Stunning first glimpse of Earth sent by Artemis crew
This is how planet Earth looks to the Artemis II astronauts.
The crew travelling on board the Artemis II rocket have sent through the first images of Earth as it looks from their POV.
The surreal snaps were taken by the NASA astronaut and Artemis Commander Reid Wiseman, who is one of the four-strong team on their way to the moon.
It shows Earth from the Orion spacecraft’s window after it completed the translunar injection burn, which took the rocket out of Earth’s orbit.
Eagle-eyed viewers can spot two auroras on the top right and bottom left, with a zodiacal light glimmering on the background as the Earth eclipses the Sun.
A second image shows the view from one of the Orion’s four windows.
NASA said: ‘We see our home planet as a whole, lit up in spectacular blues and browns. A green aurora even lights up the atmosphere. That’s us, together, watching as our astronauts make their journey to the Moon.’
Read here how long it will take for the astronauts to reach the moon.
These are the first two images shared to the world aboard the historic Moon mission.
Wiseman is heading to the moon and back with Victor Glover, Christina Koch and Jeremy Hansen.
The crew are inching closer towards the moon inside the spacecraft, which has been described as cosy after taking off from Florida on April 1.
They will be carrying out all their daily duties inside the 330-cubic-foot capsule – roughly the size of a minivan.
It will be their home for 10 days until it plunges back on Earth and into the Pacific Ocean.
The astronauts have all gone through special cosmic toilet training to deal with the pesky lack of gravity.
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