Artemis astronauts send a historic photograph from deep space

Published at: 06/04/2026 12:02 PM

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) of the United States (USA) shocked the world this Sunday by sharing the last photograph of the Earth taken from the Orion spacecraft, just before the Artemis II mission reaches its closest point to the Moon on April 6.

In the image, captured during the fourth day of this ten-day journey, our planet appears plunged into the darkness of deep space, showing only a thin illuminated strip that recalls the silhouette of a waxing moon.

This capture is not just an aesthetic achievement, but a visual reminder of the historic distance that the four astronauts are traveling on their way to the natural satellite.

As Orion prepares for its closest flyby, this “postcard” from the cosmos symbolizes humanity's advance toward a new era of space exploration. The photograph has quickly gone viral, serving as the perfect prelude to the astronomical milestone that is being experienced this Monday around the planet.

NASA published it with a message that read: “One last look at the Earth before reaching the Moon”. It was captured just before the ship entered the lunar sphere of gravitational influence. At that time, the crew was already more than 370,000 kilometers away, watching their home get smaller and smaller.

Mazo News Team