The four astronauts of NASA's Artemis II mission entered the moon's gravitational sphere of influence early Monday morning as they cruised along a path that will soon ​take them over the shadowed, lunar far side to become the farthest-flying humans in history.

The crew of Artemis II has entered a new phase of its mission as they head to the far side of the moon, where they will lose contact with NASA for a period of time. CBS News' Bradley Blackburn reports.

Artemis II and its four-man crew have entered the Moon’s “sphere of influence,” meaning the spacecraft is more affected by lunar gravity than the Earth’s pull. The transition occurred at a distance of 39,

Monday night, the Orion capsule will loop around the moon's far side, setting a new distance record from earth. For a time NASA will lose all communication with the crew: 40 minutes of radio silence.

Four crew members are continuing their 10-day journey around the moon. Former NASA chief scientist Jim Green joins FOX Weather to discuss the latest developments on the Artemis II

NASA’s Artemis II mission is already pretty historic as the agency’s first crewed journey around the moon in more than half a century. But tucked inside all the big-picture lunar ambition is a much more grounded milestone,

NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman outlined the most critical moments he expects in the coming days as Artemis II astronauts continue their journey around the far side of the moon.

Astronauts are testing systems and preparing Orion for a lunar flyby, the mission’s most critical phase before returning to Earth.