It is officially Flight Day 6 of the historic Artemis 2 mission and NASA kicked off its live broadcast of the today’s lunar flyby, bringing audiences along for the ride as the crew—including Canadian Space Agency (CSA) astronaut Jeremy Hansen—makes their closest lunar approach.
At 1:57 p.m. EDT the Artemis 2 crew set the record for the farthest distance from Earth traveled by a human mission, surpassing the Apollo 13 record of 400,171 kilometres (248,655 miles) set in 1970.
The live coverage features real-time imagery captured by cameras mounted on the Orion spacecraft’s solar array wings. Viewers are being treated to fully illuminated views of the lunar surface, showcasing ancient volcanic lava flows on the Moon’s near side. The unique deep-space vantage point also provides a rare look at the massive, 965 kilometre (600 mile)-wide Orientale basin, a crater that straddles the boundary between the near and far sides of the Moon.
A communications blackout – As Orion swings behind the Moon to explore its far side, the spacecraft will enter a planned communications blackout. This temporary loss of signal (LOS) with the Deep Space Network is scheduled to last from 6:44 p.m. to 7:25 p.m. EDT. While live video feeds from the spacecraft will temporarily drop during this 41-minute window, ground teams and the ongoing broadcast will continue to monitor the mission’s trajectory as the crew relies on Orion’s robust systems to safely navigate the dark side of the Moon.
Today’s schedule:
- 1:57 p.m. EDT (1757 UTC): Artemis II crew surpasses the Apollo 13 distance record
- 2:45 p.m. EDT (1845 UTC): Lunar observation period begins
- 6:44 p.m. EDT (2247 UTC): Predicted loss of communications as Artemis II heads behind the Moon (roughly 40 minutes)
- 7:02 p.m. EDT (2302 UTC): Artemis II’s closest approach to the Moon
- 7:05 p.m. EDT (2305 UTC): Artemis II reaches its furthest distance from Earth
- 7:25 p.m. EDT (2325 UTC): Communication resumes