The most awe-inspiring photographs from NASA’s Artemis II mission so far

More than half a century after humanity last ventured beyond low Earth orbit, NASA's Artemis II mission marks a long-awaited return to deep space - and it has now reached its midway point.

In just a matter of days, the mission has crossed some remarkable thresholds. Orion slipped behind the Moon, briefly lost contact with Earth for around 40 minutes as expected, and reached its maximum distance from our planet - 252,756 miles (406,771 km) - shattering the previous record for the farthest humans have ever travelled in space.

"It is so great to hear from Earth again," said mission specialist Christina Koch as she reestablished communication after the outage. "We will always choose Earth, we will always choose each other."

Related

• Nasa’s Artemis II crew to reach unseen far side of the Moon on flyby
• Artemis II crew head back towards Earth after completing record-breaking lunar flyby

The Moon flyby represents a crucial step toward NASA's broader Artemis programme, which aims to return astronauts to the lunar surface and, for the first time, explore the Moon's south pole.

Commander Reid Wiseman described the journey as witnessing “sights that no human has ever seen,” while pilot Victor Glover admitted there were “no adjectives” to capture the experience.

Yet a photograph, as they say, speaks a thousand words - and the images from Artemis II do exactly that.

Transmitted across nearly a quarter of a million miles of space, the images have been nothing short of spectacular - awe-inducing views of Earth suspended in the darkness, rarely seen regions of the lunar surface, and intimate glimpses of the four astronauts going about daily life aboard Orion.

Here is a selection of the very best images captured from the mission so far.

Artemis II Commander Reid Wiseman took this picture of Earth from the Orion spacecraft’s window after completing the translunar injection burn. (Artemis II Commander Reid Wiseman took this picture of Earth from the Orion spacecraft’s window after completing the translunar injection burn.)

NASA astronaut and Artemis II mission specialist Christina Koch peers out of one of the Orion spacecraft's main cabin windows, looking back at Earth. (NASA astronaut and Artemis II mission specialist Christina Koch peers out of one of the Orion spacecraft's main cabin windows, looking back at Earth.)

This photo shows the Orion spacecraft with the Moon in the distance, as captured by a camera on the tip of one of its solar array wings. (This photo shows the Orion spacecraft with the Moon in the distance, as captured by a camera on the tip of one of its solar array wings.)

In this view of the Moon, the near side (the hemisphere we see from Earth), is visible at the top half of the Moon disk. (In this view of the Moon, the near side (the hemisphere we see from Earth), is visible at the top half of the Moon disk.)

CSA (Canadian Space Agency) astronaut Jeremy Hansen – in the center of the image – peers out the window of the Orion spacecraft on day 3 of NASA's Artemis II mission. (CSA (Canadian Space Agency) astronaut Jeremy Hansen – in the center of the image – peers out the window of the Orion spacecraft on day 3 of NASA's Artemis II mission.)

Artemis II Commander Reid Wiseman peers out of one of the Orion spacecraft's main cabin windows, looking back at Earth. (Artemis II Commander Reid Wiseman peers out of one of the Orion spacecraft's main cabin windows, looking back at Earth.)

Artemis II mission specialist and CSA (Canadian Space Agency) astronaut Jeremy Hansen enjoys a shave inside the Orion spacecraft (Artemis II mission specialist and CSA (Canadian Space Agency) astronaut Jeremy Hansen enjoys a shave inside the Orion spacecraft)

Peering through one of Orion’s four windows, Earth glows against the blackness of space, shrinking slowly as the crew draws closer to the moon. (Peering through one of Orion’s four windows, Earth glows against the blackness of space, shrinking slowly as the crew draws closer to the moon.)

Artemis II pilot and NASA astronaut Victor Glover peers out one of the Orion spacecraft's windows looking back at Earth. (Artemis II pilot and NASA astronaut Victor Glover peers out one of the Orion spacecraft's windows looking back at Earth.)

A view of Earth taken by NASA astronaut and Artemis II commander Reid Wiseman from one of the Orion spacecraft's four main windows. (A view of Earth taken by NASA astronaut and Artemis II commander Reid Wiseman from one of the Orion spacecraft's four main windows.)

A thin arc glowing in the darkness of space. Sunlight traces the curves of the ocean and clouds, while the rest of the planet fades into shadow. (A thin arc glowing in the darkness of space. Sunlight traces the curves of the ocean and clouds, while the rest of the planet fades into shadow.)

Artemis II commander and NASA astronaut Reid Wiseman looks out one of the Orion spacecraft's main cabin windows at the Moon (Artemis II commander and NASA astronaut Reid Wiseman looks out one of the Orion spacecraft's main cabin windows at the Moon)

NASA astronaut and Artemis II mission specialist Christina Koch, seen here on the fourth day of the mission, prepping for lunar flyby activities. (NASA astronaut and Artemis II mission specialist Christina Koch, seen here on the fourth day of the mission, prepping for lunar flyby activities.)