The Orion spacecraft carrying the Artemis II mission astronauts has entered the moon’s sphere of gravitational influence, marking the first time in over 50 years that humans have reached this region.

The crew—NASA astronauts Reid Wiseman, Christina Koch, Victor Glover, and Canadian astronaut Jeremy Hansen—celebrated the milestone while traveling toward a planned lunar flyby.

During the mission, they conducted spacecraft checks, spacewalk suit tests, and a course-correcting engine burn to maintain their trajectory.

The astronauts are preparing to fly around the moon at a record-breaking distance from Earth while capturing images and studying lunar features like the Orientale and Hertzsprung basins, NBC News has reported.

The mission also includes a rare opportunity to observe a solar eclipse from space, highlighting both scientific goals and the return of human deep-space exploration.