Space & Physics: BREAKING--Artemis II reaches greatest distance from Earth

For NASA’s Artemis II mission, there’s nowhere to go now but home                    

View in web browser

April 6—BREAKING—At 7:02 P.M. EDT, the Artemis II astronauts reached their greatest distance from Earth—at 252,756 miles (406,771 kilometers). The moment occurred while the Orion capsule was out of communication range on the far side of the moon, and came only a few minutes after their closest approach to the lunar surface. During their swoop around the lunar far side, at 7:01 P.M. EDT, the crew came within 4,067 miles (6,545 km) of the moon, which through their spacecraft’s windows looked the same size as a basketball held at arms’ length. Read more in our article below about this historic milestone. As always, send your thoughts and questions to me at lbillings@sciam.com, or find me on X or Bluesky. —Lee Billings, Senior Editor, Physical Sciences *This is a special, breaking news edition of our space & physics newsletter.*

NASA’s Artemis II moon mission reaches greatest distance from Earth The space exploration milestone came during a 40-minute period during which the Artemis II astronauts were unable to communicate with Earth

Read more

Watch live: NASA’s Artemis II’s moon flyby is underway Today the four astronauts of Artemis II are observing the far side of the moon, setting distance records and experiencing a solar eclipse Jackie Flynn Mogensen

NASA’s Artemis II mission nears its historic lunar flyby The fifth day in space for Artemis II saw space suit tests, an Easter egg hunt and final preparations for an imminent close encounter with the moon Lee Billings

Immerse yourself in the universe of science with a subscription to Scientific American.

NASA’s Artemis II astronauts are officially farther from Earth than any human has gone before The four astronauts onboard NASA’s moon mission just broke the record for the farthest distance from Earth traveled by any human Meghan Bartels

NASA’s Artemis II moon mission prepares for a host of science observations The Artemis II crew will spend about six hours observing the moon on Monday. Here’s what they’ll be looking for Meghan Bartels

How Artemis II is beaming back stunning video from the moon A new laser system aboard NASA’s Orion spacecraft is sending sharper video and more data back to Earth Adam Bluestein

Artemis II’s journey to the moon, day by day The four astronauts onboard the Orion spacecraft will carry out a packed schedule during their trip around the moon’s far side Joseph Howlett

Artemis II’s toilet is a moon mission milestone On their voyages to the moon, NASA’s astronauts are finally getting some creature comforts of terrestrial toilets—such as having a door and being able to pee and poop simultaneously K. R. Callaway

How NASA will keep the Artemis II astronauts safe from space weather A major solar storm during the Artemis II mission could harm astronauts. Here’s how NASA is protecting them Meghan Bartels

Subscribe to this and all of our newsletters here. Scientific American One New York Plaza, New York, NY, 10004 Support our mission, subscribe to Scientific American here Unsubscribe  |  Preferences Privacy Policy  |  Contact Us