Artemis II mission: Crew to travel farther than any humans in history during record-breaking lunar flyby

The four-astronaut crew of Artemis II is set to make history Monday, completing their record-breaking lunar flyby, traveling a little more than 252,760 miles from Earth — farther than any humans have gone before. See the complete day-by-day guide for the Artemis II mission below: TIMELINE: A DAY-BY-DAY GUIDE TO THE 10-DAY ARTEMIS II MISSION TO BRING HUMANITY BACK TO THE MOON Sweet dreams, @NASA

Artemis II crew. One last look at the Moon before flight day six and your epic lunar flyby, taking you farther into space than humans have EVER traveled. pic.twitter.com/roqklB0iGQ— NASA (@NASA) April 6, 2026 The crew aboard the Orion spacecraft entered the lunar gravitational sphere of influence — where the moon's gravity is stronger than Earth's — shortly after 12 a.m. ET, and will begin a 7-hour period to make detailed lunar observations Monday afternoon.

According to NASA, Artemis II crew members — Commander Reid Wiseman, pilot Victor Glover and mission specialists Christina Koch and Jeremy Hansen — will break the 1970 space travel record set by Apollo 13 by about 4,105 miles shortly before 2 p.m. ET. This mission serves as a critical test for the Orion spacecraft and a key building block of the Artemis program, which hopes to establish a long-term lunar base by 2030.

Nasa Pauses Gateway Lunar

-ORBIT SPACE STATION TO BUILD LUNAR BASE ON THE MOON The 7-hour lunar observation period is expected to begin at 2:45 p.m. ET. NASA says human eyes may be able to help make discoveries not possible with computer imaging alone. With limited window space, the team is expected to divide into pairs to make these observations, taking 90-minute shifts.

NASA will also lose contact with the Orion capsule for roughly 40 minutes around 6:45 p.m., as Earth disappears completely behind the Moon in a rapid \"

Earthset\" and \"

Earthrise\" phenomenon for the team. This will also mark Artemis II's closest distance to the moon, 4,070 miles, and when the capsule will use the Moon's gravity to \"slingshot\" around and begin its return course toward home. The lunar observation period will conclude at 9:20 p.m, and Orion will fully leave the Moon's sphere of influence by Tuesday night.

The crew will transmit some of the high-resolution images of the far side of the Moon on Tuesday.

Artemis Ii Begins First Full Day In

Space,

Performing Critical System Checks ,

Maneuvers On Historic Mission

Late Sunday night, the crew caught a historic first glimpse of the Orientale basin, on the Moon's most extreme western side and is nearly impossible to see from Earth. \"

This mission marks the first time the entire basin has been seen with human eyes,\" NASA said on X. After breaking free from Earth's orbit Thursday, the four-person crew coasted through the void of space on a direct course to the moon, having completed pre-planned, precise course corrections early Friday, with NASA announcing the crew was more than halfway to the moon and officially closer to it than Earth. TFW your bestie enters the chat.

During Thursday’s downlink with the Artemis II crew, the zero-gravity indicator, Rise, made an appearance and the crew’s reaction says it all. Not only an important instrument—the ZGI also reminds the astronauts of home. 🌎 pic.twitter.com/7idIvYiKv4— NASA Artemis (@NASA

Artemis) April 3, 2026 Throughout the weekend, the crew made final steering nudges to ensure Orion entered the correct orbital slot, guaranteeing the spacecraft would be able to \"whip around\" the moon. As they prepared for Monday’s lunar flyby, the crew exercised, practiced medical response procedures and tested the spacecraft’s emergency communications system in deep space, NASA said.

Meet The Astronauts Preparing For Humanity

’S RETURN TO THE MOON ON THE ARTEMIS II MISSION Along the way, the crew practiced zero-gravity CPR and other emergency procedures.

How To Watch Fox Weather

They also tested a special exercise device onboard to determine if it significantly impacted Orion's flight path. At the same time, engineers continued to monitor the spacecraft’s life support system, which maintained a comfortable cabin environment during the heavy physical exertion. The crew spoke to Trace Gallagher, the host of FOX News @ Night, late Thursday, and was eager to thank their families for their support for the first time since launching.

Commander Wiseman highlighted the incredible achievement of the American space program. \"

This is unbelievable, that we can put our minds to something and pull it off,\" Wiseman said.

Everyday Innovations Born From Space Travel

Mission Specialist Koch explained how the crew was getting adjusted to living in space, telling Gallagher that she was very comfortable sleeping upside down in zero gravity. NASA released the first high-resolution images of Earth from the Orion spacecraft on Friday. These pictures of the African continent were actually taken at night.

Historic launch The historic flight launched Wednesday at 6:35:12 p.m. ET from the Kennedy Space Center. A few hours before the mission's launch window opened, the mission very briefly entered a \"

No-Go\" range, while they addressed a glitch with the Flight Termination System. After roughly 45 minutes, the mission returned to \"

Go\" and things continued as planned. FOX Weather Correspondent Brandy Campbell covered the launch live, describing the atmosphere during the launch as \"electric.\" Mission control in Houston reported Friday that the Orion spacecraft is performing excellently.

Artemis Ii Brings Pieces Of The Past

ON ITS HISTORIC DEEP SPACE VOYAGE After whipping around the moon Monday, the crew will begin the voyage home, set to splash down next Friday afternoon in the Pacific Ocean.