Artemis astronauts more than halfway to Moon, putting Earth in rearview
Why it matters: The Artemis 2 mission will see four astronauts loop around the Moon, a feat not accomplished in over 50 years.
- Artemis 2 astronauts are more than halfway to the Moon, having traveled over 229,000 kilometers (142,000 miles) from Earth, according to NASA's online dashboard.
- Astronaut Christina Koch described a collective "expression of joy" among the crew upon reaching the milestone and noted the moon was a "beautiful sight" from the spacecraft.
- Canadian Jeremy Hansen, on his first space journey, expressed "tremendous disbelief" and enjoyment of the "extraordinary" views and the feeling of floating in zero gravity.
- NASA released initial images of Earth taken from inside the Orion spacecraft, including a full portrait of the planet, and reported all systems were performing well with the astronauts in "great spirits."
- Lakiesha Hawkins, a NASA official, praised the "amazing" photographs taken by commander Reid Wiseman and emphasized the ongoing learning process of operating the spacecraft with a crew in deep space for the first time.
The Artemis 2 astronauts have passed the halfway point to the Moon, with crew members expressing awe and joy at the views and the experience of zero gravity, as NASA continues to monitor the spacecraft's systems and prepare for a lunar flyby. The mission marks a significant step in human space exploration, with the crew set to loop around the Moon, a feat not accomplished in over 50 years, and enter its gravitational sphere of influence early next week.
