Artemis Two's Moon Flyby: A New Era of Space Exploration

0:00It's April 5th. This is Global News Today World Coverage Powered by AI. The Artemis II crew, three Americans and one Canadian, launched last week on the first moon mission since 1972. They're pushing past the Apollo 13's record distance of 248,655 miles from Earth during a close. Lunar fly by on Monday. No landing, just a gravity-assisted swing around our cosmic neighbor before heading home. Here this week, the astronauts shared they've already spotted extraordinary sights from space. Now they're prepped with lunar maps and cameras to capture the moon's far side, including parts like the Oriental Basin never seen by human eyes. Before, they'll trade shifts snapping photos with pro gear and even iPhones. Crew members like Christina Cock call this milestone a bridge from past missions to future ones, something folks can really grasp. The geologists train them for months on moon visuals, and everyone's hype to hear their real-time descriptions beamed back to Earth.

1:01During the fly by, expect a total solar eclipse visible only from their Orion capsule, revealing the sun's glowing corona for a few minutes. Communications will black out for about 40 minutes behind the moon, but physics will sling them back into view, just like in Apollo days. After the fly by, it's four days home to a Pacific splash down near San Diego on April 10th. Even radio chat with the International Space Station crew, linking moon travelers with orbital folks for the first time. This sets the stage for moon bases, rovers, and deeper exploration ahead.