STORY: NASA has released astonishing photos of the earth and moon taken by the Artemis II crew during their record-breaking lunar flyby on Monday (April 06).

One photo shows an ‘earthset’, where the earth sets below the moon’s horizon. The photo is “reminiscent of the iconic Earthrise image taken by astronaut Bill Anders 58 years earlier as the Apollo 8 crew flew around the Moon”, NASA wrote on X [formerly Twitter].

Another shows a totality as the moon eclipses the sun. A third photo reveals a close up of the rings of the Orientale basin on the moon.

NASA said on X that the Artemis II crew have proposed naming two of the craters in the basin Integrity, after the name they have given to their capsule, and Carroll, in honor of the late wife of mission commander, Reid Wiseman.

The four Artemis II astronauts flew deeper into space on Monday than any humans before them, as they cruised through a rare flyby of the shadowed far side of the moon that revealed a lunar surface under cosmic bombardment.

DESCRIPCIÓN DE IMÁGENES

VIDEO SHOWS: PHOTOS OF AN 'EARTHSET', THE MOON ECLIPSING THE SUN, AND A CLOSEUP OF THE MOON'S ORIENTALE BASIN TAKEN FROM THE ARTEMIS II CREW

RESENDING WITH FULL SCRIPT

SHOWS: IN SPACE (APRIL 06, 2026) (NASA – For editorial use only)

1. STILL PHOTO OF ‘EARTHSET’ TAKEN BY ARTEMIS II CREW AS THEY FLEW AROUND THE MOON

2. STILL PHOTO OF THE MOON ECLIPSING THE SUN TAKEN BY THE ARTEMIS II CREW

3. STILL PHOTO OF THE RINGS OF THE ORIENTALE BASIN DURING THEIR LUNAR FLYBY TAKEN BY THE ARTEMIS II CREW