Koch reflected on the nearly 10 days the Artemis II crew spent in space while attending an event in Houston, Texas Desiree Anello is a Writer/Reporter at PEOPLE. She has been working at PEOPLE since 2025. Her work has previously appeared on E! News.

NASA spokesperson Lauren Low told PolitiFact that one of the reasons Earth appears duller is because the new photo was taken at night, with only moonlight lighting the planet. The 1972 photo was taken in direct sunlight. The two images were also processed differently, she said.

Artemis II’s journey back to Earth will likely trigger a “sonic boom” so strong that it could end up rattling windows in parts of Southern California, according to officials. The gumdrop-shaped Orion spacecraft is scheduled to splash down in the Pacific Ocean on Friday night — bringing a dramatic end to humanity’s first voyage to the moon in more than half a century.

The realizations on social media align with what researchers have long known about Earth's composition.

Despite problems during the unpiloted Artemis I reentry, the Artemis II crew is confident their heat shield will protect them during a fiery descent to Earth.

Spacecraft structural analyst Dylan Dickstein analyzes Artemis II’s return to Earth after a historic trip around the moon on ‘Fox News @ Night.’

A 48-foot asteroid will pass Earth on April 12, 2026, at a safe distance of 4 million miles, posing no threat while offering insights for space research.