Houston- More than halfway to the Moon, the astronauts of the Artemis II They toasted on Saturday in Canada as they prepared for their historic lunar flight, which will allow them to go further into space than the Apollo astronauts.
The three Americans and the Canadian will arrive at their destination on Monday and photograph the mysterious far side of the Moon. This is the first crew to travel to the Moon in more than 53 years, picking up where the Apollo program left off. POT.
“The Earth is quite small and the Moon is growing,” pilot Victor Glover reported.
Artemis II is about to set a distance record for humans, traveling more than 400,000 kilometers from Earth before making a U-turn behind the Moon and returning home without stopping or entering lunar orbit. The record is currently held by Apollo 13.
The Canadian Space Agency celebrated the country’s role in the mission, speaking from Quebec with astronaut Jeremy Hansen as he headed to his lunar rendezvous. Hansen is the first non-US citizen to travel to the Moon.
1/18 | From the silence of space: Artemis II reveals stunning images of Earth. This image provided by NASA shows a view of Earth captured by NASA astronaut and Artemis II commander Reid Wiseman from the window of the Orion spacecraft after completing the translunar injection maneuver. – NASA via AP
“Today is making history for Canada,” said Lisa Campbell, President of the Canadian Space Agency. “As we watch him take this bold step into the unknown, let his journey remind us that Canada’s future is written by those who dare to go further.”
In the live televised connection, Hansen said he has already witnessed “extraordinary” views from NASA’s Orion capsule.
Hansen, Glover, Reid Wiseman and Christina Koch are the world’s first lunar astronauts since the Apollo 17 crew of three in 1972. Koch and Glover are the first woman and the first black astronaut to reach the Moon, respectively.
Their mission of almost 10 days, which will end with a splashdown in the Peaceful on April 10, is the first step in NASA’s bold plans to create a sustainable lunar base. The space agency’s goal is for two astronauts to land near the lunar south pole in 2028.