The “Artemis II” mission marks NASA’s return to manned lunar exploration after over fifty years: Since the successful completion of Apollo 17 in 1972, Earth’s only satellite has played a minor role for the North American space agency. The flight currently taking place aims to explore the far side of the moon, gather experience with modern equipment and transmit images from the trip to Earth in a timely manner. Some of them were taken with an iPhone 17 Pro Max. The three images published on the photo-sharing platform Flickr use a similar image structure: they each show planet Earth framed by the rectangular window of the Orion capsule. Either Commander Reid Wiseman or Mission Specialist Christina Koch appears next to them, looking back at their home planet.
Good lighting conditions
The metadata also published reveals that the shots were taken with the 2,715 mm lens of the front camera. The aperture was f/1.9 and the exposure time was between 1/1250 and 1/180 second. The ISO value for these shots was between 20 and 40. Other shots in the image collection were taken with a Nikon D5, a Nikon Z9 and a GoPro HERO4. The current image shows a rising Earth over the lunar surface.
First iPhones in space
The Artemis II mission allows astronauts to carry modern smartphones for the first time. Apple had confirmed media reports that iPhones had been approved for use in space for the first time. So far it has remained unclear which model it was. The journey around the moon also sets a distance record: no person has ever been as far from Earth as the four people in the Orion spacecraft; this is currently on its way back and is expected back on Earth on April 10th. A manned moon landing is scheduled for 2028; The goal is a permanent base on the satellite along with annual landings.
