{"id":40877,"date":"2026-04-04T11:32:54","date_gmt":"2026-04-04T11:32:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/foreignnewstoday.com\/?p=40877"},"modified":"2026-04-04T11:32:54","modified_gmt":"2026-04-04T11:32:54","slug":"artemis-ii-astronauts-now-closer-to-the-moon-than-the-earth-artemis-ii","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/foreignnewstoday.com\/?p=40877","title":{"rendered":"Artemis II astronauts now closer to the moon than the Earth | Artemis II"},"content":{"rendered":"


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The Artemis II<\/a> crew are now closer to the moon than the Earth, Nasa said on Saturday morning, as the four astronauts completed the third day of their flight to the moon.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe can see the moon out of the docking hatch right now. It\u2019s a beautiful sight,\u201d said an unnamed member of the crew, which Nasa shared in a post on X<\/a>.<\/p>\n

By 11am Saturday, the Orion spacecraft had travelled more than 152,000 miles away from Earth since its launch on Wednesday.<\/p>\n

Nasa released the crew\u2019s first downlinked images on Friday, just one-and-a-half days into the first astronaut moonshot in more than half a century.<\/p>\n

<\/svg><\/span>A Nasa screengrab shows astronaut Christina Koch (right) and Artemis II pilot Victor Glover working inside the Orion spacecraft as they pass the halfway point between Earth and the moon.<\/span> Photograph: NASA\/AFP\/Getty Images<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The first photo taken by commander Reid Wiseman showed a curved slice of Earth in one of the capsule\u2019s windows. The second showed the entire globe with the oceans topped by swirling white tendrils of clouds. A green aurora even glows, according to Nasa.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s great to think that, with the exception of our four friends, all of us are represented in this image,\u201d said Nasa\u2019s Lakiesha Hawkins, an exploration systems leader. She added the mission was going well.<\/p>\n

The space agency also shared the menu for the trip<\/a>, which includes tortillas, vegetable quiche, mango salad and barbecued beef brisket. As there is no refrigeration onboard, all meals are carefully selected to remain safe, shelf-stable and easy to prepare.<\/p>\n

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Wiseman and his crew should reach their destination on Monday.<\/p>\n

<\/svg><\/span>This image, taken from the Orion capsule, shows the divide between night and day, known as the terminator, cutting across Earth. <\/span> Photograph: Nasa\/UPI\/Shutterstock<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The three Americans and one Canadian will swing around the moon in their Orion capsule, hang a U-turn and then head straight back home without stopping. They fired Orion\u2019s main engine on Thursday night, which set them on their course.<\/p>\n

After mission control shifted the position of their capsule, the entire Earth \u2013 complete with northern lights \u2013 filled their windows.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was the most spectacular moment, and it paused all four of us in our tracks,\u201d Wiseman said in a TV interview.<\/p>\n

They are the first lunar travellers since Apollo 17 in 1972.<\/p>\n

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