NASA Artemis II Moon flyby April 6 after Orientale photos
Technology
NASA's Artemis II mission is gearing up for a big moment on April 6, 2026: a flyby of the moon that's making headlines for all the right reasons.
The crew has already snapped humanity's new photos of the Orientale basin on the moon's far side.
The action kicks off at 2:45pm EST and will last over six hours, with a short blackout at 6:47pm EST when the spacecraft goes out of contact behind the moon.
Artemis II to reach 406772km
Artemis II isn't just about cool photos: it'll set a new record by flying 406772km from Earth, beating Apollo 13's distance by about 6437km.
This mission is a huge step toward NASA landing people on the moon again by 2028 and is putting both the Orion capsule and the rocket through their paces for future deep-space adventures.