This is an intermediary post, as I’m keeping the number of posts towards splashdown to a minimum. To start with after the lunar flyby the question on earth for everyone interested is when do we get to see the high quality images and videos? Have been thinking this since last night – and despite a search of NASA and other sites – barely anything appears to have been put on the Internet.
The following Reddit just published, aslo has others wondering the same.
There’s this one new image which is from the White House’s X account. It was published just a few minutes ago (13.31pm).
The White House’s X account posted this excellent image taken as Earth descended below the moon’s horizon. Its apparently the first published pic from the far side of the moon.
I do not desire to include White House stuff for current ethical/moral reasons – which is why I haven’t included the actual post here, only a link.
The next is a picture of the eclipse. Again its from the White House.
The White House has just posted this solar eclipse image from Orion.
The post that follows the above regales the sentiments many of us currently have regarding a certain President.
According to the news which has ensued since I posted the above images, there’s clearly no credit for these – eg its not known who took these. One of them might be Christina’s as I recall a conversation in which she said she had spotted a most extraordinary sun/moon photo opportunity. Whether it was the sunrise or sunset I don’t know.
Have been out since posting the above photos, and checking back on various sources (16.30pm UK time) there seems little else apart from some other images that do give an idea of the setting the Orion crew encountered, these others are not as spectacular as the first two that were released. Besides the above photos which were released initially by the White House and then the media took to reporting on these images en masse, there seems little else besides in terms of any new or exciting imagery that may have been released – apart from two others the BBC has on its website. These show the sun’s corona during the eclipse, and another earthrise picture. The latter may well be the one Christina took. There’s one more which is a close up of the lunar surface, however its not something terribly new. We were quite used to these when the Apollo missions were on, not forgetting the live broadcasts of landing, or skimming across the surface of the moon towards landing sites. Its difficult to quantify the Artemis II output so far, besides I’m not a scientist or cosmologist, but still, in my mind many things from the Apollo missions remain far ahead.
Just think about it, Apollo used computers there is no doubt about that, but these computers barely had any memory. Something like 1kb memory yet these managed. The amount of live television broadcasting from the moon was enormous too, contrary to what many think these days. The sheer output from the Apollo missions most definitely put the Artemis into the pale, and currently I (like others too I imagine) are looking for a strong defining factor that would put Artemis II ahead of the Apollo missions. So far, that has simply not been realised.
In regards to the Apollo computers, AI gave the following answer:
The Apollo Guidance Computer (AGC) featured approximately 4 KB of RAM (erasable magnetic-core memory) and 72 KB of ROM (read-only “core rope” memory). This allowed the computer to manage guidance, navigation, and control, with a word length of 16 bits (15 bits data + 1 parity bit).
Some other released Artemis II photos from the NASA website:
Higher resolution example of Orion as it orbited the moon. Earth can be seen at right. NASA Video Image Library.
Solar eclipse. Earth is projecting some sunlight onto the moon’s left side. NASA Video Image Library.
The BBC published another article which quite extols the advantages of Artemis II and suggests the mission was successful. There’ s no doubt about that – it has been to a certain extent – but has it really accrued the value it ought to have? The BBC too asked whether Artemis was more about hype than anything else. The BBC also added:
Space programmes that cannot generate genuine, unscripted human emotion do not survive long. The reason Apollo endures in cultural memory is not solely the engineering; it is what it said about human reach and courage.
That would perhaps be the ultimate test. The craft’s successful return to earth plus the impression the mission makes upon the human consciousness are both important points. Artemis has been successful but whether its successful on that other level is another matter. Was there even any courage in the mission itself? Compared to Apollo it seems that aspect is quite lacking. Artemis would need substantial public support to ensure its continuation. Artemis II is no headline grabber like Apollo was. As the BBC repeated from an earlier article, Professor Chris Lintott of Oxford, co-host of The Sky at Night, had said that Artemis II’s “scientific value is limited.” Evidently its true success remains quite tangible.
The Kerbal Space Program forum has this page where in one post MCC describe a picture as showing the sun’s corona – but its in fact zodiacal light. There’s a learning curve ahead too for MCC!
I leave it there with this next picture. Its nice how the Orion crew got the earth’s crescent perfectly in ‘contact’ with the moons surface. Its quite artistic – and the same goes for other views too such as this one.
‘Peeking at the Earth’ – NASA Video Image Library.
Photo from inside the Science Evaluation Room (SER) during the Artemis II launch, and see, there are so many women😭❤️ pic.twitter.com/CfpTX2pTtc
— Oluwatimileyin✨🦋 (@Timmysofine) April 7, 2026
Something I missed today. The involvement of numerous women in the Artemis project is commendable. Margaret Hamilton, who was the software designer for the Apollo program, was the first prominent women to lead part of such an important space program, so it is good to see that her name is honoured by the involvement of many women in Artemis II, not just in design, R&D, but also in science, communications, programming etc.
It was in the mid-1960s that Margaret Hamilton heard that MIT “had announced that they were looking for people to do programming to send man to the moon, and I just thought, ‘Wow, I’ve got to go there.’” https://t.co/33SA8FCkUV
— Smithsonian Magazine (@SmithsonianMag) July 21, 2024
Part of the Apollo Flight Guidance Computer Software created by Margaret Hamilton and her team. Smithsonian Magazine.
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