By Sunday afternoon, the Artemis II crew had traveled 218,012 miles from Earth. That means the spacecraft was a mere 60,000 miles from the Moon, with a lunar flyby set for Monday, April 6. The crew will get as close at 4,000 miles from the lunar surface as they swing around the far side, becoming the first humans to see it from that perspective (at least as far as we know 🤔). More cool stuff from Yahoo News:
artemisii
The Astronauts are hugging, they are so happy to be the furthest away from Donald Trump humans have ever been!
"Why #Nutella?"
Because paste consistency food is great in weightlessness
Peanut butter is also loved by astronauts
Soft tortillas too: no crumbs floating around
And all these foods don't need refrigeration
Finally, you need calorie dense foods since storage is at a premium
Eat like an astronaut and have a Nutella tortilla
Edited 156d ago
#ArtemisII My latest cartoon for @newscientist.com@bsky.brid.gy
#ArtemisII astronauts now on course to head back to Earth
Orion ventured around the moon & begins its return to Earth.
After a 40-minute communications blackout ended, #Artemis II #astronaut Christina Koch said, “It is so great to hear from Earth again.” She and her three crewmates have emerged from behind the moon as they continue their seven-hour flyby of the #moon & head back home.
#science #space #SpaceExploration
https://www.cnn.com/2026/04/06/science/live-news/nasa-artemis-2-flyby-moon-mission?cid=ios_app
I haven't seen *anyone* share this yet so have fun! #Artemis audio library. https://www.nasa.gov/artemisaudio/ #ArtemisII #Audio #Sound
#StephenLillie on the return of the #ArtemisII crew – #cartoon | Stephen Lillie | The Guardian
Cruciferous vegetables are very healthy
But not in #space
4 people in a spacecraft the size of 2 minivans means excess flatulence- which has methane and hydrogen, is not just malodorous, but downright dangerous: flammability
" #NASA even carefully curates astronauts’ meals to reduce flatulence as much as possible. Among the foods on its naughty list are Brussels sprouts, baked beans, cabbage and broccoli"
Edited 153d ago
They're erecting the inflatable "front porch" raft on the front of the capsule.
Next they'll put the inflatable patio furniture in place, and some ice in the inflatable beer cooler.
Speedboats are doing donuts around the space capsule. They may as well have a water-skier on the back of that thing.
"It's a requirement of NASA to get the crew out of the capsule within two hours of splash down." reports the NASA commentary.
"It's out in two hours or your next splashdown is free!"
Watching coverage of Artemis II's return. Communications blackout due to heat has begun. I didn't expect to feel anxious about this, but here we are.
#ArtemisII
#Artemis2
#ArtemisMission
#ArtemisReturn
#OrionReturn
#NASA
Edited 152d ago
RE: https://mastodon.online/@mastodonmigration/116381997881074562
While NASA celebrates, things are not going so well for SpaceX...
#JoyScrolling #ArtemisII #HiddenFigures #CelebrateScience #CelebrateWomenScientists #KatherineJohnson #NASA
Edited 152d ago
First PoC and first woman to go around another world.
Don't stop talking about this point.
It's important.
📸 NASA
Like many, I've been captivated by the Artemis II launch. And after watching the events unfold, the emotions from others, the songs and poems written, relearning the mythology of the names surrounding the mission and seeing the splashdown...
*sigh*
Saying "I love you to the moon and back" has taken on such a huge and different meaning. And I'm so much more enamored with Luna than I already was.
Photo taken 3•31•26 in Houston, Texas the day before the Artemis II launch.
#Moon #ArtemisII #BlackAndWhitePhotography
#iPhonePhotography
Confirmation of LOS -- Loss of Signal -- for 40 minutes
Final #ArtemisII #Orion screenshot right at signal loss
Edited 156d ago
"A crew is a group that is in it all the time no matter what ... that is willing to sacrifice silently for each other but gives grace that holds accountable.
Planet Earth: You are a crew."
— Christina Koch
ohhhh, this is good!
Using the 3.9m AAT, Sarah Caddy and Lee Spitler (from our school!) were able to track Orion on its return trajectory ...
... when the astronauts were still 200,000 km away from Earth! 🤯
That's at a distance of ~16 Earth diameters away, and Orion is a tiny tiny tiny spaceship at such great distances ....
But a big 3.9m telescope is also a handy toy to play with!
via AAL LinkedIn