NASA’s Artemis II mission reached a defining milestone on April 6, when its crew officially traveled farther from Earth than any humans in history.
The record-breaking moment came at around 1:57 p.m. ET, as the Orion spacecraft moved behind the moon and surpassed the distance set by the Apollo 13 mission. That earlier mission reached 248,655 miles from Earth under extraordinary circumstances after an oxygen tank explosion forced astronauts to abandon a planned landing and loop around the moon instead.
As Artemis II crossed that threshold, Mission Control played a prerecorded message from Jim Lovell, who was a part of the Apollo mission. He died last year at age 97.
“Hello, Artemis II, this is Apollo astronaut Jim Lovell. Welcome to my old neighborhood,” he said. “I’m proud to pass that torch on to you as you swing around the moon and lay the groundwork for missions to Mars for the benefit of all.”
“It’s a historic day, and I know how busy you’ll be, but don’t forget to enjoy the view,” Lovell added. “So, Reid, Victor and Christina and Jeremy, and all the great teams supporting you, good luck and Godspeed from all of us here on the good Earth.”
From aboard Orion, Hansen responded.
“As we surpass the furthest distance humans have ever traveled from planet Earth, we do so honoring the extraordinary efforts and feats of our predecessors in human space exploration,” Hansen said.
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