Home / Science / Artemis 2 Astronauts Reach Lunar Midpoint
Artemis 2 Astronauts Reach Lunar Midpoint
4 Apr
Summary
- Astronauts passed the halfway point to the Moon, over 150,000 miles away.
- One astronaut described the maneuver as feeling like 'falling out of the sky'.
- The mission marks the first crewed lunar flyby in over 50 years.
The Artemis 2 mission has reached a significant milestone, with its four astronauts now past the halfway point of their journey to the Moon. As of Saturday morning, the crew was more than 150,000 miles from Earth, heading toward the first crewed lunar flyby in over 50 years.
Astronaut Jeremy Hansen described a particular maneuver, the translunar injection burn, as feeling like "falling out of the sky." This maneuver brought their spacecraft, Orion, within 200 kilometers of Earth before swinging onto its lunar trajectory.
Canadian astronaut Jeremy Hansen, a former fighter pilot, is making his maiden voyage and will be the first non-American to fly around the Moon. Orion's next major objective is to enter the Moon's sphere of influence on day five of the 10-day mission. Hansen expressed anticipation for seeing the far side of the Moon and witnessing an eclipse of the Sun behind it.
