how close will artemis 2 get to the moon

Artemis II is expected to pass about 4,000 to 6,000 miles above the Moon’s surface at its closest point, depending on the reporting source and mission profile details. NASA coverage also describes the crew as making a far-side lunar flyby rather than landing, with the spacecraft looping around the Moon and then heading back to Earth.

Quick Scoop

That means Artemis II will come much closer than the Moon’s distance from Earth , but it will still stay thousands of miles away from the lunar surface. A commonly cited figure is about 4,047 miles (6,513 km) from the far-side lunar surface at closest approach.

What that means

• It is not a landing mission.
• It is a lunar flyby.
• The spacecraft will pass around the Moon and return on a free-return path.

Why people get confused

Some posts mix up the spacecraft’s total travel distance with its closest approach to the Moon. The total trip can be hundreds of thousands of miles or more, but the key number for “how close” is the flyby altitude above the lunar surface.

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