Artemis II Crew Moon Photo Annotations

NASA News 7 Oct 2026 2 min read

How the science connects

AI Insight

During the Artemis II mission from April 1-10, 2026, NASA astronauts Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, and CSA astronaut Jeremy Hansen observed and documented five faint light flashes on the Moon's surface while aboard the Orion spacecraft at a distance of 46,000 miles. These flashes were caused by rocky fragments impacting the lunar surface and were captured with annotated photographs and crew observations. The complete lunar science dataset from the mission has been released to the global science community and public for further analysis.

Why it matters

Documenting impact events on the Moon helps scientists understand the frequency and distribution of meteoroid strikes in the Earth-Moon system, which has implications for understanding space hazards and the Moon's geological evolution. The crew observations provide valuable human-verified data that complements automated detection systems for future lunar exploration and habitat planning.

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A simulated image of the crew’s view of the dark, eclipsed Moon on April 6, 2026. Three crew members annotated impact flashes on this image in OneNote. Reid Wiseman wrote in blue. Victor “Ike” Glover wrote in green. Jeremy Hansen wrote in red. General annotations are in purple ink. A note on the left side in purple is “circled likely same impacts.” Five impact flashes are numbered across the Moon. #1 with a blue dot (observed by Wiseman) is located at the 4 o’clock position, but more central. #2 is circled with a red dot (observed by Hansen) and a blue dot (observed by Wiseman) is located at the 8’clock position, but near the Moon’s center. #3 with a red dot (observed by Hansen) is located at 3 o’clock. #4 is circled with a red dot (observed by Hansen), a blue dot (observed by Wiseman), and a green dot (observed by Glover). It is at the 6 o’clock position. A note of “(later)” is under #4. #5 with a blue dot (observed by Wiseman) is located at the 12 o’clock position. A note of “towards end” is to the right of #5. Wiseman wrote an additional note in blue: “these three roughly 10 min into eclipse.” The three indicated are the blue dots at #1, #2, and #4.

NASA

A visualization of a dark Moon eclipsing the Sun is marked with handwritten notes in this April 6, 2026, screenshot from an Artemis II crew member’s tablet.

NASA astronauts Reid Wiseman (in blue) and Victor “Ike” Glover (in green) and CSA (Canadian Space Agency) Jeremy Hansen (in red) observed impact flashes and their locations, which are noted on the image. Overall, the astronauts reported seeing five extremely faint “pinprick” bursts of light from their view aboard Orion, which was 46,000 miles away from the Moon at the time. These flashes are sparked by rocky fragments hitting the Moon.

From April 1 through April 10, 2026, NASA’s Artemis II crew traveled to the Moon and back and along the way, captured stunning imagery and scientific observations of our nearest neighbor. Now, the full lunar science dataset from their journey is available to the global science community, and to the public, for further study. Read about the report, listen to crew audio observations, and explore more.

Image credit: NASA

Source: Artemis II Crew Moon Photo Annotations

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