Artemis II astronauts expected to reach far side of moon on Monday | Artemis II

Astronauts on the historic Artemis II mission are expected to reach the far side of the moon on Monday, going deeper into space than any human before.

NASA said it was pleased with progress toward a lunar tour since the team launched on Wednesday, with three Americans and a Canadian on track to break the maximum range record from Earth as a total solar eclipse is expected.

“The Earth is pretty small and the moon is definitely getting bigger,” pilot Victor Glover said after Artemis fired a key booster to exit Earth’s orbit.

The crew are the first astronauts to go to the moon in more than half a century, picking up where the Apollo program left off in 1972.

Although the mission was already sending back valuable data and images, the crew reported persistent problems with one of the Orion capsule’s most important pieces of equipment: the toilet.

Until the lunar toilet was repaired, mission control instructed the astronauts to continue using spare urine collection bags. The toilet malfunctioned following Wednesday’s liftoff and has only operated sporadically since then.

Engineers suspect the ice blocked the line, preventing the urine from flowing completely into the sea. (The restroom is still open for business No. 2.)

A version of the Artemis II toilet was tested on the International Space Station several years ago but is still prone to malfunction.

Debbie Korth, deputy director of NASA’s Orion program, said astronauts also reported an odor coming from the bathroom, which was buried in the floor of the capsule with a door and curtain to provide privacy. “Space toilets and bathrooms are something that everyone can really relate to… it’s always a challenge,” he said, noting that the space shuttle toilet also often gets a wink.

John Honeycutt, head of the mission management team, said he wanted the facilities to operate reliably for the crew. “They’re good,” he said of the astronauts. “They are trained to handle the situation.”

Astronauts woke up Sunday to the tune of pop star Chappell Roan’s inclusivity anthem Pink Pony Club and started the day with a breakfast of scrambled eggs and coffee.

“Morale is high on the ship,” Commander Reid Wiseman told Houston’s mission control center as the work day began after talking to his daughters from space. “We’re here, we’re far away, and for a moment I’m reunited with my little family,” he said at the live press conference. “It was the best moment of my entire life.”

The US space agency released an image taken by the Artemis crew. Eastern Basin – sometimes known as the “Grand Canyon” of the moon. Astronaut Christina Koch, who spoke to Canadian children broadcasting live from space, said that the crew was very excited to see the basin that looked like a target board.

“This is very different, and in fact no human eyes have ever seen this crater before until today when we had the privilege of seeing it,” Koch said during a question-and-answer session hosted by the Canadian Space Agency.

Astronauts trained in geology so they could photograph and describe features of the moon, including ancient lava flows and impact craters. They all had to memorize the “big 15” of the month, that is, the 15 characteristics that would help them orient themselves.

The space agency had previously released images from Orion that included a full portrait of Earth with its deep blue oceans and billowing clouds.

The next major milestone is expected to occur overnight from Sunday to Monday; At this point, the astronauts will enter the “lunar domain,” where the moon’s gravity will have a stronger pull on the spacecraft than Earth’s.

If all goes well, as the Orion spacecraft orbits the moon, the astronauts (Americans Glover, Koch and Wiseman, and Canadian Jeremy Hansen) will have traveled further from Earth than any human before.

Apollo flights in the 1960s and ’70s flew about 70 miles above the lunar surface, but Artemis crews will be just over 4,000 miles at closest approach, allowing them to see the entire spherical surface of the moon, including regions near both poles.

During the flight, which will last approximately six hours, the crew will need to observe the celestial body with their naked eyes along with the cameras they have. The journey promises views of the far side of the moon that were either too dark or too difficult for the 24 Apollo astronauts who came before them to see.

The astronauts of Apollo 13 missed the opportunity to land on the moon in 1970 when one of their oxygen tanks ruptured en route.

The Artemis II mission is part of an ambitious plan to return to the moon repeatedly, with the goal of establishing a permanent lunar base that offers a platform for further exploration.

NASA aims to land two crews near the south pole of the Moon in 2028.

The Associated Press and France-Presse Agency contributed to this report.