In this image provided by NASA, Artemis II crew members, from left, Victor Glover Jeremy Hansen, Victor Glover, Reid Wiseman and Christina Koch, pause to turn the camera around for a selfie midway through their lunar observation period of the Moon during a lunar flyby, Monday, April 6, 2026. NASA via AP)
In this image provided by NASA, the Artemis II crew captured this view as the Earth sets behind the Moon during a lunar flyby, Monday, April 6, 2026. (NASA via AP)
In this image provided by NASA, Artemis II crew members, from left, Victor Glover Jeremy Hansen, Victor Glover, Reid Wiseman and Christina Koch, pause to turn the camera around for a selfie midway through their lunar observation period of the Moon during a lunar flyby, Monday, April 6, 2026. NASA via AP)
Uncredited
In this image provided by NASA, the Artemis II crew captured this view as the Earth sets behind the Moon during a lunar flyby, Monday, April 6, 2026. (NASA via AP)
HOUSTON (AP) 鈥 Still aglow from their triumphant lunar flyby, the Artemis II astronauts put in a call to their friends aboard the International Space Station on Tuesday as they headed home from the moon.
It was the first moonship-to-spaceship radio linkup ever. had no off-the-planet company back in the 1960s and 1970s, the last time humanity set sail for deep space.
"We have been waiting for this like you can鈥檛 imagine,鈥 Artemis II commander Reid Wiseman called out.
For Christina Koch on Artemis II and Jessica Meir aboard the space station, it marked a joyous space reunion despite being 230,000 miles (370,000 kilometers) apart. The two teamed up for the world's in 2019 outside the orbiting lab.
Koch told her 鈥渁stro-sister鈥 that she'd hoped to meet up with her again in space 鈥渂ut I never thought it would be like this 鈥 it's amazing.鈥
鈥淚'm so happy that we are back in space together,鈥 Meir replied, 鈥渆ven if we are a few miles apart.鈥
Houston's Mission Control arranged the cosmic chitchat between the four lunar travelers and the space station's three NASA and one French residents.
As Tuesday dawned, Wiseman continued to beam back pictures of the previous day's lunar rendezvous, which set a new distance record for humanity. The highlight: an Earthset photo reminiscent of Apollo 8's Earthrise shot from 1968.
Koch described being awe-struck by not just the beauty of Earth, 鈥渂ut how much blackness there was around it."
鈥淚t just made it even more special. It truly emphasized how alike we are, how the same thing keeps every single person on planet Earth alive,鈥 she told the space station crew. 鈥淭he specialness and preciousness of that really is emphasized" when viewing the home planet from the moon.
In a debriefing later with Mission Control's lead lunar scientist Kelsey Young, the astronauts recounted how they spotted a cascade of pinpricks of light on the lunar surface from impacting cosmic debris. The flashes lasted mere milliseconds and coincided by chance with Monday evening's total solar eclipse.
The first lunar explorers since Apollo 17 in 1972, Wiseman and his crew are aiming for a Friday splashdown off the San Diego coast on Friday to wrap up the nearly 10-day test flight.
It sets the stage for next year's Artemis III, a lunar lander docking demo in orbit around Earth. Artemis IV will follow in 2028 with two astronauts attempting to land near the lunar south pole.
As for the Orion capsule鈥檚 pesky potty, Mission Control assured the astronauts that no repairs were required Tuesday. The toilet has been on-and-off limits to the crew ever since last week鈥檚 launch, prompting them to rely on a backup bag-and-funnel system for urinating.
NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman told the crew following the lunar flyby Monday night: 鈥淲e definitely have to fix some of the plumbing鈥 ahead of the next Artemis mission.
___
The Associated Press Health and 国产诱惑福利 Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute鈥檚 Department of 国产诱惑福利 Education and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. The AP is solely responsible for all content.