Out-of-this-world record: Orion spacecraft goes farthest distance from Earth

The Orion spacecraft is now in the record books.

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On Saturday morning at 8:40 a.m. EST the spacecraft traveled the longest distance from Earth, surpassing Apollo 13′s record of 248,655 miles, NASA said.

Orion’s still got a way to go as it will reach its maximum distance from our planet on Monday when it logs about 272,514.9 miles.

Houston, we have a new record 🌎 On Saturday, November 26, at 8:40 a.m. ET, the Orion spacecraft broke the record for...

Posted by NASA's Johnson Space Center on Saturday, November 26, 2022

The European Space Agency congratulated the NASA and ESA teams for breaking the record.

👏 Congratulations to the NASA - National Aeronautics and Space Administration and ESA - European Space Agency teams for...

Posted by ESA - European Space Agency on Saturday, November 26, 2022

The feat happened on the 11th day of the Artemis I mission after Orion reached its distant retrograde orbit on Friday, NASA said. The spacecraft will stay in orbit for six days before getting back on track for Earth. Orion is scheduled to splash down in the Pacific Ocean on Dec. 11.

The Artemis I mission is one of the first steps to return a human to the moon’s surface. A manikin is on board the Orion, and it is named after Arturo Campos, an electrical engineer who helped come up with a plan to keep enough electrical power flowing during the Apollo 13 mission to safely return that crew to Earth.


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