The crew of Artemis II has named a 'bright spot' on the moon after Reid Wiseman's late wife, Carroll Taylor Wiseman, who died of cancer in 2020. About five hours later, the crew reached the farthest point in its mission, before swinging back around, at 406,771km (252,756 miles) from Earth – 6,616km farther than the ill-fated Apollo 13 mission in 1970. Astronauts on the emergency fly-by in 1970 – commander Jim Lovell, Fred Haise and Jack Swigert – reached a maximum 400,171km from Earth before making their turn. The hour-long eclipse allowed the astronauts to complete a final part of their mission: observing the sun’s corona as the rest of the star is hidden. “It just looks unreal ... the Earthshine.”By 9.35pm ET, Orion had completed its observations and was on its trip back home to planet Earth.

Source: The Irish Times April 07, 2026 14:18 UTC