Orion and the Ocean of Storms
Explanation:
On December 5, 2022,
a camera on board the uncrewed Orion spacecraft captured
this
view as Orion
approached its return powered flyby of the Moon.
Beyond one of Orion's extended solar arrays
lies dark, smooth, terrain along the
western edge of the Oceanus Procellarum.
Prominent on the lunar nearside
Oceanus
Procellarum,
the Ocean of Storms, is the largest of the
Moon's lava-flooded maria.
The lunar terminator, shadow line between lunar night and day,
runs along the left of this frame.
The 41 kilometer diameter
crater Marius
is top center, with ray
crater Kepler
peeking in at the edge, just right of the solar array wing.
Kepler's bright rays extend to the north and west, reaching the
dark-floored Marius.
On December 11, 2022 the Orion spacecraft
reached
its home world.
The historic Artemis 1 mission ended with Orion's successful splashdown in
planet
Earth's
water-flooded Pacific Ocean.
Authors & editors:
Robert Nemiroff
(MTU) &
Jerry Bonnell
(USRA)
NASA Web Site Statements, Warnings,
and Disclaimers
NASA Official: Jay Norris.
Specific
rights apply.
A service of:
LHEA at
NASA /
GSFC
& Michigan Tech. U.
