The key to understanding Artemis’s record is a quirk of the Moon’s orbit. It isn’t circular—it swings between 356,000 km (perigee) and 406,000 km (apogee). That difference matters if you want to make records.

April 07, 2026 - 00:12 UTC

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The lunar apogee this month is 404,973 km from the centre of the Earth at 08:33 UTC on April 7th. Artemis II reached maximum distance from the Earth at 00:07 UTC—just a few hours earlier.
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That meant they were able to clock in a maximum altitude of 406,771 km—just beyond the lunar apogee.

Congratulations, NASA!
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