
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
5 Great Crossover Vehicles For Eco-friendliness In 2024 - 2
Rick Steves Recommends This German Town's Castle Hotel With Rhine River Views - 3
Figure out How to Keep up with Oral Wellbeing During Pregnancy - 4
I took my shoes off and went for a barefoot hike. I couldn’t believe what happened next - 5
How comfort foods trigger pleasure in our brains
An Investigate of 6 Creative Specialty Mixed drinks
Volcanic eruption led to the Black Death, new research suggests
Before trips to Mars, we need better protection from cosmic rays
Can humans have babies in space? It may be harder than expected
Survey: Canteen Cups With Great Warm Protection Impact
IndiGo lands IATA chief Willie Walsh as new CEO
Conquering Language Boundaries: Individual Accounts of Multilingualism
Figure out How to Pick a SUV with Senior-Accommodating Tech Elements
'A completely new manufacturing frontier': Space Forge fires up 1st commercial semiconductor factory in space













