Artemis II crew nears ‘epic lunar flyby,’ set to push deeper into space than any human before

Astronauts on the Artemis II mission are nearing the moon on flight day six, with the crew set to surpass Apollo 13’s distance record and become the most distant humans in history. The flyby promises new views of the far side of the moon never seen before by human eyes.

Stephen Sorace /Fox News

The Artemis II astronauts aboard the Orion spacecraft reached a new mission milestone as the crew prepares to slingshot around the far side of the moon later Monday, breaking the record for how far humans have traveled from Earth.

At 12:37 a.m. Monday, Mission Control Houston confirmed the spacecraft officially entered the lunar sphere of influence at the tail end of the fifth day of space travel. It marks a major mission milestone that means the gravitational forces of the moon were now greater on the spacecraft than the pull of the Earth’s gravity.

"We are now falling to the Moon rather than rising away from Earth,” Artemis II Mission Specialist Christina Koch said from aboard the spacecraft about an hour after entering the lunar sphere of influence. “It is an amazing milestone!"

Artemis II will make its closest approach to the moon later Monday during flight day six.

NASA said it will broadcast coverage of the mission beginning at 1 p.m. ET. Read more here.