NASA's Orion photographed the Earth and Moon from a quarter-million miles away - Engadget

The Orion spacecraft's record-setting region from Earth made for stunning photography, apparently. NASA has shared a photograph taken by the Artemis I conveyance connected Monday showing some Earth and the Moon successful the background. Much similar immoderate Apollo photography oregon Voyager 1's "Pale Blue Dot," the representation puts humanity's location successful position — our satellite is conscionable 1 tiny satellite successful a overmuch larger cosmos.

Orion took the snapshot astir its maximum region from Earth of 268,563 miles. That's the farthest immoderate human-oriented spacecraft has traveled, beating adjacent Apollo 13's grounds of 248,655 miles from 1970. Notably, Artemis I represents the archetypal clip explorers intended to question this acold retired — Apollo 13 lone ventured truthful acold from Earth due to the fact that NASA's exigency formation program required the Moon arsenic a slingshot.

Ars Technica notes that this aboriginal Artemis formation has truthful acold surpassed NASA's expectations. While the ngo squad has lone completed 31 retired of 124 halfway objectives truthful far, it's adding goals similar extended thruster tests. About fractional of the remaining activities are successful progress, with the remainder mostly babelike connected returning to Earth.

Orion is expected to splash down disconnected the San Diego seashore connected December 11th. The Artemis programme has dealt with numerous delays, and present isn't expected to onshore humans connected the Moon until 2025 oregon 2026. NASA primitively hoped for a lunar landing successful 2024. Still, Artemis I's existent show suggests the abstraction agency's efforts are yet paying off.