Nasa’s Artemis II crew achieved a historic milestone on Monday near the Moon as their Orion capsule reached its maximum distance from Earth and entered a rare solar eclipse phase during a lunar flyby.The spacecraft traveled 252,756 miles (406,771 km) from Earth, surpassing the previous human distance record of 248,655 miles set by Apollo 13 in 1970. The milestone was reached on the far side of the Moon, marking the farthest humans have ever ventured into space.During the flyby, the alignment of the Sun, Moon and Orion created a solar eclipse lasting about an hour. From the astronauts’ perspective, the Sun was completely obscured by the Moon, allowing them to observe a darkened lunar surface and study the solar corona. As expected, Mission Control temporarily lost communication with the capsule for about 30 to 40 minutes while it passed behind the Moon.“It is blowing my mind what you can see with the naked eye from the moon right now. It is just unbelievable,” Canadian astronaut Jeremy Hansen radioed ahead of the flyby.The closest approach to the Moon occurred during the communication blackout at a distance of 4,067 miles (6,545 km), with the spacecraft traveling at approximately 3,139 mph (5,052 kph). At that point, the crew began their return journey to Earth on a free-return trajectory.Commander Reid Wiseman described the view as “Such a majestic view out here,” as the crew captured images of the Moon and Earth together and conducted scientific observations, including studying the Orientale Basin.Moments after breaking the record, the astronauts proposed naming two lunar craters “Integrity” and “Carroll,” the latter in memory of Wiseman’s late wife.The seven-hour lunar flyby marked the highlight of Artemis II’s nearly 10-day test mission, which is set to conclude with a splashdown in the Pacific on Friday.Flying as close as 4,067 miles (6,545 km) above the Moon’s surface, the astronauts carried out an intensive observation phase, surveying more than two dozen targets. Using high-powered Nikon cameras as well as iPhones, they captured detailed images of impact craters and other prominent lunar features.Artemis II was launched from Kennedy Space Center’s Launch Complex 39B atop Nasa’s Space Launch System rocket on April 1. The mission is a key step in Nasa’s Artemis program, aimed at sustainable lunar exploration and laying groundwork for eventual human missions to Mars.(With inputs from AP)
