Artemis II swings back around after completing record-setting moon flyby

<p>Astronauts become Earth’s farthest travelled and exceed a 1970 record on the fifth day of the mission </p><ul><li><p><a href="https://www.theguardian.com/science/2026/apr/07/artemis-ii-lunar-flyby-blackouts-five-key-moments">Blackouts, broken records and a message from the past: five key moments from Artemis II’s lunar flyby</a></p></li><li><p><a href="https://www.theguardian.com/news/2026/feb/17/sign-up-for-the-breaking-news-us-email-to-get-newsletter-alerts-direct-to-your-inbox?utm_medium=ACQUISITIONS_STANDFIRST&utm_campaign=BN22326&utm_content=signup&utm_term=standfirst&utm_source=GUARDIAN_WEB">Sign up for the Breaking News US email to get newsletter alerts in your inbox</a></p></li></ul><p><a href="https://www.theguardian.com/science/artemis-ii">Artemis II</a> astronauts broke Apollo 13’s distance record at 1.57pm eastern time on Monday, hugging each other in the cramped capsule as they made history for becoming the first four humans to travel the farthest from Earth.</p><p>About five hours later, at 7.02pm ET, the crew reached the furthest point in its mission, before swinging back around, at 252,756 miles from Earth – 4,111 miles farther than the ill-fated Apollo 13 mission in 1970.</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/science/2026/apr/06/artemis-ii-astronauts-record-moon-earth-distance">Continue reading...</a>