A Moonlit Earth as Seen From Artemis II

A Moonlit Earth as Seen From Artemis II

One of the first images transmitted back to Earth from the Artemis II mission shows Earth’s full disk amid celestial phenomena that illustrate its place in the solar system. Although the visible hemisphere appears to be awash in sunlight, it is actually lit by moonlight. The astronauts’ vantage point provided a rare opportunity to capture nighttime features, including city lights, from a new perspective. In the frame, Earth eclipses the Sun from Orion's perspective, green auroras glow around the north and south poles (lower left and upper right, respectively), and zodiacal light appears to the lower right while Venus is visible in the bottom right. The crew set the camera’s ISO to 51,200 to make it highly sensitive to light.

Gobble's Take: Earth never looks more dramatic than when it’s caught in a new perspective from space.
Source: NASA News Releases

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