In the past few days, the photography web literally stopped breathing. The mission Artemis II NASA — the first to return humans to the vicinity of the Moon after more than 50 years — has produced a series of images that would be an understatement to call extraordinary.
On April 6, 2026, during a seven-hour lunar flyby, astronauts Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, Christina Koch, and Jeremy Hansen photographed regions of the Moon that no human had ever seen before, including a very rare solar eclipse from space.
What struck me the most, as a photography enthusiast? The equipment. The astronauts took photos with two Nikon D5s and one Nikon Z9, and the famous “Earthset” — the Earth setting behind the lunar horizon — was captured with a Nikon D5 paired with a Nikkor 80-400mm f/4.5-5.6 set at 400mm, f/8, 1/1000s, ISO 400.
Basically the same technical choices we could make with a subject against the light. Except the subject is our planet. From the other side of the Moon.
The image is reminiscent of the iconic “Earthrise” taken by Bill Anders 58 years ago during the Apollo 8 mission, the first crewed spacecraft to orbit the Moon.
NASA has spoken of thousands of photos taken during the mission, with more images expected in the coming days. Dr. Nicky Fox of NASA Headquarters stated that these images “will inspire future generations.”.
And looking at them, you can't blame her.
(NASA photo)
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