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NASA has started to release some of the first photos from Artemis II's historic space flight around the moon.
Artemis II flew around the moon on Monday, April 6, traveling farther than Apollo 13, becoming the first humans to see the far side of the moon and traveling farther into space from Earth than any other human.
Apollo astronaut Jim Lovell's message to Artemis II: 'Welcome to my old neighborhood'
Artemis II photos
One of the images captured the rings of the Orientale basin, one of 30 targets that Artemis II's astronauts were tasked with photographing and observing during their six-hour flyby.
It also includes two craters that Artemis II's crew proposed naming "Integrity," the name of the Orion spacecraft, and "Carroll," in honor of Commander Reif Wiseman's late wife.
"The Artemis II crew captured this image showing the rings of the Orientale basin during their lunar flyby on April 6. At the 10 o’clock position of the Orientale basin, the two smaller craters – which the Artemis II crew has suggested be named Integrity & Carroll – are visible." Credit: NASA NASA and The White House shared some of the first photos from Artemis II's flyby around the moon. Credit: NASA/The White House/X Totality, beyond Earth. From lunar orbit, the Moon eclipses the Sun, revealing a view few in human history have ever witnessed. Credit: NASA Another image is of the Earthset with the moon's surface in the forecast, reminiscent of the iconic photo taken by Apollo 8 astronaut Bill Anders.
That photo also inspired the zero gravity indicator for the Artemis II mission, "Rise," which was designed by a California kid.
When does the Artemis II crew come back to Earth?
Artemis II lifted off from Kennedy Space Center in Florida at 6:35 p.m. on April 1.
It is set to splashdown off the coast of San Diego, California on Friday, April 10 at approx. 8:07 p.m. Eastern Standard Time. Though those times could shift.
What happens after the Artemis II crew splashes in California?
After the Artemis II splashes down in the Pacific Ocean near California, recovery teams will retrieve the astronauts and fly them via helicopter to the USS John P. Mutha. They will then be evaluated on the ship. When cleared, Artemis II's crew will be flown to NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas, NASA said.
What has Artemis II been looking at while on the mission?
During the hours-long flight to the moon and back, NASA and Artemis II's astronauts have been testing the Orion spacecraft, their spacesuits, and the technology needed to fly to the moon.
NASA and The White House shared some of the first photos from Artemis II's flyby around the moon. Credit: NASA/The White House/X Totality, beyond Earth. From lunar orbit, the Moon eclipses the Sun, revealing a view few in human history have ever witnessed. Credit: NASA An illuminated sliver of Earth set against the blackness of space is seen through the window of the Orion spacecraft in this photograph from the Artemis II crew on the third day of their journey to the Moon. Credit: NASA A view of Earth taken by NASA astronaut and Artemis II commander Reid Wiseman from one of the Orion spacecraft's four main windows after completing the translunar injection burn on April 2, 2026. Credit: NASA A view of a backlit Earth taken by NASA astronaut and Artemis II Commander Reid Wiseman from one of the Orion spacecraft's window after completing the translunar injection burn on April 2, 2026. Credit: NASA Orion snapped this high-resolution selfie in space with a camera mounted on one of its solar array wings during a routine external inspection of the spacecraft on the second day into the Artemis II mission. Credit: NASA Artemis II mission specialist and NASA astronaut Christina Koch looks out one of the Orion spacecraft's windows back at Earth ahead of the crew's lunar flyby on April 6, 2026. Credit: NASA Artemis II pilot and NASA astronaut Victor Glover peers out one of the Orion spacecraft's windows looking back at Earth ahead of the crew's lunar flyby on April 6, 2026. Credit: NASA Artemis II mission specialist and CSA (Canadian Space Agency) astronaut Jeremy Hansen peers out one of the Orion spacecraft's windows looking back at Earth ahead of the crew's lunar flyby on April 6, 2026. Credit: NASA Artemis II crewmember sleeping bags are illuminated inside the Orion spacecraft on Flight Day 5 of the mission and ahead of the crew's lunar flyby on April 6, 2026. Credit: NASA Artemis II commander and NASA astronaut Reid Wiseman looks out one of the Orion spacecraft's main cabin windows at the Moon ahead of the crew's lunar flyby on April 6, 2026. Credit: NASA A view of Earth taken by NASA astronaut and Artemis II Commander Reid Wiseman from one of the Orion spacecraft's four windows after completing the translunar injection burn on April 2, 2026. Credit: NASA A thin arc glowing in the darkness of space. Sunlight traces the curves of the ocean and clouds, while the rest of the planet fades into shadow. Credit: NASA The Artemis II crew is en route to the Moon on the second flight day of the mission. This photo shows the Orion spacecraft with the Moon in the distance, as captured by a camera on the tip of one of its solar array wings. Credit: NASA NASA astronaut and Artemis II Commander Reid Wiseman took this picture of Earth from the Orion spacecraft's window on April 2, 2026, after completing the translunar injection burn. Credit: NASA/Reid Wiseman In this fully illuminated view of the Moon, the near side (the hemisphere we see from Earth), is visible on the right. It is identifiable by the dark splotches that cover its surface. These are ancient lava flows from a time early in the Moon’s history when it was volcanically active. The large crater west of the lava flows is Orientale basin, a nearly 600-mile-wide crater that straddles the Moon’s near and far sides. Orientale's left half is not visible from Earth, but in this image we have a full view of the crater. Everything to the left of the crater is the far side, the hemisphere we don’t get to see from Earth because the Moon rotates on its axis at the same rate that it orbits round us. Credit: NASA A view of the nearside of the Moon, the side we always see from Earth. Some of the far side is visible, as well, on the left edge, just beyond the black patch that is Orientale basin, a nearly 600-mile-wide crater that straddles the Moon’s near and far sides and is partly visible from Earth. The dark areas in the center and right side of the disk are ancient lava flows, which are unique to the near side of the Moon. The white dot at the bottom of the disk, with white rays shooting out from it, is Tycho crater, one of the younger craters on the Moon at 108 million years old. Credit: NASA Before going to sleep on flight day 5, the Artemis II crew snapped one more photo of the Moon, as it drew close in the window of the Orion spacecraft. Orion and the four humans aboard entered the lunar sphere of influence at 12:37 a.m. EDT on April 6, at the tail end of the fifth day of their mission. That marked the point at which the Moon's gravity had a stronger pull on the spacecraft than the Earth's. Artemis II's closet approach to the Moon will come on flight day 6, as they swing around the far side before beginning their journey back to Earth. About an hour after entering the lunar sphere of influence, Artemis II Mission Specialist Christina Koch said, "We are now falling to the Moon rather than rising away from Earth. It is an amazing milestone!"' Credit: NASA NASA astronaut Christina Koch is illuminated by a screen inside the darkened Orion spacecraft on the third day of the agency's Artemis II mission. To the right of the image's center, CSA (Canadian Space Agency) astronaut Jeremy Hansen is seen in profile peering out of one of Orion's windows. Lights are turned off to avoid glare on the windows. Credit: NASA NASA astronaut and Artemis II mission specialist Christina Koch, seen here on the fourth day of the mission, prepping for lunar flyby activities after completing aerobic exercise on the flywheel device. Credit: NASA Artemis II mission specialist and CSA (Canadian Space Agency) astronaut Jeremy Hansen enjoys a shave inside the Orion spacecraft during Flight Day 5 and ahead of the crew's lunar flyby on April 6, 2026. Credit: NASA During the lunar flyby, the Artemis II were tasked with photographing, observing, and analyzing nearly 30 targets on the moon's surface, including the Orientale basin, a 3.8-billion-year-old, 600-mile-wide crater on the moon's surface, and the Hertzsprung basin, a 400-mile crater northwest of the Orientale basin.
They also took photos, videos, and made voice memos during the mission, according to NASA broadcasts of the lunar flyby, and provided descriptions of the lunar surface to NASA scientists back on Earth.
The Source: NASA and The White House shared some of the first photos of Artemis II's lunar flyby on X on Tuesday, April 7, 2026. Additional updates on the Artemis II mission from NASA, NASA's Artemis II blog, and NASA's live feed.