tech
April 12, 2026
The 7 Moments That Marked Artemis II's Trip to the Moon
NASA astronauts Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, and Christina Koch, along with Canadian Space Agency's Jeremy Hansen, were fortunate to witness a total solar eclipse while orbiting the satellite.
TL;DR
- Artemis II was the first mission to travel to the Moon since Apollo 17 in 1972.
- The mission set a record for the farthest distance traveled from Earth by a crewed spacecraft, reaching 406,771 kilometers.
- Astronauts witnessed a 53-minute total solar eclipse, invisible from Earth, during which they analyzed the Sun's corona.
- A key challenge was the loss of contact with mission control for 40 minutes while passing over the far side of the Moon.
- The Orion capsule's toilet experienced malfunctions, leading astronauts to use adult diapers.
- The mission concluded with the Orion capsule splashing down in the Pacific Ocean and the safe recovery of the four astronauts by the U.S. Navy.