NASA just hit the "upload" button on the ultimate long-distance selfie.
As the Orion spacecraft screams away from our atmosphere at tens of thousands of miles per hour, the space agency has shared the first breathtaking images of Earth captured by the Artemis II crew.
The photos, taken from the "Integrity" capsule, show our "Blue Marble" shrinking into the void as the four-person crew prepares for the next phase of their 10-day lunar flyby.
After a flawless launch atop the Space Launch System (SLS) rocket on Wednesday, NASA confirms the mission is on track to break records that have stood for over half a century.
This isn't just a sightseeing trip. The crew, Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, Christina Koch, and Jeremy Hansen, are currently stress-testing the systems that will eventually support a permanent lunar base.
Along the way, they are shattering glass ceilings: Victor Glover is now the first Black man to venture toward the moon, while Christina Koch and Jeremy Hansen mark historic firsts for women and Canadians, respectively.
The goal is clear: use this mission to iron out the kinks (including that brief space potty scare) before NASA attempts a boots-on-the-ground landing as early as 2028.
These first images serve as a high-definition reminder of what’s at stake as humanity looks toward the moon, and eventually, Mars.