Artemis Era Earthrise

art002e009280 (April 6, 2026) – Earthrise captured through the Orion spacecraft window at 7:22 p.m. ET during the Artemis II crew’s flyby of the Moon’s far side. Earth appears as a delicate crescent, with only its right edge illuminated. The planet’s soft blue hue and scattered white cloud systems stand out against the blackness of space, while the left portion fades into night. Taken with a 400 mm lens, the image, Earthrise, reveals a striking alignment of Earth and Moon, with the Moon in the right foreground and the Earth to its left. Along the lunar horizon, rugged terrain is silhouetted against the bright crescent Earth. Both bodies are oriented with their north up. This photo was rotated 90 degrees clockwise from the original for standard viewing orientation.