Artemis II Crew Names Lunar Crater After Commander’s Late Wife

The crew of NASA’s Artemis II mission has requested the naming of two lunar craters during their historic flight, including a dedication to the late wife of the mission commander. The request was made as the spacecraft approached its lunar flyby on April 6, 2026.

Canadian Space Agency astronaut Jeremy Hansen initiated the request on behalf of the crew. One of the relatively recent craters is to be named Integrity in honor of the Orion spacecraft, while the second is to be named Carroll to honor Carroll, the late wife of Mission Commander Reid Wiseman.

Carroll passed away in 2020 following a battle with cancer. During the communication with mission control, the crew specified the location of the crater, noting It’s a bright spot on the moon located northwest of Glushko and at the same latitude as Ohm.

Mission Milestones and Distance Records

The naming request occurred after the Artemis II mission surpassed the distance record previously held by Apollo 13, marking the farthest any humans have traveled from Earth. At their farthest point, the astronauts were expected to be more than 252,000 miles away from the planet.

The crew launched from the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida, on April 2, 2026. After spending approximately 25 hours circling Earth, the Orion spacecraft left Earth orbit on April 3, 2026, and entered the lunar sphere of influence early on April 6, 2026.

The lunar sphere of influence is the region where the gravitational pull of the moon becomes stronger than that of Earth. This phase of the mission allows the crew to conduct a lunar flyby, circling the moon in their Orion spacecraft.

Lunar Observations and Trajectory

The mission’s flyby trajectory is designed to bring the crew within 4,070 miles of the lunar surface. This proximity allows for a lunar observation period lasting nearly seven hours, during which the crew captures images and makes observations of the moon’s surface.

Because of the specific path and timing of the Artemis II flight, the astronauts are able to glimpse areas of the moon’s far side that are not visible from Earth. According to reports, these are views that even the Apollo astronauts were unable to see extensively due to the different trajectories of their missions.

Pilot Victor Glover described the experience of viewing the lunar surface through a telephoto lens as very moving, noting the feelings of awe and wonder experienced by the crew as they looked out the spacecraft windows.

Return Schedule

Following the completion of the lunar flyby and the observation period, the Orion spacecraft is scheduled to return to Earth. The crew is expected to conclude the mission with a splashdown in the Pacific Ocean on the evening of April 10, 2026.