NASA Releases New Photos from Artemis II Mission Capturing Earth, Moon and Eclipse

New photographs from NASA's Artemis II mission, showing Earth and the Moon from space, were released this week. The images capture the spacecraft's journey to the Moon and its return to Earth, highlighting celestial alignments and astronaut perspectives. NASA made the photos public, with a selection published in The Atlantic on or around May 2026.

A camera attached to the Artemis II spacecraft took a striking view of Earth passing behind the Moon on April 6, 2026, as the vehicle swung around the lunar far side. In the frame, partly visible at the left, the spacecraft itself appears alongside the cosmic scene. This moment marked the crew's position during the outbound leg of their voyage.

Earlier, on April 2, 2026, as the Artemis II crew began their journey to the Moon, they photographed a half-illuminated Earth from space. Cloud formations stood out along Earth's terminator, the boundary between day and night. The images reveal the planet's swirling atmosphere in sharp detail against the void.

Through a window of NASA's Orion spacecraft, named Integrity, the crew captured views of Earth during the mission. One photograph shows the planet framed by the window's edge, emphasizing the intimacy of observation from orbit. The Earth and Moon also appear together through a spacecraft window in another shot, blending the two bodies in a single vista.

As Artemis II passed around the far side of the Moon, another image recorded Earth in the distance. An astronaut's hand is reflected in the window while taking a photograph of Earth starting to pass behind the Moon, adding a human touch to the automated captures. The Earth then set along the Moon's horizon, its blue marble dipping below the cratered edge.

The sequence continued as Earth passed out of view behind the Moon, fully obscured for a brief period. Moments later, the Earth emerged from the other side, partly occluded by the dark lunar surface, as seen by the crew. An astronaut gazed out of a spacecraft window during this phase, contemplating the shifting views.

Lunar details filled other frames: a close view of the Moon showcased its pockmarked surface. Craters cast long shadows along the Moon's terminator, creating dramatic contrasts in the low-angle light. A specific image highlighted the Hertzsprung basin and Vavilov Crater, revealing the Moon's rugged geology up close.

Away from planetary subjects, the mission's photographers turned to the stars. A view of the Milky Way stretched across the frame, captured from the spacecraft's vantage. Stargazing occurred through a spacecraft window, with one motion-blurred image showing nearby stars and the galaxy's band, suggesting camera movement during exposure.

On the return voyage, Artemis II crew members observed the Moon eclipsing the Sun on April 6, 2026. Bright rays of sunlight pierced the scene as the Moon blocked the solar disk. An external camera recorded the eclipse, including part of the Orion spacecraft in the foreground, documenting the event from outside.

After the eclipse, a bright flare of sunlight appeared along the edge of the dark Moon, with the lunar surface's curve visible through the glow. The sun emerged fully from behind the Moon in subsequent shots. One final image of Earth, photographed through a spacecraft window, included rays of sunlight, lens flares, and a reflection of the camera lens, capturing the optical artifacts of space imaging.

The Artemis II mission utilized NASA's Orion spacecraft for its journey to the Moon and back to Earth. All 12,217 images from the mission are now available on NASA's Gateway to Astronaut Photography website. These releases provide a comprehensive visual record of the crew's experiences in deep space.