Artemis II crew reaches moon's 'sphere of influence' before closest approach

Artemis II astronauts saw for the first time in history a side of the moon that had never been seen before with naked eyes by any human during the weekend.

It comes as a teaser as Artemis II flyby will start by today, Monday afternoon, April 6, 2026.

Artemis II has entered moon’s ‘sphere of influence’ on Monday, April 6, at 12:37 a.m. EDT (04:37 GMT).

Entering moon’s ‘sphere of influence’ simply means its gravity has a stronger pull on the spacecraft than Earth’s.

Artemis II astronauts made the transition after spending four days, six hours and two minutes into the mission, at a distance of about 39,000 miles from the moon and 232,000 miles away from the planet Earth.

After achieving this milestone, now comes the big deal that humanity has been waiting for since its launch on April 1, 2026.

When Artemis II makes a flyby trip to the far side of the moon this Monday afternoon, it will reach farther than any human has ever been.

All about buzzing ‘flyby’ today afternoon

During the closest approach to the moon that will last about six hours, Artemis II crew members got the chance to observe the lunar surface with their naked eyes.

They will capture epic snaps that people back home are anxiously waiting for.

It’s also important because the previous 24 Apollo astronauts were unable to view the far side of the moon because of its darkness or difficulty in spotting it.

When Orion passes behind the moon, the Artemis II mission will lose their radio contact with Houston for about 40 minutes.

This happens because the moon's surface cuts off the radio signals required for the Deep Space Network to rely on to stay connected with the spacecraft.

If everything goes well, Artemis II four crew members onboard the Orion spacecraft will make a flyby trip around the moon, setting a history by traveling farther from Earth than any human before.