The Artemis II astronauts were travelling towards Earth on Tuesday, sharing observations from their lunar flyby with colleagues and mission scientists.

The crew of four – US astronauts Reid Wiseman, Christina Koch, and Victor Glover along with Canadian Jeremy Hansen – looped around Earth’s natural satellite as part of a programme paving the way for a Moon landing as soon as 2028.

After completing their lunar flyby, in which they broke the record for distance from Earth, they were bound for home, with splashdown scheduled in the Pacific off the California coast late on Friday.

The astronauts released an image of an Earthset, the moment when Earth drops below the lunar horizon. The photograph was a deliberate reference to the Earthrise image taken during the Apollo 8 mission in 1968.

On Tuesday afternoon, the astronauts debriefed lunar scientists in Houston’s mission control about their nearly seven-hour observation period of the Moon.

“Our whole lunar science team and the broader science community have been pouring out positive feedback and gratitude, so know that what you did yesterday really made a difference scientifically,” Kelsey Young, the lunar science lead for the Artemis II mission, told the crew.

Speaking at a briefing later, Young said spirits were high and that the mission had achieved its objectives.

The crew took a call from colleagues aboard the International Space Station. “It’s fun to be up in space with you at the same time,” Hansen said.

The astronauts reported features of the lunar surface in detail and witnessed a solar eclipse when the Moon passed in front of the Sun. They also described flashes of light – meteor strikes – on the Moon’s surface.

“Humans probably have not evolved to see what we’re seeing,” Glover said. “It is truly hard to describe. It is amazing.”

Young reported there were audible screams of delight in NASA’s Science Evaluation Room as the astronauts shared their observations.

Late on Monday, the crew received a call from NASA administrator Jared Isaacman and US President Donald Trump (79).

“You’ve really inspired the entire world,” Trump said, calling them “modern-day pioneers” who have “a lot of courage.”

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Trump asked the astronauts about their favourite moments and what it was like to lose connection with Earth for some 40 minutes during an expected communications blackout.

The call experienced a brief signal interruption. “Might have gotten cut off,” Trump said afterwards. “It is a long distance.”

The Artemis II team broke the distance record set by the 1970 Apollo 13 mission, surpassing it by more than 6 400 km when they reached 406 771 km from Earth.

Glover was the first person of colour to fly around the Moon, Koch was the first woman, and Hansen the first non-American.

The Orion capsule carrying the astronauts is travelling back to Earth in a free-return trajectory ahead of its ocean splashdown.

Isaacman said the ship that will recover the astronauts has left port en route to the meeting point.

ALSO READ: WATCH | Four astronauts blast off on first crewed lunar flyby in over 50 years