It’s a historic moment for the crew of NASA’s Artemis II mission, who have now traveled farther from Earth than any humans in history as they continue toward a planned lunar flyby.
The four astronauts surpassed the previous record set by the Apollo 13 crew in 1970, when they traveled about 248,655 miles from Earth.
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The milestone comes ahead of the spacecraft’s flyby of the moon, when Orion is expected to pass within about 4,070 miles of the lunar surface.
Mission control also anticipates a temporary loss of communication as the spacecraft moves behind the moon, coinciding with “Earthset,” when Earth disappears behind the lunar horizon from the crew’s perspective.
Communication is expected to be restored during “Earthrise,” when the planet comes back into view on the opposite side of the moon.
The crew is also expected to conduct lunar observations and witness a solar eclipse as the moon passes between Orion and the sun.
The mission marks a major step forward in NASA’s efforts to return humans to deep space and eventually land astronauts on the lunar surface for the first time in more than 50 years.
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