Artemis II: Christina Koch Describes Sunset Over India From Deep Space

During Artemis II, astronaut Christina Koch described seeing a sunset over India from the Orion spacecraft as the four-person crew continues a roughly 10-day lunar flyby mission.

SLS launched Orion from Launchpad 39B at about 4 am IST with a four-person crew on Artemis II. The crew includes Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, Christina Koch, and Jeremy Hansen. The mission is a roughly 10-day trip that will fly around the Moon and return to Earth. The crew communicated live with mission control during early flight. Key details: - Launch occurred around 4 am IST from Launchpad 39B. - The crew aboard Orion are Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, Christina Koch, and Jeremy Hansen. - The mission is planned as a roughly 10-day lunar flyby and return and is NASA's first crewed lunar mission since 1972. - On day one the crew reported no major issues; a malfunctioning toilet was restored with assistance from ground control. - In recorded communications, Reid Wiseman asked which continent he was seeing at sunset; mission control identified the view as over India. - Christina Koch described visible Earth features including rivers seen from sun glare, high thunderclouds, the full terminator, the South Pole lit, and a slight pink hue along the terminator. Summary: Orion continues its transit toward the Moon while crew communications highlight clear Earth views, including a sunset over India described by Christina Koch. The mission will proceed as a roughly 10-day lunar flyby and return to Earth. Mission operations so far have included ground-assisted troubleshooting of a minor onboard systems issue.