{"id":1869213,"date":"2026-04-04T20:54:11","date_gmt":"2026-04-04T17:54:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=1869213"},"modified":"2026-04-04T20:54:11","modified_gmt":"2026-04-04T17:54:11","slug":"artemis-ii-astronauts-send-back-phenomenal-earth-snaps","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=1869213","title":{"rendered":"Artemis II astronauts send back ‘phenomenal’ Earth snaps"},"content":{"rendered":"

[analyse_image type=”featured” src=”https:\/\/static.dw.com\/image\/76661932_6.jpg”]<\/p>\n

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Artemis II astronauts send back ‘phenomenal’ Earth snaps<\/span><\/h1>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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After more than 50 years, humans are flying back to the moon. The Artemis II lunar flyby is scheduled for Easter Monday, marking a rebirth for human spaceflight.<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n

Image: NASA\/AP Photo\/picture alliance<\/small><\/div>\n

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‘You look amazing. You look beautiful’<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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For the first time since the start of the 10-day Artemis II mission, the crew of four astronauts has sent back images from the spacecraft. The view of Earth from space filled them with excitement. “You look amazing. You look beautiful,” NASA astronaut Victor Glover said from his vantage point on the Orion capsule.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n

Image: Reid Wiseman\/NASA\/AP Photo\/dpa\/picture alliance<\/small><\/p>\n

\"A\"A<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n
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Counting down to lunar flyby<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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The first lunar mission in more than 50 years launched on Wednesday from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The astronauts will not land on the moon, but orbit it. The flyby is scheduled for Monday, and the crew will see the far side of the moon \u2014 a view which only two dozen Apollo astronauts have seen before.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n

Image: Jim Watson\/AFP<\/small><\/p>\n

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Making history<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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The crew spoke with Mission Control via video link on Thursday. The oldest member on board is Commander Reid Wiseman, born in 1975 (center). He is joined by 50-year-old Canadian Jeremy Hansen (left), the first non-US citizen to launch to the moon, spacecraft pilot Victor Glover (49, right), the first Black lunar traveler, and 47-year-old Christina Koch, the first woman to make the trip.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n

Image: NASA\/AP Photo\/picture alliance<\/small><\/p>\n

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Coffee break<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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By Saturday, the crew had already traveled more than half of the roughly 300,000 kilometers (186,400 miles) to the moon. This photo shows astronauts Hansen (left) and Koch going about their daily routine in the capsule. The selection of beverages isn’t much different from what we enjoy on Earth: coffee, tea, smoothies and lemonade.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n

Image: NASA\/AFP<\/small><\/p>\n

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Powerful computers<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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The Orion capsule has two computers, in case one fails. Each is 20,000 times faster than the single computer in the original Apollo spacecraft which went to the moon in 1969, with 128,000 times more memory. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n

Image: NASA\/AFP<\/small><\/p>\n

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Fantastic view<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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Against the darkness of space, the side of Earth illuminated by the sun looks like a narrow crescent moon. On Sunday, Orion is scheduled to perform a maneuver to fine-tune its trajectory. The next day, the spacecraft will enter the moon’s gravitational field.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n

Image: NASA\/UPI Photo\/Newscom\/picture alliance<\/small><\/p>\n

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‘A beautiful sight’<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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Speaking with the astronauts late Friday, Mission Control sent an encouraging message: “You are now closer to the moon than you are to us on Earth.” Koch said the crew could see the moon out of the docking hatch, calling it “a beautiful sight.” According to NASA calculations, the capsule will be at its farthest point from Earth on Tuesday, the sixth day of the mission.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n

Image: NASA\/AFP<\/small><\/p>\n

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Space selfie<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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The crew also managed to take a selfie of the spacecraft with its solar panels. The return journey to Earth is set to begin on Wednesday. Tests and experiments are planned for Thursday and Friday, including how to protect the crew from solar flares inside the spacecraft. Next Saturday, Orion is scheduled to reenter Earth’s atmosphere and splash down in the Pacific Ocean.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n

Image: Nasa\/Planet Pix\/ZUMA\/picture alliance<\/small><\/p>\n

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8 images<\/span><\/p>\n
1 | 8<\/span>8 images<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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https:\/\/p.dw.com\/p\/5Bfmz<\/span><\/div>\n<\/section>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n

For the first time since the start of the 10-day Artemis II mission, the crew of four astronauts has sent back images from the spacecraft. The view of Earth from space filled them with excitement. “You look amazing. You look beautiful,” NASA astronaut Victor Glover said from his vantage point on the Orion capsule.<\/p>\n

The first lunar mission in more than 50 years launched on Wednesday from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The astronauts will not land on the moon, but orbit it. The flyby is scheduled for Monday, and the crew will see the far side of the moon \u2014 a view which only two dozen Apollo astronauts have seen before.<\/p>\n

The crew spoke with Mission Control via video link on Thursday. The oldest member on board is Commander Reid Wiseman, born in 1975 (center). He is joined by 50-year-old Canadian Jeremy Hansen (left), the first non-US citizen to launch to the moon, spacecraft pilot Victor Glover (49, right), the first Black lunar traveler, and 47-year-old Christina Koch, the first woman to make the trip.<\/p>\n

By Saturday, the crew had already traveled more than half of the roughly 300,000 kilometers (186,400 miles) to the moon. This photo shows astronauts Hansen (left) and Koch going about their daily routine in the capsule. The selection of beverages isn’t much different from what we enjoy on Earth: coffee, tea, smoothies and lemonade.<\/p>\n

The Orion capsule has two computers, in case one fails. Each is 20,000 times faster than the single computer in the original Apollo spacecraft which went to the moon in 1969, with 128,000 times more memory. <\/p>\n

Against the darkness of space, the side of Earth illuminated by the sun looks like a narrow crescent moon. On Sunday, Orion is scheduled to perform a maneuver to fine-tune its trajectory. The next day, the spacecraft will enter the moon’s gravitational field.<\/p>\n

Speaking with the astronauts late Friday, Mission Control sent an encouraging message: “You are now closer to the moon than you are to us on Earth.” Koch said the crew could see the moon out of the docking hatch, calling it “a beautiful sight.” According to NASA calculations, the capsule will be at its farthest point from Earth on Tuesday, the sixth day of the mission.<\/p>\n

The crew also managed to take a selfie of the spacecraft with its solar panels. The return journey to Earth is set to begin on Wednesday. Tests and experiments are planned for Thursday and Friday, including how to protect the crew from solar flares inside the spacecraft. Next Saturday, Orion is scheduled to reenter Earth’s atmosphere and splash down in the Pacific Ocean.<\/p>\n

[analyse_source url=”https:\/\/www.dw.com\/en\/artemis-ii-astronauts-send-back-phenomenal-earth-snaps\/g-76663929″]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

[analyse_image type=”featured” src=”https:\/\/static.dw.com\/image\/76661932_6.jpg”] Artemis II astronauts send back ‘phenomenal’ Earth snaps After more than 50 years, humans are flying back to the moon. The Artemis II lunar flyby is scheduled for Easter Monday, marking a rebirth for human spaceflight. Image: NASA\/AP Photo\/picture alliance ‘You look amazing. You look beautiful’ For the first time since the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[226,74],"class_list":["post-1869213","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-politics","tag-crawlmanager","tag-dw-com"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1869213","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1869213"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1869213\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1869213"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1869213"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1869213"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}