Artemis II has reached the halfway point on its journey to the Moon, marking a major milestone in NASA’s first crewed lunar mission since the Apollo program ended in 1972. The Orion spacecraft, carrying four astronauts, is now more than 220,000 kilometres from Earth and closer to the Moon than its launch point.
NASA confirmed that Commander Reid Wiseman, Christina Koch, Jeremy Hansen, and Victor Glover passed the mission’s midpoint about two days and five hours after lifting off from Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The milestone coincided with the release of the first high-resolution images of Earth taken from the spacecraft during the flight.
Commander Wiseman captured photographs that reveal Earth as a full sphere set against the blackness of space. One image, called “Hello, World,” shows the planet’s cloud systems, oceans, and a thin atmospheric layer. Green auroras near the poles are visible, alongside the outlines of continents such as South America, the Sahara, and the Iberian Peninsula. NASA also identified the bright planet Venus in the background.
Additional images highlight the contrast between day and night on Earth. One shot captures the terminator line, the dividing line between sunlight and shadow, while another shows the planet nearly in darkness, with clusters of artificial lights marking human activity on the surface.
These photographs were taken after a key engine burn shifted Orion from Earth orbit onto a trans-lunar trajectory. This manoeuvre marked the end of the spacecraft’s orbit around Earth and the start of its path toward the Moon.
Earlier in the mission, Wiseman noted the challenge of photographing Earth from such a distance. He compared the difficulty to taking pictures of the Moon from Earth, citing issues with exposure settings that NASA said have since been resolved.
Artemis II represents the first time humans have travelled beyond low Earth orbit in more than 50 years. Unlike Apollo, this mission does not include a lunar landing. Orion is following a looping path around the Moon and is expected to pass behind it on 6 April before returning to Earth. The planned splashdown in the Pacific Ocean is scheduled for 10 April.
NASA reports that all systems aboard Orion are functioning as expected. The astronauts remain in good health and are carrying out scientific observations, testing spacecraft systems, and gathering data critical for future lunar missions, including Artemis III, which aims to land astronauts on the Moon.
The images and progress of Artemis II underscore not only the technical achievement of the mission but also the enduring human fascination with exploring space. They provide a rare perspective of Earth, highlighting both the fragility and the beauty of the planet in the vastness of space.
