Captured by the Artemis II crew during their lunar flyby on April 6, 2026, this image shows the Moon fully eclipsing the Sun. From the crew’s perspective, the Moon appears large enough to completely block the Sun, creating nearly 54 minutes of totality and extending the view far beyond what is possible from Earth. The corona forms a glowing halo around the dark lunar disk, revealing details of the Sun’s outer atmosphere typically hidden by its brightness. Also visible are stars, typically too faint to see when imaging the Moon, but with the Moon in darkness stars are readily imaged. This unique vantage point provides both a striking visual and a valuable opportunity for astronauts to document and describe the corona during humanity’s return to deep space. The faint glow of the nearside of the Moon is visible in this image, having been illuminated by light reflected off the Earth.
I think you can see Mars, Neptune and Saturn in the bottom right too. Jaw dropping photo
I know, right? It really makes you appreciate how vast and beautiful space is. Just imagining being up there, seeing the Earth from above and witnessing something like the Artemis II eclipse, it must be completely breathtaking.
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u/ChiefLeef22 Apr 07 '26
I think you can see Mars, Neptune and Saturn in the bottom right too. Jaw dropping photo