The White House on Tuesday shared the first photo taken by the Artemis II mission from the far side of the Moon, showing a stunning view captured during the astronauts’ record-breaking journey.
The photo was taken during NASA’s Orion crew’s historic flyby, which pushed astronauts farther from Earth than any humans before them.
“Humanity, from the other side. First photo from the far side of the Moon. Captured from Orion as Earth dips beyond the lunar horizon,” the White House posted on X on Tuesday morning.
NASA.
The White House also released another dramatic photo showing the Moon eclipsing the Sun from the spacecraft’s vantage point in lunar orbit.
“Totality, beyond Earth. From lunar orbit, the Moon eclipses the Sun, revealing a view few in human history have ever witnessed,” the White House said.
NASA.
The images come as the Orion mission surpassed the distance record set by Apollo 13, traveling roughly 252,756 miles from Earth. The crew includes commander Reid Wiseman, pilot Victor Glover, mission specialist Christina Koch, and Canadian Space Agency astronaut Jeremy Hansen.
On Monday night, President Donald Trump called into the spacecraft, praising the astronauts as “modern day pioneers.”
“You’ve made history and made all America really proud, incredibly proud. We have a lot of things to be proud of lately, but there’s nothing like what you’re doing circling around the moon for the first time in more than a half a century, and breaking the all time record for the farthest distance from planet Earth,” Trump told the astronauts. “Humans have really never seen anything quite like what you’re doing in a manned spacecraft, it’s really special.”
He added that the mission represents a key step toward future space ambition, including establishing a permanent presence on the Moon and eventually traveling to Mars.
“We’ll plant our flag once again, and this time we won’t just leave footprints. We’ll establish a permanent presence on the moon, and we’ll push on to Mars,” Trump said. “That’ll be very exciting. I’m waiting for that so much. I’d love to be here, but maybe we won’t quite make it in terms of timing.”
Trump said he would like to get their autographs once they return to Earth, calling them “really something.”
“When you want us, we will be there,” Glover replied.
Koch said that the mission had highlighted to her the importance of space travel.
“It really just reminds you what a special place we have and how important it is for our nation to lead and not follow in exploring deep space,” she told Trump.
Hansen thanked Trump on behalf of Canada, praising American leadership in space exploration.
“A nation that leads like that, and creates and sets big goals for humanity that brings other countries along with it, is truly incredible,” he said.
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