AFTER travelling deeper into space than any other humans, the Artemis II astronauts pointed their moonship toward home Monday night, wrapping up a lunar cruise that revealed views of the far side never beheld by eyes until now. Their flyby of the Moon - NASA’s first return since the Apollo era - even included some celestial sightseeing besides yielding rich science. It was a significant step toward landing boot prints near the moon’s south pole in just two years. A total solar eclipse greeted the three Americans and one Canadian as the moon temporarily blocked the sun from their perspective.

 

Mercury, Venus, Mars and Saturn nodded at them from the black void. The landing sites of Apollo 12 and 14 were also visible, poignant reminders of NASA’s first age of exploration more than half a century ago. In an especially riveting retro throwback, Artemis II shattered the distance record set by Apollo 13 in 1970. NASA’s Orion capsule reached a maximum distance of 252,756 miles (406,771 kilometres) from Earth before hanging a U-turn behind the moon, 4,101 miles (6,600 kilometres) farther than Apollo 13. “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. He challenged “this generation and the next to make sure this record is not long-lived.”

 

Apollo 13 commander Jim Lovell wished the crew well in a recording made two months before his death last August. Mission Control beamed up his message to Commander Reid Wiseman, pilot Victor Glover, Christina Koch and Hansen, before their fly-around began. “Welcome to my old neighbourhood,” said Lovell, who also flew on Apollo 8, humanity’s first lunar visit. “It’s a historic day, and I know how busy you’ll be, but don’t forget to enjoy the view.” The Artemis II astronauts carried up with them the Apollo 8 silk patch that accompanied Lovell to the Moon. “It’s just a real honour to have that on board with us,” Wiseman said. Artemis II is using the same manoeuvre that Apollo 13 did after its “Houston, we’ve had a problem” oxygen tank explosion wiped out any hope of a Moon landing.

 

Artemis II completes record-breaking trip around moon: Emerging from behind the Moon, the Artemis II astronauts pointed their capsule toward home Monday night after beholding views of the lunar far side never before witnessed and setting a new distance record for humanity. The seven-hour flyby was the highlight of NASA’s first return to the moon since the Apollo era with three Americans and one Canadian - a step toward landing boot prints near the moon’s south pole in just two years. First came a prize - and bragging rights - for Artemis II.