Artemis II crew photographs Earth passing halfway point to Moon

NASA has released the first high-resolution images of Earth taken by the Artemis II crew as they pass the halfway point to the Moon.

Mission commander Reid Wiseman captured these stunning images after the crew completed a final engine burn, setting them on a trajectory toward our closest celestial neighbor.

NASA’s online dashboard showed that the Orion spacecraft was 142,000 miles from Earth and 132,000 miles from the Moon.

Astronaut Christina Koch said the crew shared a moment of joy upon reaching this milestone, roughly two days after launch. The first image, titled “Hello, World,” shows the vast blue Atlantic Ocean framed by an atmospheric glow, green auroras, and Earth eclipsing the Sun.

The planet appears upside down, with the western Sahara visible to the left and South America to the right, while Venus shines brightly in the bottom right corner. These images were captured after a successful trans-lunar injection burn took Orion out of Earth orbit.

Artemis II is now on a looping path to carry the four astronauts around the far side of the Moon. It marks the first time since 1972 that humans have traveled outside Earth’s orbit.

The crew is expected to pass the Moon on April 6 and return to Earth on April 10 with a splashdown in the Pacific Ocean.

Mission specialist Jeremy Hansen informed mission control that the crew was captivated by the view from the windows, taking pictures of the stunning visuals of the Earth’s dark side.

Other images released show the planet split between night and day, with sparkling city lights visible in near-complete darkness.

NASA also shared a side-by-side comparison with a similar image captured by the Apollo 17 team 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 stated.