The astronauts on the Artemis II mission to the moon have become the first humans to travel the farthest from Earth, breaking a record set by Apollo 13 astronauts in 1970.
The milestone happened at 1:57 p.m. ET.
The Apollo 13 crew traveled 248,655 miles away from Earth.
Artemis II will continue to travel away from Earth, with NASA expecting the Orion spacecraft to reach a maximum distance of 252,760 miles from Earth, surpassing Apollo 13’s distance by about 4,105 miles.
The crew will continue their mission to the moon to conduct scientific observations from the Orion spacecraft as they fly around the far side of the moon.
Artemis II astronauts will shortly make their closest approach to the moon , breaking a record for distance traveled from Earth set by Apollo 13 in 1970, NASA announced.
NASA began streaming footage of the four astronauts inside the cabin of the Orion spacecraft preparing for the mission ahead.
Artemis II is expected to break the distance record at 1:55 p.m. ET.
The Orion spacecraft is expected to reach a maximum distance of 252,760 miles from Earth, according to NASA, surpassing the Apollo 13 record by about 4,105 miles.
NASA will stream the record-breaking moment. The astronauts are then expected to make remarks on the milestone around 2:10 p.m. ET., NASA said.
Artemis II has captured a new photo showing a glimpse of the moon’s far side as the astronauts near their mission to loop around the celestial body.
The astronauts became the first to see the moon’s far side with human eyes, according to NASA.
“A new photo captures the Moon's near side on the right (the side we see from Earth, identifiable by its dark splotches) and its far side on the left,” the space agency wrote in a post on X. “The Artemis II crew are the first to see the far side with human eyes.”
The crew will make its closest approach to the moon later Monday and pass around its far side before hanging a U-turn and heading back toward Earth.
{{#rendered}}The Artemis II astronauts have woken up to begin the sixth day of their mission to the moon, NASA announced.
The space agency shared in a post on X that the crew is now “preparing for today's lunar flyby, when they will see the Moon's far side.”
“Morning routine: Wake up, shave, make the bed, witness something that's never before been seen by human eyes,” NASA wrote.
The post included an image of the astronauts' beds and sleeping quarters aboard the Orion spacecraft, along with another image of Mission Specialist Jeremy Hansen, a Canadian Space Agency astronaut, shaving his face in space.
The Artemis II astronauts are expected to reach the moon later Monday and complete a lunar loop around the far side of Earth’s satellite.
Ahead of the historic feat, NASA has shared a timeline of what to expect during the crew’s sixth day of spaceflight, though noted that the exact timings are subject to change.
1:56 p.m. ET
The Artemis II crew is expected to break the distance record previously set by the Apollo 13 crew in 1970 for the farthest distance humans have ever traveled from Earth. The Orion spacecraft is expected to reach a maximum distance of 252,760 miles from Earth, according to NASA, surpassing the Apollo 13 record by about 4,105 miles.
NASA said the Artemis II crew is expected to make remarks on the milestone around 2:10 p.m. ET.
2:45 p.m. ET
The crew will divide into pairs and begin seven hours of scientific observation of both the near and far sides of the moon.
6:44 p.m. ET
Mission Control expects a temporary communication blackout with the Artemis II crew as the Orion spacecraft passes behind the moon. The blackout is expected to last about 40 minutes.
7:02 p.m. ET
The astronauts will make their closest approach to the moon, viewing the surface from 4,070 miles away, and look like the size of a basketball held at arm’s length, according to NASA. The crew is expected to reach its farthest point from Earth at 7:07 p.m. ET.
7:25 p.m. ET
Communications between NASA’s Mission Control Center and the astronauts should be reestablished.
9:20 p.m. ET
The lunar flyby period ends and the crew will begin transferring some of the imagery back to teams on Earth.
As the Artemis II crew begins their sixth day of space flight, a galactic menu of food has been fueling the astronauts ahead of their expected loop around the moon Monday.
The crew has access to 189 unique menu items during their space mission to the moon, according to NASA.
“With no resupply, refrigeration, or late-load capability, all meals must be carefully selected to remain safe, shelf-stable, and easy to prepare and consume in NASA’s Orion spacecraft,” NASA said.
Among the 10 beverages options are coffee and smoothies, while food items include tortillas, nuts, barbeque beef brisket, cauliflower, macaroni and cheese and butternut squash, the space agency said.
There are also five different hot sauces making the flight around the moon with the crew.
How will the astronauts satisfy their sweet tooth over the course of the 10-day mission? Cookies and chocolate, according to NASA.
The crew’s menu was specially designed with input from space food experts to support the astronauts’ health and performance during the lunar flyby mission, balancing calorie needs, hydration and nutrient intake.
The selections were also made with individual crew preferences in mind, according to NASA.
{{#rendered}}A former Apollo 16 astronaut recorded a message for the Artemis II astronauts as the crew closes in on their lunar destination, according to NASA.
Charlie Duke, a 90-year-old former astronaut, shared an encouraging message to the crew, who are set to become the first humans to travel the farthest distance from Earth.
“On the Moon is a photo of my family,” Duke said in the message. “I pray it reminds you that we and America and all of the world are cheering you on.”
The message continued: “Thanks to you and the whole team on the ground for building on our Apollo legacy with Artemis. Godspeed and safe travels home.”
NASA said it was "fitting that they hear his words" ahead of reaching the moon.
Duke, a former U.S. Air Force officer and test pilot, piloted Apollo 16's Lunar Module in 1972. He became the 10th and youngest person to walk on the Moon.
Artemis II Commander Reid Wiseman, Mission Specialist Christina Koch and Pilot Victor Glover and Mission Specialist Jeremy Hansen will take scientific observations of the moon during their lunar flyby before embarking on a four-day flight back to Earth.
A former NASA administrator on Monday weighed in on what the Artemis II astronauts may see as they make the closest approach to the moon than any human since 1972.
Jim Bridenstine told “FOX & Friends First” that the four-person crew will look to identify future moon landing sites and look for water ice at the south pole of the moon.
“The south pole of the moon is where we believe there is hundreds of millions of tons of water ice,” Bridenstine said. "Water ice is H2O, so it’s water to drink, it’s oxygen to breathe, it’s hydrogen, which is rocket fuel and energy.”
“There’s just lots of opportunity to gather observations,” he added.
Bridenstine also highlighted the mission's importance for future human space exploration and establishing a lunar base.
The Artemis II astronauts aboard the Orion spacecraft reached a new mission milestone as the crew prepares to slingshot around the far side of the moon later Monday, breaking the record for how far humans have traveled from Earth.
At 12:37 a.m. Monday, Mission Control Houston confirmed the spacecraft officially entered the lunar sphere of influence at the tail end of the fifth day of space travel. It marks a major mission milestone that means the gravitational forces of the moon were now greater on the spacecraft than the pull of the Earth’s gravity.
"We are now falling to the Moon rather than rising away from Earth,” Artemis II Mission Specialist Christina Koch said from aboard the spacecraft about an hour after entering the lunar sphere of influence. “It is an amazing milestone!"
Artemis II will make its closest approach to the moon later Monday during flight day six.
NASA said it will broadcast coverage of the mission beginning at 1 p.m. ET.
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