Four astronauts aboard NASA's Orion spacecraft Integrity conducted a close flyby of the Moon's far side on April 6, marking humanity's first in-person look in over 50 years. The crew came within 4,000 miles of the surface, streaming low-resolution video due to communication constraints. High-resolution footage will follow after the mission.
Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, and Christina Koch of NASA, along with Jeremy Hansen of the Canadian Space Agency, spent about seven hours observing the Moon's far side during the flyby. Their closest approach was 4,000 miles (6,400 km) above the surface, closer than any humans have been since Apollo 17 in 1972. NASA provided a webcast starting at 1 p.m. ET, featuring video from four modified GoPro cameras mounted on the spacecraft's solar array wings, known as SAW cameras, and an interior crew cabin camera. Transmission paused during the loss-of-signal period behind the Moon, with the rest recorded onboard. NASA's Kelsey Young, Artemis science flight operations lead, said, “We will be getting SAW camera video streaming during the flyby, except, of course, during the loss of signal when they go behind the Moon.” Artemis II ascent flight director Judd Frieling added, “Don’t expect high-res video, but you will have... the SAW cameras through our nominal low-rate video.” The low resolution stems from the vast distance to the Moon and reliance on NASA's Deep Space Network antennas in California, Spain, and Australia, which also support Mars rovers and other distant missions. Unlike the International Space Station's continuous high-rate feeds via the Near Space Network, lunar signals face bandwidth limits. An experimental optical laser system has transferred over 100 gigabytes but cannot operate during the daytime flyby. Intuitive Machines' David Israel explained, “The challenge is really the distance,” noting fewer high-rate ground stations for the Moon. NASA awarded Intuitive Machines a 2024 contract for a lunar satellite relay constellation to enable future high-resolution live video, with the first satellite launching later this year alongside the company's IM-3 mission. Intuitive Machines chief integration officer and former astronaut Jack Fischer emphasized bandwidth's role in advancing science, stating, “The more you get, the more you expect.” All crew footage and photos will eventually be released to the public.
