Stunning images/ NASA releases first images from the far side of the Moon

2026-04-07 15:43:00, Kosova & Bota CNA

NASA has released stunning images from the Artemis II mission, revealing rare views of the far side of the Moon and offering a unique perspective of Earth from space.

One of the two images shows Earth behind the lunar horizon, as captured by Orion from the far side of the Moon. Released by the White House, this is the first image of our planet from this unique perspective.

The second photo shows the moment of an eclipse, where the Moon completely covers the Sun, "a sight that few people have ever seen in the history of mankind."

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The Artemis II mission, with a crew of Reed Wiseman, Victor Glover, Christina Koch and Jeremy Hansen, is the first manned flight beyond Earth orbit since the Apollo 17 mission in 1972.

The Orion spacecraft is in a "free return" orbit, using the Moon's gravity to return to Earth even without additional thrust. After launching aboard the Space Launch System rocket, the crew conducted a series of tests to evaluate Orion's capabilities, including a 70-minute manual navigation mission.

Also essential was the operation of the Deep Space Network, the global communications network that allows precise tracking of spacecraft beyond the range of GPS, via large antennas in the United States, Spain, and Australia.

During the mission, there were periods of no communication with Earth, particularly when the spacecraft was on the dark side of the Moon, hindering data transmission.

Record distance from Earth

The mission broke the record for the distance traveled by a human in space, surpassing the previous record set by Apollo 13 by more than 4,000 miles and reaching approximately 252,756 miles from Earth.

The astronauts captured images of the lunar surface, describing craters and geological formations that could help in planning future landing missions.

Reentry into the atmosphere is critical

The final phase of the mission involves re-entry into Earth's atmosphere, a particularly difficult process as the Orion capsule will reach speeds greater than 30 times the speed of sound, causing temperatures of more than 2,700 degrees Celsius on its exterior.

The behavior of the heat shield is a key subject of study, as damage was found on a previous unmanned mission. For this reason, NASA has adapted the re-entry procedure to collect critical data for future missions. /CNA