Artemis II crew take ‘spectacular’ image of Earth

Artemis II Crew Capture Stunning Earth Views from Lunar Orbit

NASA released the first high-resolution images of Earth taken by the Artemis II crew as they embark on their journey around the Moon. These visuals, described as “spectacular,” were captured following a final engine burn that propelled the crew toward their closest celestial neighbor. The images offer a breathtaking perspective of our planet, with the Atlantic Ocean visible in a vast expanse of blue, bordered by a faint atmospheric glow as Earth passes in front of the Sun. Green auroras shimmer at the poles, while the Earth appears upside down, showcasing the western Sahara and Iberian Peninsula on the left and the eastern part of South America on the right.

Venus, the bright planet, is spotted at the bottom right in the image. The photographs were taken after the crew executed a successful trans-lunar injection burn on Friday morning, sending the Orion spacecraft beyond Earth’s orbit. Artemis II is now following a path that will loop around the Moon’s far side and return to Earth. This marks the first human venture beyond Earth’s orbit since the Apollo 17 mission in 1972. The crew will reach the Moon’s far side on 6 April and return to Earth on 10 April.

“We are getting a beautiful view of the dark side of the Earth, lit by the Moon,” said mission specialist Jeremy Hansen, who reported the crew was “glued to the windows” capturing photos during the maneuver.

Commander Reid Wiseman initially struggled with adjusting exposure settings to photograph Earth from such a distance, likening the experience to “walking out back at your house, trying to take a picture of the moon.” However, the challenge has since been overcome. Another image from Wiseman highlights the Earth’s division between night and day, known as the terminator line. A later shot reveals the planet in near-total darkness, with human-made lights twinkling across the nighttime landscape.

NASA also shared a side-by-side comparison of the 2026 view of Earth and a similar image from Apollo 17 in 1972. “We’ve come so far in the last 54 years, but one thing hasn’t changed: our home looks gorgeous from space!” the agency noted in a statement.

Wiseman later contacted mission control in Houston to inquire about cleaning the windows, as the astronauts’ eagerness to photograph space had left them smudged. The mission continues to provide unprecedented glimpses of Earth from lunar orbit, underscoring the significance of this historic expedition.