Portugal Colonial - Artemis astronauts survey lunar surface on flyby, solar eclipse up next

NASA's mission control in Houston regained contact with the crew after they temporarily lost signal for some 40 minutes, as their spacecraft passed behind Earth's natural satellite.

"It is so great to hear from Earth again," said astronaut Christina Koch, as the crewmembers were once again able to speak with humans on their home planet.

"We will always choose Earth, we will always choose each other."

Earlier the Artemis II team broke the distance record set by the 1970 Apollo 13 mission, which they were expected to surpass by 4,105 miles (6,606 kilometers) when they reached the journey's anticipated furthest distance from Earth -- 252,760 miles (406,778 kilometers).

It was one of the voyage's most notable achievements yet.

Astronaut Jeremy Hansen said the moment was "to challenge this generation and the next, to make sure this record is not long-lived."

The lunar flyby observation period will continue until approximately 9:20pm eastern (0120 GMT).

Soon astronauts will witness a solar eclipse, when the Sun will be behind the Moon.

- 'Wow' -

The more than six-hour task of observing and documenting the lunar surface brought human perspective to features of the Moon that we primarily know through photographs taken by robots.

Victor Glover detailed the "terminator" -- the Moon's boundary between night and day.

"Wow -- I wish I had some more time to just sit here and describe what I'm seeing," he said, before creating a vivid portrait for the scientists listening in from Earth.

"But the terminator right now is just fantastic. It is the most rugged that I've seen it from a lighting perspective."

Kelsey Young, the lead scientist for the Artemis II mission, responded with elation. "Oh my gosh, that was an amazing picture you just painted," she said.

"Those types of observations are things that humans are uniquely able to contribute, and you just really brought us along with you."

Fellow astronaut Christina Koch meanwhile offered a colorful rendering of lunar craters.

"What it really looks like is like a lampshade with tiny pinprick holes and the light shining through," she said. "They are so bright compared to the rest of the Moon."

- Moon memorials -

The Orion capsule is zipping around the Moon before U-turning and heading back to Earth in a so-called "free-return trajectory," a return-trip that will take about four days.

Adding to the historic nature of the mission led by Reid Wiseman, the Artemis II crew includes several firsts.

Glover will be the first person of color to fly around the Moon, Koch will be the first woman, and Canadian Hansen the first non-American.

Monday's celestial workday included a poignant moment just after the crew broke the distance record, when they proposed designating two previously unnamed craters.

The first they requested to name in honor of their spacecraft's nickname, "Integrity."

They offered a second name, "Carroll," for another crater, which they asked be named after the late wife of mission commander Reid Wiseman, who died of cancer.

"It's a bright spot on the Moon," said Hansen, his voice breaking with emotion. "And we would like to call it Carroll."

The astronauts embraced, and mission control in Houston held a moment of silence.

"Integrity and Carroll crater, loud and clear. Thank you," said Gibbons.

NASA said they would formally submit the name proposals to the International Astronomical Union, the body charged with naming celestial bodies and surface features.

T.Vitorino--PC