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More than half a century after humans first orbited the Moon, Artemis astronauts will revisit that achievement on Monday, relying on the most fundamental tool—their own eyes—to examine it.
Although technological leaps since the Apollo era have transformed space exploration, NASA continues to depend on the vision of its crew members to gather insights about the Moon.
“The human eye is essentially the best camera that ever has been or ever will be,” said Kelsey Young, lead scientist for the Artemis 2 mission, in an interview with AFP.
“The number of receptors in the human eye far exceeds what a camera can capture.”
While modern cameras surpass human vision in certain aspects, Young emphasizes that “the human eye excels at perceiving color, understanding context, and making photometric observations.”
Humans are adept at interpreting how light alters the surface details—such as how angled lighting accentuates textures while diminishing color clarity.
In the blink of an eye, people can detect subtle shifts in hue and grasp how lighting influences the contours of lunar terrain—details that are scientifically significant yet tough to capture fully in photographs or videos.
Before this week’s launch, Artemis 2 astronaut Victor Glover, who pilots the Orion spacecraft, described sight as a “magical instrument.”
The crew, comprising four seasoned explorers, has undergone over two years of intensive training to maximize their lunar reconnaissance.
Young explained that their aim was to turn astronauts into “field scientists” through classroom instruction, geological field trips to Iceland and Canada, and multiple simulated lunar flybys that mimic their current mission.
The team includes Commander Reid Wiseman, pilot Glover, mission specialist Christina Koch, and Canadian astronaut Jeremy Hansen. They’ve memorized what’s called the “Big 15″—the 15 lunar features critical for navigation.
Using an inflatable lunar globe, they practiced observing how sunlight angle affects surface colors and textures, sharpening their observational and note-taking skills for the real encounter.
“They’re excited and fully prepared,” Young added with a smile.
Their mission centers on studying specific lunar sites and phenomena, aligned with NASA’s top 10 scientific goals.
During the brief Moon flyby, which lasts several hours, the crew will observe with their naked eyes and onboard cameras.
NASA’s Noah Petro, who heads the planetary geology lab, estimates that from the crew’s vantage point, the Moon will appear roughly “the size of a basketball held at arm’s length.”
He’s particularly interested in whether astronauts can distinguish the surface’s colors—like dark browns or tans—that can reveal the Moon’s composition and history.
David Kring of the Lunar and Planetary Institute mentioned that, given the numerous lunar probes and high-resolution images since the Apollo missions, he doesn’t anticipate groundbreaking discoveries. Still, having astronauts describe what they observe firsthand offers a perspective that has never been experienced by two generations on Earth.
NASA plans to broadcast the Artemis 2 flyby live, with brief interruptions when the spacecraft passes behind the Moon.
Young expressed her excitement, saying, “Listening to their practice descriptions during simulations gives me chills. I am confident these four will provide some incredible observations.”
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