The Artemis II mission has achieved a historic milestone, breaking a 56-year-old human spaceflight distance record during a dramatic lunar flyby that included a rare solar eclipse. On April 6, 2026, NASA astronauts Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, and Christina Koch, along with Canadian Space Agency astronaut Jeremy Hansen, surpassed the distance record previously set by the Apollo 13 mission in 1970 (Global News).
At 7:07 p.m. EDT, the Orion spacecraft reached its maximum distance of 252,756 miles (406,771 km) from Earth, exceeding Apollo 13’s record of 248,655 miles (400,171 km) by 4,101 miles (BayToday.ca). During the flyby, the crew came within 4,067 miles (6,545 km) of the lunar surface on the moon’s far side, where they also experienced a 40-minute communications blackout before witnessing a breathtaking “Earthrise” (Florida Today).
A highlight of the mission was a total solar eclipse visible from deep space. The eclipse lasted approximately 53 to 54 minutes—much longer than totality on Earth—and allowed the crew to observe the sun’s corona and even distant stars and planets (Florida Today). Astronauts also reported flashes of light from meteoroids striking the moon, providing valuable scientific data on lunar surface hazards.
During the seven-hour far side observation, the crew documented lunar features including the Orientale Basin and Ohm crater using specialized cameras and even iPhones (YouTube). In a touching moment, they proposed naming a small, bright crater “Carroll” in honour of Commander Wiseman’s late wife.
The Artemis II mission is now on its return trajectory, with Orion scheduled for splashdown in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of San Diego on April 10, 2026, at around 8:07 p.m. EDT (Al Jazeera).
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