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Apollo 17 astronaut reflects on Artemis II mission and confirms moon is not made of cheese

05:34

Here & Now Newsroom

April 10, 2026

In this image provided by NASA, the Artemis II crew captured this view as the Earth sets behind the Moon during a lunar flyby, Monday, April 6, 2026. (NASA via AP)

The crew of the Artemis II mission is scheduled to return to Earth on Friday, with a splashdown scheduled for 5:07 p.m. PST in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of San Diego.

The crew successfully completed its loop around the moon earlier this week, taking never-before-seen photos of the far side of the moon and making observations that will inform the future of lunar travel.

Harrison Schmitt, former NASA astronaut, joins Here & Now's Indira Lakshmanan to share his reflections on the mission and his hopes for the future of space travel. Schmitt is one of the last people to have walked on the moon back in 1972, during NASA's Apollo 17 mission. He also provided clarity on a popular lunar theory.

This segment aired on April 10, 2026.

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