Artemis ii astronauts pierce far side of moon in historic journey

NASA's Artemis II mission reached a milestone on Monday as astronauts ventured further into space than any humans before them, approaching the far side of the moon and breaking the record for maximum range from Earth.

First lunar fly-by in over 50 years

The historic lunar fly-by is part of an ambitious plan to return to the moon, with the goal of establishing a permanent lunar base offering a platform for further exploration. NASA plans to land two crew members near the lunar south pole in 2028.

During the flyby, the astronauts – Americans Victor Glover, Reid Wiseman, and Christina Koch, along with Canadian Jeremy Hansen – will have to observe the celestial body with their naked eyes, along with cameras they have onboard.

The journey promises breathtaking views of the moon's far side that were too dark or difficult to see by the 24 Apollo astronauts who preceded them. Apollo flights of the 1960s and 70s flew about 70 miles above the lunar surface, but the Artemis crew will be just over 4,000 miles at their closest approach, allowing them to see the complete, spherical surface of the moon.

Despite the historic achievement, the Artemis crew has been dealing with persistent issues with one of the Orion spacecraft's most crucial pieces of equipment – the toilet. Until the lunar loo is fixed, astronauts have been using backup urine collection bags.