Artemis II astronauts hurtle home from moon toward splashdown - Reuters

<a href="https://news.google.com/rss/articles/CBMiogFBVV95cUxQUlo4bTVBVXhKMWx2azNjUmdlaFotdTFmRXh6VXBiWno0LTFPSVlnY0cySWc0YVB5OUh3ZWtGQjRidjVPNXdTNkJHZFVNcDZESS1kMXNDTng3bzN5b0VPZVVUbTc3UlFLTGJoSUtmQmN6R0l4bmZBMzBURENfZUVnbEwyc25JcDEtNjJqX0RZUy1ZWWhlbi1Pam1nOGlHTnpiZXc?oc=5" target="_blank">Artemis II astronauts hurtle home from moon toward splashdown</a>&nbsp;&nbsp;<font color="#6f6f6f">Reuters</font>

As Artemis II astronauts near Earth after their historic lunar flyby, they reflect on the emotional and scientific magnitude of the journey, becoming the most distant humans in history and witnessing a rare total solar eclipse from space.

Artemis 2 successfully completed a groundbreaking lunar flyby on April 6, 2026, marking NASA's first crewed mission beyond low Earth orbit since Apollo 17 in 1972, reaching a new human spaceflight distance record of 252,756 miles from Earth.

The Artemis II astronauts made history by conducting the first-ever moonship-to-spaceship radio call with the International Space Station while returning to Earth, sharing their experiences and transmitting over 50 gigabytes of data from their lunar journey.

During their historic Artemis II mission, astronauts continued a touching Apollo-era tradition by naming lunar features after loved ones, including proposing names for two small craters: 'Integrity' and 'Carroll'.