Artemis II astronauts on historic moon flyby after breaking distance record – National

The Canadian and three Americans taking part in NASA’s Artemis II lunar mission captured historic images of the moon’s far side Monday after travelling the farthest distance from Earth than any other humans before them.

Astronauts Jeremy Hansen, a London, Ont., native, and Americans Reid Weisman, Victor Glover and Christina Koch broke the record set by Apollo 13 astronauts over 50 years ago at 1:57 p.m. Eastern.

The astronauts are now recording their observations of the moon in what’s expected to be a more than six-hour lunar flyby — images no human has witnessed before.

NASA said the estimated maximum distance from Earth during the Orion spacecraft’s flyby will exceed 406,000 kilometres, beating the 400,171 kilometres set by Apollo 13 in 1970.

During its flyby, Orion will come as close as about 6,500 km to the moon’s surface. From that vantage point, Hansen has said the moon will look like a basketball held at arm’s length.

“It is blowing my mind what you can see with the naked eye from the moon right now. It is just unbelievable,” Hansen radioed ahead of the flyby. He challenged “this generation and the next to make sure this record is not long-lived.”

The astronauts took turns observing and photographing geological features on the moon, like impact craters and ancient lava flows.

Moments after breaking Apollo 13’s record, the astronauts asked permission to name two fresh lunar craters already observed. They proposed Integrity, their capsule’s name, and Carroll in honor of commander Reid Wiseman’s wife who died of cancer in 2020. Wiseman wept as Hansen put in the request to Mission Control, and all four astronauts embraced in tears.

“Such a majestic view out here,” Wiseman radioed once he regained his composure and started picture-taking. The astronauts called down that they managed to capture the moon and Earth in the same shot, and provided a running commentary to scientists back in Houston on what they were seeing.

Some peaks were so bright, pilot Victor Glover noted, that they looked as though they were covered in snow. Besides photographing the scenes with high-powered Nikon cameras, the astronauts also pulled out their iPhones for some impromptu shots.

The flyby promises views of the moon’s far side that were too dark or too difficult to see by the 24 Apollo astronauts who preceded them.

“The crew will make their lunar observations with real-time data analysis, guidance provided by a team of scientists and the knowledge acquired through their geology training in Labrador, Iceland and in class to describe surface textures, shapes, and colours, providing valuable data for future exploration of the moon,” reads a news release from the Canadian Space Agency.

NASA says the Orientale basin, a 3.8-billion-year-old crater that formed when a large object struck the lunar surface, will be fully illuminated and visible as Orion approaches.

On Tuesday, Orion will leave the lunar sphere of influence en route back to Earth. The capsule will aim for a splashdown in the Pacific Ocean near San Diego on April 10, nine days after its Florida launch.

Apollo 13’s astronauts missed out on a moon landing when one of their oxygen tanks ruptured on the way there. Mission Control pivoted to a free-return lunar trajectory to get them home as fast and efficiently as possible. This routing relies on the gravity of Earth and the moon, and minimal fuel.

Artemis II’s astronauts are following the same figure-eight path since they are neither orbiting the moon nor landing on it.

Wiseman, Glover, Hansen and Christina Koch started the momentous day with the voice of Apollo 13 commander Jim Lovell, who recorded a wake-up message just two months before his death last August. “Welcome to my old neighborhood,” said Lovell, who also flew on Apollo 8, humanity’s first lunar visit. “It’s a historic day and I know how busy you’ll be, but don’t forget to enjoy the view.”

They took up with them the Apollo 8 silk patch that accompanied Lovell to the moon, and showed it off as the crucial flyby approached. “It’s just a real honour to have that on board with us,” said Wiseman. “Let’s go have a great day.”

— with files from The Canadian Press and the Associated Press

&copy 2026 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.