‘Historic day’: Artemis astronauts break space distance record

In this handout image provided by NASA, a view of the moon taken by an Artemis II crewmember through the window of the Orion spacecraft on the third day of the mission on 3 April. The image includes a portion of the Orientale basin (far left), a first for humans and human eyes.

The four astronauts embarking on NASA’s lunar flyby became on Monday the humans to travel furthest from our planet, as they get set to view areas of the moon never before seen by the naked eye.

The Artemis II team broke the previous record set by 1970’s Apollo 13 mission, which they are expected to surpass by approximately 6 606km when they reach this journey’s furthest distance from Earth – 406 778km – later on Monday.

The astronauts are journeying around the moon for a monumental flyby, in which they’ll spend more than six hours analysing and documenting lunar surface features.

The NASA mission had swept earlier into the moon’s gravitational sphere of influence, meaning their spacecraft is in the natural satellite’s neighborhood, with lunar gravity outmuscling Earth’s pull.

The Orion capsule is zipping around the moon before U-turning and heading back to Earth in a so-called “free-return trajectory,” a return-trip that will take about four days.

The astronauts began their landmark day with a message from the late Jim Lovell, who took part in the Apollo 8 and 13 missions and recorded the message shortly before his death.

“It’s a historic day, and I know how busy you’ll be, but don’t forget to enjoy the view,” the Artemis astronauts heard from Lovell.

“Welcome to my old neighborhood,” he said. “I’m proud to pass that torch on to you as you swing around the moon.”

Swooping around the far side of the moon, the crew of four will witness previously hidden lunar territory – the sphere looming large through their capsule windows.

The moon will appear to the astronauts “about the size of a basketball held at arm’s length,” Noah Petro, head of the US space agency’s planetary geology lab, told AFP.

Adding to the historic nature of the mission led by Reid Wiseman, the Artemis II crew includes several firsts.

This handout picture provided by NASA shows Earth as seen through the Orion spacecraft’s window, photographed by NASA astronaut Reid Wiseman, commander of Artemis II.

Victor Glover will be the first person of color to fly around the moon, Christina Koch will be the first woman, and Canadian Jeremy Hansen the first non-American.

There will be a period of around 40 minutes during the flyby where all communication with Artemis II will be cut off as the astronauts pass behind the moon.

“It’ll be exciting, you know, in a slightly scary way, when they go behind the moon,” Derek Buzasi, a professor of astronomy and astrophysics at the University of Chicago, told AFP.

Human eye vs camera

The astronauts have already started seeing features never previously glimpsed directly.

An image sent back by the crew showed the Moon’s Orientale basin visible, a massive crater that before had only been viewed by orbiting, uncrewed cameras.

Near the end of their flyby, the astronauts will witness a solar eclipse, when the sun will be behind the moon.

Despite the technological advancements since the Apollo era, NASA still relies on the eyesight of its astronauts to learn more about the moon.

“The human eye is basically the best camera that could ever or will ever exist,” Kelsey Young, the lead scientist for the Artemis II mission, told AFP. “The number of receptors in the human eye far outweighs what a camera is able to do.”

And while the Orion crew will still be at a substantial distance from the moon, their flyby is key to preparing for a later crewed mission to the planet’s surface itself.

“We’re going to learn an awful lot about the spacecraft,” NASA administrator Jared Isaacman told CNN on Sunday.

The information will be “pretty paramount to set up for subsequent missions like Artemis III in 2027 and, of course, the lunar landing itself on Artemis IV in 2028,” he added.