NASA has published the first photographs taken by Artemis II astronauts during their flyby of the Moon, writes UNN.
Details
As BBC notes, the first image shows an "Earthset," when the astronauts saw our home planet peeking out from behind the cratered lunar landscape.
The second image shows a stunning solar eclipse observed by the astronauts, with the Moon obscuring the Sun.
NASA did not disclose which of the astronauts, who are already returning to Earth after the flyby, took these photographs.
The astronauts took photographs during a six-hour flyby, including a period of radio silence when their capsule was behind the Moon.
In its description, NASA noted that the Earthrise photograph was taken through the Orion spacecraft's window at 6:41 PM ET (1:41 AM the next day Kyiv time) on Monday, BBC notes.
"The dark part of Earth is experiencing night. On the daytime side of Earth, swirling clouds are visible over the Australia and Oceania region," NASA reported.
"In the foreground, the Oma crater has terraced edges and a flat floor, interrupted by central peaks. Central peaks form in complex craters when the lunar surface, liquefied upon impact, splashes upward during crater formation," the space agency noted.
Addition
The astronauts launched on Wednesday from the Kennedy Space Center at Cape Canaveral, Florida, USA, and then spent about 25 hours orbiting Earth. The "Orion" capsule left Earth's orbit and then entered the Moon's sphere of influence, where the Moon's gravity is stronger than Earth's.
The astronauts of the Artemis II mission moved away from Earth to the maximum distance in human history.
After completing the lunar flyby, the astronauts are now heading home - returning to Earth.
According to NASA, at 1:25 PM on Tuesday (8:25 PM Kyiv time), the "Orion" capsule is expected to exit the Moon's sphere of influence, when Earth's gravitational pull on the spacecraft becomes stronger than the Moon's, at a distance of approximately 41,072 miles (66,099 kilometers) from the Moon.
Tomorrow, NBC News notes, the astronauts will enjoy well-deserved free time, allowing them to rest before preparing for re-entry into Earth's atmosphere and returning home.
The astronauts are expected to reach Earth on Friday, with the mission concluding with a splashdown in the Pacific Ocean near San Diego.
The crew is expected to return to Earth on Friday evening after a splashdown in the Pacific Ocean.