MOON MEMORIALS
The Orion capsule will now travel back to Earth in a so-called “free-return trajectory”, a 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 was the first person of colour to fly around the Moon, Koch was the first woman, and Canadian Hansen the first non-American.
The celestial workday Monday included a poignant moment just after the crew broke the distance record, when they proposed designating two previously unnamed craters.
The first was 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 Canadian astronaut Jenni Gibbons, the backup for the mission. She was responsible for communications with the crew as they made their flyby.
NASA said they would formally submit the name proposals to the International Astronomical Union, the body charged with naming celestial bodies and surface features.
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