NASA's Artemis II crew just flew farther away from Earth than anyone ever has before

## Summary
NASA NASA's Artemis II crew just set a new distance record in miles traveled away from Earth. This broke the previous 1970 record set by Apollo 13's crew by around 4,000 miles. The four astronauts – Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover and Christina Koch of NASA and Jeremy Hansen of the Canadian Space Agency – are the first humans to cross the lunar threshold since 1972's Apollo 17 mission. "We challenge this generation and the next to make sure this record is not long-lived," Commander Reid Wiseman said upon crossing the distance threshold. Astronaut Christina Koch has called today's record an important milestone "that people can understand and wrap their heads around." As for that mapping, the crew "has a series of different cameras, and they're going to get data from that." This is according to NASA administrator Jared Isaacman who also said the astronauts have been training for this moment for almost four years.

## Article Content
NASA
NASA's Artemis II crew just set a new distance record in miles traveled away from Earth. The team of four astronauts
are in the process of circling the Moon
, reaching 5,000 miles beyond the natural satellite. That brings the total distance traveled away from our home to over 250,000 miles. Gene Roddenberry would be proud.
This broke the previous 1970 record set by
Apollo 13's crew
by around 4,000 miles. The four astronauts – Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover and Christina Koch of NASA and Jeremy Hansen of the Canadian Space Agency – are the first humans to cross the lunar threshold since 1972's Apollo 17 mission.
"We challenge this generation and the next to make sure this record is not long-lived," Commander Reid Wiseman said upon crossing the distance threshold. He also suggested that NASA name a lunar crater after the craft itself.
The astronauts aren't landing on the lunar surface, but are conducting a lengthy flyby that should provide clear images of the Moon's far side "that have never been seen" by humans. These areas were too difficult to clearly see by the various Apollo crew members. They'll also get a peek at a solar eclipse, though the crew will be out of contact with mission control for around 40 minutes.
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"We’ll get eyes on the moon, kind of map it out and then continue to go back in force," NASA flight director, Judd Frieling, said. Astronaut Christina Koch
has called today's record
an important milestone "that people can understand and wrap their heads around."
As for that mapping, the crew "has a series of different cameras, and they're going to get data from that." This is according to NASA administrator Jared Isaacman who also said the astronauts have been training for this moment for almost four years. This mapping data will be used to plan future crewed missions to the lunar surface.
The Orion capsule is now on its crawl back to Earth. It'll drop down in around four days. NASA is planning for a splashdown in the Pacific Ocean near San Diego on April 10, which is
nine days after the launch
.
Astronaut Victor Glover
delivered an Easter message
over the weekend in which he called Earth an "oasis" and said that humanity is "special in all of this emptiness." This is a marked contrast
from the Easter message
delivered by President Trump.
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## Expert Analysis

### Merits
- Astronaut Christina Koch has called today's record an important milestone "that people can understand and wrap their heads around." As for that mapping, the crew "has a series of different cameras, and they're going to get data from that." This is according to NASA administrator Jared Isaacman who also said the astronauts have been training for this moment for almost four years.

### Areas for Consideration
- The four astronauts – Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover and Christina Koch of NASA and Jeremy Hansen of the Canadian Space Agency – are the first humans to cross the lunar threshold since 1972's Apollo 17 mission. "We challenge this generation and the next to make sure this record is not long-lived," Commander Reid Wiseman said upon crossing the distance threshold.
- These areas were too difficult to clearly see by the various Apollo crew members.

### Implications
- The astronauts aren't landing on the lunar surface, but are conducting a lengthy flyby that should provide clear images of the Moon's far side "that have never been seen" by humans.
- They'll also get a peek at a solar eclipse, though the crew will be out of contact with mission control for around 40 minutes.
- This mapping data will be used to plan future crewed missions to the lunar surface.

### Expert Commentary
This article covers nasa, crew, record topics. Notable strengths include discussion of nasa. Areas of concern are also raised. Readability: Flesch-Kincaid grade 0.0. Word count: 405.