#exploration

[nasa]

Welcome to the Far Side of the Moon

A crescent Earth sets behind the Moon.

On April 6, 2026, the Artemis II astronauts flew around the Moon, observing the far side – which we never see on Earth thanks to tidal locking – with their own eyes and with cameras.

See more of the Moon:

A crescent Earth setting behind the Moon’s horizon.

Earth setting behind the Moon as seen by the Artemis II crew. Over half the left side of the image is filled by the gray lunar surface, pocked with craters.

A close view of the Moon. Jagged circles of craters dot the gray surface, fading to dark on the left side of the image.

A close view of the edge of the Moon. Jagged circles of craters dot the dark gray lunar surface, which arcs across the image.

A close-up view of the Moon, filling most of the frame. Along the left side of the image, the terminator divides the illuminated and darkened sides of the Moon.

A close-up view of the Moon, filling most of the frame. Along the left side of the image, the terminator divides the illuminated and darkened sides of the Moon.

Earth just as it set behind the Moon, as seen by the Artemis II crew. The dark gray surface of the Moon, pocked with craters, arcs from the bottom left corner of the image to the top right.

Check out more photos from the lunar flyby, including astronaut selfies and the solar eclipse only they experienced.

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[saltavista]

[fortuneaday]

[70sscifiart]

Art by Ron Miller, depicting a Jupiter aircraft passing through the planet's dense lower atmosphere to study its chemistry.

[kyanide]

via @\briscoepark on twitter

[pangeen]

" Sunset in Antarctica " // © D R E W S I M M S

[theonion]

Pausing to briefly reflect on their immense good fortune between long sessions of nude sunbathing and plucking perfectly ripe tropical fruit from the rare vegetation surrounding them, the world’s cartographers reportedly continued living their secret lives of luxury this week on the idyllic, never-disclosed eighth continent they call home. “Ah, yes—this is the life,” said topographical researcher Garrett Farthing, chuckling to himself as he delicately put the finishing touches on yet another map showing their current location to be an empty stretch of the Pacific Ocean while being fed grapes by a trained monkey from an ultra-docile species found only on their lush, temperate, 3.5-million-square-mile landmass.

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