NASA has shared the first high-resolution images of the Earth taken by the Artemis II crew as they head on their trip around the Moon. The mission's commander, Reid Wiseman, took the spectacular images after the crew completed a final engine burn that set them on a trajectory towards our closest celestial neighbour.
The first image, called Hello, World, shows the vast expanse of blue that is the Atlantic Ocean, framed by a thin glow of the atmosphere as the Earth eclipses the Sun and reveals green auroras at either pole. The Earth appears to us as upside down, with the western Sahara and Iberian peninsula visible to the left and the eastern portion of South America to the right. NASA identified the bright planet to the bottom right as Venus.
The images were taken after the crew successfully completed a trans-lunar injection burn early Friday, marking their departure from Earth orbit. This maneuver marked the start of a journey covering over 200,000 miles to the Moon, where the Artemis II crew aims to loop around the far side and return home. This mission is notable as it is the first time humans have traveled beyond Earth's orbit since 1972.
The crew members expressed their excitement with mission specialist Jeremy Hansen stating they have a beautiful view of the dark side of the Earth, lit by the Moon. Wiseman, enthusiastically capturing images, even inquired about how to clean the spacecraft's windows due to the buildup of dirt from their eager observations.
Artemis II is expected to pass around the far side of the Moon on April 6 and return to Earth on April 10, marking a significant milestone in space exploration.
