with the International Space Station, scheduled for Tuesday evening UTC\u2014the first such conversation since the Apollo era, now possible with a sustained human presence in low Earth orbit.<\/p>\n<p>The mission is expected to conclude in about nine days and one hour from launch.<\/p>\n<p>The European Service Module will separate from the crew module, followed by a trajectory raise burn. Orion will then perform a high-speed atmospheric entry at over 38,000 km\/h (24,000 mph), deploying parachutes in stages for a splashdown in the ocean.<\/p>\n<p>The crew is slated to be recovered aboard a U.S. Navy ship shortly thereafter.<\/p>\n<p>(Lead Image via NASA).<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Orion spacecraft Integrity, carrying astronauts Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, Christina Koch, and Jeremy Hansen, successfully passed behind the Moon on Flight Day 6 of the Artemis II mission, losing communications with Earth for approximately 40 minutes while the crew observed spectacular, never-before-seen views of the lunar surface with human eyes. The milestone moment also included [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[5942,625,640],"class_list":["post-23550","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news","tag-artemis-ii","tag-moon","tag-orion"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23550"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=23550"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23550\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=23550"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=23550"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=23550"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}