Artemis astronauts’ first pictures from space released as they zoom toward moon

WorldSpace
4 Apr 2026 • 1:03 AM MYT
The Independent
The Independent

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  • Artemis II astronauts have captured stunning images of Earth as they journey closer to the moon.
  • NASA released the crew's first downlinked photos, taken 1.5 days into the first astronaut moon mission in over half a century.
  • The images include a curved slice of Earth from the capsule window and a full view of the globe with swirling clouds.
  • The crew, comprising three Americans and one Canadian, was 90,000 miles from Earth and 168,000 miles from the moon as of Friday morning, expected to reach their destination on Monday.
  • They will perform a flyby around the moon in their Orion capsule before heading straight back to Earth, marking the first lunar travellers since Apollo 17 in 1972.

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