NASA’s decision to let astronauts fly to the Moon with smartphones has produced stunning results. The four person Artemis II crew, which launched with iPhone 17s each, made full use of the smartphones and the pictures captured from their devices is to die for.
Moon joy [noun]
the feeling of intense happiness and excitement that only comes from a mission to the Moon
The Artemis II crew bring us endless Moon joy. pic.twitter.com/7vrS1lLd0C
— NASA (@NASA) April 10, 2026
Photography has always been an incredibly important part of space missions and astronauts spend a lot of time training to become elite photographers. The Artemis II crew was no exception as they had to perfect their photography skills because this task in microgravity isn’t as simple as on Earth.
The effects of this training is visible in the pictures captured by the astronauts using both high-end cameras and their iPhones.
The internet is singing praises for iPhone 17 Pro Max which was used to capture the above images by mission specialist Christina Koch and mission commander Reid Wiseman.
Many believe that iPhone manufacturer Apple should use these pictures to advertise their product, while others are just amazed at how much they underestimated the devices in their pockets. The decision to let personal devices on space missions was announced by NASA administrator Jared Isaacman in February who posted on X that it will allow astronauts to “capture special moments for their families and share inspiring images and video with the world.”
And don’t even question the quality of Moon pictures captured using high-end cameras. Nikon is proudly capitalising on this opportunity brought about by Artemis II astronauts who are the first humans to photograph the Moon’s far side.
The first-of-its-kind image above features the Moon when it blocked the Sun, creating a solar eclipse in space with 54 minutes of totality during Artemis II’s lunar flyby on April 7. It even features the planets Saturn, Mars and Mercury as three dots (from left to right) toward the right corner.
NASA’s gallery is full of pictures the astronauts captured from the lunar vicinity both of the Moon and a crescent Earth. The Artemis II crew is nearing home and their Orion spacecraft is scheduled to splashdown off the coast of California at 6:37 am IST on April 11 [8:07 pm EDT, Apr 10]. We should absolutely expect more pictures from the mission as they will be released in the coming days after final processing.
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