Artemis II Crew Delivers Stunning New Image of the Moon's Hidden Far Side
The Artemis II crew are the first people in history to view the far side of the moon with the naked human eye.
On Monday, the four-person crew featuring astronauts Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, Christina Koch and Jeremy Hansen entered Day 5 of their 10-day lunar flyby mission on the Orion spacecraft.
The crew is scheduled to set a new human record for distance from the Earth, surpassing the 248,655 mile mark set by the Apollo 13 crew in 1970.
NASA posted a stunning photo captured by the Artemis II crew on Monday, displaying a rare look at the far side of the moon.
"Make new friends, but keep the old," the organization wrote on social media. "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 Artemis II crew are the first to see the far side with human eyes."
Make new friends, but keep the old.
— NASA (@NASA) April 6, 2026
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 Artemis II crew are the first to see the far side with human eyes. pic.twitter.com/Z8QaZ6J9iA
"Morning routine: Wake up, shave, make the bed, witness something that's never before been seen by human eyes," NASA added in a separate post. "The Artemis II crew is preparing for today's lunar flyby, when they will see the Moon's far side."
The Artemis II crew woke up on Monday morning 18,830 miles away from the moon. The spacecraft's closest approach will get them within 4,070 miles.
"The four of us have looked at the moon our entire lives, and the way we are responding to what we're seeing out the window is just like we're a bunch of kids up here," Wiseman, commander of Artemis II, radioed mission control on Sunday evening. "We cannot get enough of this. It's amazing."