NASA made history in early April with the successful completion of the Artemis II mission. The mission launched on April 1st, with the Orion spacecraft carrying four crew members beyond low-Earth orbit.

This is the first time humans have been to the Moon since Apollo 17 in 1972. During the flyby, the astronauts also became the first humans to see the far side of the moon with the naked eye.

The Orion spacecraft, carrying Victor Glover, Christina Koch, Jeremy Hansen, and Reid Wiseman, traveled just over 406,771 kilometers from Earth. This distance surpassed the record previously set by the Apollo 13 mission in 1970.

After completing the lunar flyby, Artemis II began its trip back to Earth. The mission concluded on April 10th, safely landing in the Pacific Ocean nine days after launch. All crew members were unharmed and thrilled about the mission’s success.

The Artemis II is part of NASA’s larger Artemis program. The purpose of the mission was to test new spaceflight technologies in order to prepare for future missions to the Moon and beyond.