The four astronauts aboard the agency’s Artemis II test flight around the Moon made history at 1:56 p.m. EDT on Monday, April 6, 2026, when they reached 248,655 miles from Earth—surpassing the farthest distance ever traveled by humans, a record previously set by Apollo 13 in 1970. 

The first flyby images of the Moon captured by NASA’s Artemis II astronauts during their historic test flight reveal regions no human has ever seen before—including a rare in-space solar eclipse. Released Tuesday, April 7, 2026, the photos were taken on April 6 during the crew’s seven‑hour pass over the lunar far side, marking humanity’s return to the Moon’s vicinity.