Artemis II concluded this Monday with the lunar observation period, the crucial stage of the mission and in which in less than seven hours it marked several milestones, such as the record for the greatest distance to which a crew has traveled in space and the observation of the most hidden side of the Moon.
The four astronauts of the team, in the sixth of a total of 10 days of mission, concluded the observation at 9:30 p.m. Eastern time in the United States (01:30 GMT on Tuesday), so they hope to leave the Moon’s sphere of influence this Tuesday at 1:25 p.m. (19:25 GMT) to return to Earth next Friday.
Passing behind the Moon, the Artemis II astronauts, commander Reid Wisemanthe pilot Victor Glover and the specialist Christina Kochof the POTas well as Jeremy Hansenfrom the Canadian Space Agency, studied the hidden side through photographs and direct observation through the capsule windows.
During this period, the crew lost communications with the NASA control center in Houston (Texas) for 40 minutes from 6:44 p.m. Eastern time in the United States (22:44 GMT), as the Moon came between the Orion spacecraft and the Earth, which was already expected.
1/8 | Artemis II leaves the dark side of the Moon: photos from the ship. NASA’s Artemis II Orion spacecraft regained contact with Earth this Monday after spending about 40 minutes in absolute silence while flying over the far side of the Moon, a common interruption in this type of mission. – The Associated Press
In this period of isolation, the astronauts reached the furthest distance from Earth, a record of 406,771 kilometers (252,756 miles), more than any other crew, and the closest point to the Moon of the mission, about 6,545 kilometers (4,067 miles) from the ship to the surface.
The crew reported to NASA on color nuances, which will help improve scientific understanding of the Moon, as shades of brown and blue that can be perceived up close help reveal the characteristic mineral composition and its age.
The crew even observed a 53-minute total solar eclipse, a phenomenon that was not visible from Earth thanks to the position of the Moon as the ship passed by.
Artemis II took off last Wednesday from Cape Canaveral (Florida) for a ten-day mission that marked the return of humans to lunar orbit after half a century and that seeks to lay the foundations for a United States base on the Moon and future human exploration of Mars.