Artemis II LIVE: Biggest Breakthrough! At 4d, 6h, 2m & 54s, Orion Officially Enters Moon’s Domain

Artemis II LIVE: Orion spacecraft and its crew have officially entered the lunar sphere of influence, confirms NASA. This happened at the official time of 4 days, 6 hours, 2 minutes and 54 seconds into the Artemis II mission. 

Artemis 2 LIVE: The Artemis 2 astronauts will study the moon during the flyby, gathering data that could help scientists better understand the terrain and geology of Earth's nearest neighbour. They'll also be treated to a total solar eclipse. In addition, the flyby will chart their path home: Lunar gravity will slingshot Orion back toward Earth. Artemis II astronauts will come home on Friday (April 10), ending their 10-day mission with a parachute-aided splashdown off the coast of San Diego.

Artemis 2 LIVE: Artemis 2 will not touch down on the moon, or even enter lunar orbit. Rather, Orion will loop around the moon's far side today in a history-making flyby. During that encounter, Artemis 2 will get farther from Earth than any crewed flight ever has.

Artemis II LIVE: The four astronauts of NASA's Artemis II mission arrived in the moon's sphere of influence, the region where lunar gravity exerts a more powerful pull than that of Earth, today (April 6) at 12:37 a.m. EDT (0437 GMT). The milestone occurred when the mission's Orion capsule was about 39,000 miles (62,764 kilometres) from the Moon and roughly 232,000 miles (373,368 km) from Earth, a commentator said during NASA's Artemis II livestream.

Artemis II LIVE: NASA released a photo of the last look of the Moon before flight day six and the epic lunar flyby, which will take the astronauts farther into space than humans have ever travelled.

Artemis II LIVE: "As a scientist, and as a mom, and as a citizen of this planet, I'm really looking forward to tomorrow,” said Kelsey Young, Artemis II Lunar Science lead.

Artemis II LIVE: Apollo 16 astronaut Charlie Duke recorded a message for the Artemis II crew. Fitting that they hear his words as they close in on their lunar destination.

Artemis II LIVE: The crew has already completed a key test objective of the mission: the Orion Crew Survival System (OCSS) suit.

All four crew members conducted a full sequence of tests, including putting on and pressurizing the suit, performing leak checks, simulating seat entry, and assessing mobility and their ability to eat and drink. The suit protects astronauts during dynamic phases of flight and provides life support in the event of cabin depressurization and survival operations after splashdown.

Artemis II LIVE: This means that the Orion spacecraft fired its thrusters to further fine-tune the astronauts' path to the Moon.

Artemis II LIVE: The Artemis II crew awarded Jeremy Hansen with a gold astronaut pin to commemorate his first spaceflight, per NASA tradition.

Artemis II LIVE: NASA has framed a custom science plan for the exact lighting conditions on the Moon’s surface when the Artemis II crew flies by, and for their viewing angle as they’re hurtling through space.

Artemis II LIVE: This view of the Earth has been shot from inside the Orion spacecraft. The four astronauts will reach their closest approach of the Moon today, April 6.

Artemis II LIVE: Inside Mission Control’s Orion Evaluation Room, the stunning imagery captured by the Artemis II crew and Orion spacecraft is brought back home.

Artemis II LIVE: The blue glow of Earth's atmosphere draws the Moon in. Seconds after this shot, it had disappeared completely, setting behind its Mother Earth.

Artemis II LIVE: Agency leaders answer media questions and provide updates on Artemis II mission ahead of the lunar flyby.

Artemis II LIVE: The seven-hour visualisation compressed into 28 seconds.

Artemis II LIVE: As the four astronauts approach the Moon, they will get a firsthand view of the Moon's surface. One of the most striking features they will see is the craters that mark its surface, which the crew will be able to directly see. These craters are formed by impacts that have happened over the history of our Solar System and act as a historical record of the conditions around the Earth and Moon.

Artemis II LIVE: The crew has already shared stunning deep-space images of Earth, reviving the iconic “Blue Marble” moment for a new generation. A few technical issues, including a toilet malfunction and unusual odour, have been reported but are under control, with backup systems functioning. Orion is on a free-return trajectory, meaning it will loop around the Moon and safely return to Earth even without major course corrections.