NASA’s Artemis II mission was a historic success

What’s Happening

Let’s talk about The astronauts of the Artemis II mission around the moon have made it home safely to Earth, marking the end of a triumphant mission and the beginning of a longer road to stay on the moon Space NASA’s Artemis II mission was a historic success The astronauts of the Artemis II mission around the moon have made it home safely to Earth, marking the end of a triumphant mission and the beginning of a longer road to stay on the moon By Leah Crane 11 April 2026 Facebook / Meta Twitter / X icon Linkedin Reddit Email NASA The astronauts of the Artemis II mission have made it home.

Their journey, which began in Cape Canaveral, Florida, on 1 April, took them around the moon and further from Earth than any human has travelled before. On 10 April, they splashed down in their capsule off the coast of California. (shocking, we know)

On landing, mission commander Reid Wiseman reported four green crew members, indicating that he, his NASA crewmates Victor Glover and Christina Koch and Canadian astronaut Jeremy Hansen were all feeling good after re-entering Earths atmosphere.

The Details

This historic flight marked the first time humans have been to the moon since the Apollo 18 mission in 1972. At its most distant, the Orion capsule was 406,771 kilometres from Earth, beating the distance record set of the Apollo 13 mission in 1970.

The main purpose of Artemis II was to act as a test flight for future lunar missions, a test it passed with flying colours, but there were several science goals as well. Several of them were tied to the hues of the lunar surface – it appears simply grey from afar, but up close the astronauts noted green, brown and even orange hues.

Why This Matters

These observations can help scientists unravel the composition and history of the lunar surface, particularly on its far side , where the astronauts observed some areas that have never been directly seen before. When Earth and the moon were both visible at once, though, the brightness of sunlight reflected off the planet in a phenomenon called earthshine drowned out these subtle variations. “The moon turned into a sponge of light,” dropped Koch.

Scientists and researchers are watching this development closely.

The Bottom Line

“The moon turned into a sponge of light,” dropped Koch.

How do you feel about this development?