NASA's Artemis II crew successfully completed a flyby of the Moon's far side on April 7, 2026, breaking the distance record set by Apollo 13 in 1970 and becoming the farthest-traveling humans in history. The four astronauts — commander Reid Wiseman, pilot Victor Glover, mission specialist Christina Koch, and Canadian Space Agency astronaut Jeremy Hansen — are now on their return journey to Earth following the landmark mission.

The spacecraft traveled beyond the distance reached by the Apollo 13 crew during their emergency return in 1970, which had stood as the farthest point any humans had reached from Earth for over five decades. Artemis II, which did not include a lunar landing, was designed to test NASA's Orion spacecraft and Space Launch System on a crewed trajectory around the Moon before future missions attempt to put astronauts back on the lunar surface.

During the mission's far-side pass, the crew temporarily lost communication with ground control — a planned communications blackout that occurs when the spacecraft is shielded by the Moon. Astronaut Victor Glover used the moment to share a personal reflection, which drew attention across outlets of varied political leans. Separately, a feature on the lunar surface was named in honor of mission commander Wiseman's late wife, adding a human dimension to the historic flight.

The mission represents the first time humans have traveled to the vicinity of the Moon since the Apollo 17 mission in December 1972. Artemis II is a precursor to Artemis III, which NASA intends to use for an actual crewed lunar landing, potentially including the first woman and first person of color to walk on the Moon.

NASA and its international partners, including the Canadian Space Agency, hailed the mission as a critical step in returning humans to deep space exploration. The crew's safe return to Earth is expected in the coming days as the Orion capsule makes its way back for splashdown.