Today, in 1968 aboard Apollo 8, NASA astronaut Bill Anders captured “Earthrise” — one of the most iconic photographs of the Apollo era. For the first time, humans were able to the Earth from the perspective of the moon.

Later, Anders recalled seeing “…a very fragile looking Earth, a very delicate looking Earth, I was immediately almost overcome by the thought that here we came all this way to the Moon, and yet the most significant thing we’re seeing is our own home planet, the Earth.” Using a highly modified Hasselblad 500 EL camera outfitted with a 250mm telephoto lens, Anders, with a click of the button, had captured a moment of personal epiphany and perhaps one of the great works of art of our time.

In 2018, the International Astronomical Union named a 25-mile-diameter crater “Anders’ Earthrise” in honor of both the man and the photograph. A smaller crater was also renamed “Eight Homeward.” You can see both of the memorialized craters in the iconic Earthrise photograph.

Fast Forward To 2026

Soon, the Artemis II astronauts will travel further away from Earth than Apollo 8, about 250,000 miles (400,000 km) from home. Depending on the launch date, it may even eclipse Apollo 13, humanity’s current record holder, which was farther from Earth than any other mission. If so, on that spaceflight, they will have the opportunity to capture views of our home planet from places humanity has never been.

Artemis II Gear

Artemis II’s astronauts will have two Nikon D5 digital single-lens reflex cameras available inside the cabin. These are professional-grade still and video cameras, selected both for public affairs imagery and for the crew’s own photographic priorities. Equipped with wide-angle and long-range lenses, the cameras are expected to capture everything from close-quarters life inside Orion to distant views through the spacecraft’s windows during the lunar flyby.

The choice of the Nikon D5 was not accidental. The camera is known for its low-noise performance and high dynamic range, qualities that allow it to handle the stark contrast between sunlit spacecraft surfaces and deep shadow in space. The same will be true for a brightly lit lunar environment, where the sunlight surfaces and craters in shadow are like night and day.

Just as critical for a deep-space mission, the D5 has shown strong resistance to radiation effects, helping ensure reliable operation beyond low Earth orbit where exposure levels are significantly higher. Still, it is an old camera by today’s standards, but just because something is old does not mean it is not useful.

Video from the Nikon cameras can also be routed through Orion’s onboard ZCube encoder, allowing selected footage to be compressed and sent to the ground during the mission. Bandwidth limitations mean not everything can be transmitted live, but the system supports high-definition and ultra-high-definition recording, preserving higher-quality footage for return with the spacecraft after splashdown.

Nikon’s History With NASA

Nikon and NASA have had a working relationship since Apollo 15.

For much of the past decade, Nikon DSLRs formed the backbone of ISS still photography. Cameras such as the Nikon D4, released in 2012, and later the Nikon D5, released in 2016, became familiar tools for astronauts documenting everything from spacewalk preparation to dramatic Earth imagery through the station’s windows. These cameras were favored for their ruggedness, low-light performance, and compatibility with a wide range of lenses already qualified for spaceflight.

The most prominent Nikon camera currently in use on the ISS is the Nikon Z9, which was delivered to the station in 2022. The addition of the Z9 represented a major step forward for on-orbit imaging, offering a high-resolution stacked sensor, fast readout, and strong video capability without a mechanical shutter. Astronauts use it for Earth observation, operational documentation, and public-affairs photography, often paired with long telephoto lenses for detailed imagery of weather systems, cities, and natural features.

That said, using the D5 in lieu of the Z9 is an interesting choice.

Storage space and unimpeachable reliability are possibly the basis of NASA’s decision to go with the older camera, or it could be that the selection was made before the agency had experience with the newer gear. The Z9 will be part of the Artemis III roster and will be used on the lunar surface.

In addition to the NASA-owned handheld cameras, Artemis II will also carry a set of National Geographic cameras. These handheld GoPro units are flying as a dedicated payload for a Disney and National Geographic documentary. The cameras will be operated by the crew throughout the mission, but their footage will not be downlinked during flight. Instead, the recorded material will return to Earth aboard Orion, offering a behind-the-scenes look at the mission once the capsule is recovered.

Other Cameras Aboard Artemis II

Supporting all of this handheld imagery is a dense network of fixed cameras mounted throughout the spacecraft. Inside the cabin, wireless cameras and human health monitoring cameras document crew activity and vehicle performance, particularly during dynamic phases such as launch, ascent, entry, and landing. One of these interior cameras will stream live video from crew ingress through ascent, giving mission controllers real-time insight into conditions inside Orion.

Outside the spacecraft, fixed exterior cameras track critical events such as solar array deployment, spacecraft separation, and vehicle inspections. These views are essential for engineers, but they also continue a tradition dating back to Apollo, showing the realities of spaceflight from the spacecraft itself. Altogether, 28 cameras will support Orion during Artemis II, making it one of the most extensively documented human spaceflight missions to date.

Artemis II will not land on the Moon, but will very possibly carry humans farther from Earth than ever before, and the imagery plan reflects a careful balance. Engineering needs come first, but with crew handheld cameras and a dedicated National Geographic payload onboard, Artemis II is also set to capture the human experience of deep space, one frame at a time.

Author: Charles Boyer

NASA kid from Cocoa Beach, FL, born of Project Apollo parents and family. I’m a writer and photographer sharing the story of spaceflight from the Eastern Range here in Florida.