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New Artemis Virtual Meeting Backgrounds Released Celebrating Artemis I, Looking to Artemis II and Beyond

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Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater)

Virtual meetings feeling a little stale? NASA has just unveiled a suite of new Artemis backgrounds to elevate your digital workspace.


From the majesty of the Artemis I launch lighting up the night sky to the iconic image of the Orion spacecraft with the Moon and Earth in view, these virtual backgrounds allow viewers to relive the awe-inspiring moments of Artemis I and glimpse the bright future that lies ahead as the Artemis campaign enables humans to live and work at the Moon’s South Pole region.


Scroll through to download your next virtual background for work, school, or just for fun, and learn about all things Artemis as the agency and its partners cross off milestones leading up to Artemis II and missions beyond.

Artemis I Launch

Framed by vegetation in the foreground and against the backdrop of a black night sky, NASA’s SLS (Space Launch System) rocket carrying the Orion spacecraft launches on the Artemis I flight test on Nov. 16, 2022, from Launch Complex 39B at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida.
Credit: NASA/Bill Ingalls

NASA’s SLS (Space Launch System) rocket carrying the Orion spacecraft launches on the Artemis I flight test on Nov. 16, 2022, from Launch Complex 39B at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. NASA’s Artemis I mission was the first integrated flight test of the agency’s deep space exploration systems: the Orion spacecraft, SLS rocket, and ground systems. SLS and Orion launched at 1:47 a.m. EST from Launch Pad 39B at Kennedy.

Artemis II Crew

Underneath the wording “Artemis II” in white against a black backdrop, the Artemis II crew individual portraits are lined up in pairs from left to right across this virtual background. From left, all wearing bright orange launch-and-entry spacesuits, are Commander Reid Wiseman, Pilot Victor Glover, and Mission Specialist Christina Koch from NASA, and Mission Specialist Jeremy Hansen from the Canadian Space Agency.
Credit: NASA

Meet the astronauts who will fly around the Moon during the Artemis II mission. From left are Commander Reid Wiseman, Pilot Victor Glover, and Mission Specialist Christina Koch from NASA, and Mission Specialist Jeremy Hansen from the Canadian Space Agency.

Astronaut Regolith

An artist’s concept shows two Artemis crew members wearing white spacesuits with large, square life-support system backpacks and round helmets with gold visors on the pebbled gray surface of the Moon. In the foreground, an astronaut holds out a palm-sized lunar sample toward the viewer. A few feet behind the astronaut in the foreground, another crew member uses a camera to take a snapshot aimed at the rocky surface. The scene is backdropped by a black night sky.
Credit: NASA

An artist’s concept of two suited Artemis crew members working on the lunar surface. The samples collected during future Artemis missions will continue to advance our knowledge of the solar system and help us understand the history and formation of Earth and the Moon, uncovering some of the mysteries that have long eluded scientists.

Exploration Ground Systems

Framed by a blue sky and white clouds, NASA’s mobile launcher — a vertical, rectangular structure constructed of gray metal and open scaffolding — seemingly rises into the sky. At the top of the structure is an American flag waving in the wind. The mobile launcher sits atop Crawler Transporter-2 — a flat, square platform that carries heavy structures to the launch pad on tooth-metal wheels, or sprockets, which are commonly seen on tanks. Crawler Transporter-2 also has an American flag affixed to the front, which lies flat against the structure.
Credit: NASA

NASA’s mobile launcher, atop Crawler Transporter-2, is at the entrance to High Bay 3 at the Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB) on Sept. 8, 2018, at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. This is the first time that the modified mobile launcher made the trip to the pad and the VAB. The mobile launcher is the structure that is used to assemble, process, and launch the SLS rocket.

Backdropped by a nearly cloudless blue sky, Crawler Transporter-2 — a flat, square platform that carries heavy structures to the launch pad on tooth-metal wheels, or sprockets, which are commonly seen on tanks — dominates the foreground of the image as it moves away from the launch pad. In the background near the right-hand side of the image, and in between two metal tower structures and one metal water tower, NASA’s SLS rocket with Orion spacecraft aboard is seen connected to and in front of the mobile launcher at Launch Pad 39B on Nov. 4, 2022. The orange core stage of the SLS rocket stands out from the white solid rocket boosters at each side and white Interim Cryogenic Propulsion Stage and white Orion capsule topping it.
Credit: NASA/Joel Kowsky

NASA’s SLS rocket with the Orion spacecraft aboard is seen atop a mobile launcher at Launch Pad 39B on Nov. 4, 2022, as Crawler Transporter-2 departs the pad following rollout at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

In this image, at the foreground and in front of the massive USS Portland aircraft carrier ship, is the dark gray Orion capsule bobbing in the ocean after returning from its flight test around the Moon. Directly above the capsule are five visible inflated orange balloons. A large Navy helicopter is seen in a cloud-filled sky as it approaches the spacecraft from overhead.
Credit: NASA

After Orion splashed down in the Pacific Ocean, west of Baja California, the spacecraft was recovered by personnel on the USS Portland from the U.S. Department of Defense, including Navy amphibious specialists, Space Force weather specialists, and Air Force specialists, as well as engineers and technicians from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, the agency’s Johnson Space Center in Houston, and Lockheed Martin Space Operations. Personnel from NASA’s Exploration Ground Systems led the recovery efforts.

Backdropped against the pastel hues of a dawn sky, at left in the image is the Vehicle Assembly Building, a square, windowless building with gray accents and an enormous, painted American flag next to another painted NASA insignia, nicknamed the “meatball.” At right, the towering, interconnected structures of NASA’s crawler transporter, mobile launcher, and SLS rocket with Orion spacecraft atop roll out toward Launch Complex 39B for the first time on March 17, 2022, at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The scene is framed by shadowed vegetation and a large body of water in the foreground.
Credit: NASA/Keegan Barber

NASA’s SLS (Space Launch System) rocket with the Orion spacecraft aboard is seen atop a mobile launcher as it rolls out to Launch Complex 39B for the first time on March 17, 2022, at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. At left is the Vehicle Assembly Building.

First Woman

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Credit: NASA

“First Woman” graphic novel virtual background featuring an illustration of the inside of a lunar space station outfitted with research racks and computer displays. To learn more about the graphic novel and interactive experiences, visit: nasa.gov/calliefirst/

virtual-backgrounds-review-110424-page-1
Credit: NASA

“First Woman” graphic novel virtual background featuring the illustration of the inside of a lunar space station outfitted with research racks and computer displays, along with zero-g indicator suited rubber duckies floating throughout. To learn more about the graphic novel and interactive experiences, visit: nasa.gov/calliefirst/

virtual-backgrounds-review-110424-page-1
Credit: NASA

This “First Woman” graphic novel virtual background features an illustrated scene from a lunar mission. At a lunar camp, one suited astronaut flashes the peace sign while RT, the robot sidekick, waves in the foreground. To learn more about the graphic novel and interactive experiences, visit: nasa.gov/calliefirst/

Gateway

Above a small section of the Moon’s cratered and pock-marked upper sphere, the Gateway space station hosting the Orion spacecraft and SpaceX’s deep space logistics spacecraft is seen hovering at top right in the image while in a polar orbit around the Moon. Against the pitch-black backdrop, darkened solar arrays highlighted with a golden mesh pattern are oriented north and south at the front, or far left, of the space station. Gateway is a long white-and-gray tubular structure with an east-west orientation within the image, with the triangular-shaped Orion capsule docked to the far right of it — the spacecraft’s four white solar arrays evenly outstretched in the shape of an “x.”
Credit: NASA

The Gateway space station hosts the Orion spacecraft and SpaceX’s deep space logistics spacecraft in a polar orbit around the Moon, supporting scientific discovery on the lunar surface during the Artemis IV mission.

Dominating the frame of this background is the Gateway space station’s HALO (Habitation and Logistics Outpost) module, a giant silver-colored metal tunnel formed of segments welded together. A light source at the end of the tunnel shines toward the viewer, illuminating a grid-like pattern within the metallic sections. At each side, two large portholes open to the outside. HALO is seen here within a large building in Turin, Italy, where it was welded and tested.
Credit: Northrop Grumman and Thales Alenia Space

The Gateway space station’s HALO (Habitation and Logistics Outpost) module, one of two of Gateway’s habitation elements where astronauts will live, conduct science, and prepare for lunar surface missions, successfully completed welding in Turin, Italy. Following a series of tests to ensure its safety, the future home for astronauts will travel to Gilbert, Arizona, for final outfitting ahead of launch to lunar orbit. Gateway will be humanity’s first space station in lunar orbit and is an essential component of the Artemis campaign to return humans to the Moon for scientific discovery and chart a path for human missions to Mars.

Lunar Surface

In this artist’s concept, the SpaceX Starship human lander stands on the gray, undulating surface of the Moon against a jet-black backdrop. The lander is almost all white except for black accents near its “legs” and a thin black stripe near the top of the conical rocket. Above the thin black stripe is a miniature American flag and NASA worm insignia. Near the top of the lander is a row of 10 illuminated windows in a softened rectangular shape. A black “x” SpaceX insignia marks the bottom of the lander.
Credit: SpaceX

Artist’s concept of SpaceX Starship Human Landing System, or HLS, which is slated to transport astronauts to and from the lunar surface during Artemis III and IV.

In this artist’s concept, two crew members in white spacesuits — one kneeling, another standing — work on the gray lunar surface of the Moon to the right of Blue Origin’s Blue Moon MK-2 lander. Comprised of three connected elements in a shape reminiscent of a wide rocket ship, the lander concept is white, with a NASA meatball logo near the top and an American flag near the bottom portion. Metallic gold legs buttress out from the bottom of the lander to give it stability on the uneven regolith. In the distance is slightly undulating lunar terrain and Earth, partially hidden in shadow, rising above the lunar horizon.
Credit: Blue Origin

Artist’s concept of Blue Origin’s Blue Moon MK-2 human lunar lander, which is slated to land astronauts on the Moon during Artemis V.

Driving into the frame at the left of the virtual background, this concept image shows the “Moon buggy” for NASA’s Artemis missions — the Lunar Terrain Vehicle (LTV) — occupied by two astronauts in white spacesuits and helmets with gold visors. This LTV concept has a silver-colored open metal frame, reminiscent of off-roading sport vehicles, along with deeply grooved tires for traction on the uneven lunar terrain. A NASA insignia decal is on the LTV frame above the left front tire, along with an American flag decal on the frame above the right front tire. In the background, the undulating lunar terrain framed by the pitch-black backdrop of space.
Credit: NASA

The “Moon buggy” for NASA’s Artemis missions, the Lunar Terrain Vehicle (LTV), is seen here enabling a pair of astronauts to explore more of the Moon’s surface and conduct science research farther away from the landing site. NASA has selected Intuitive Machines, Lunar Outpost, and Venturi Astrolab to advance capabilities for an LTV.

virtual-backgrounds-review-110424-page-2
Credit: JAXA/Toyota

An artist’s concept of the pressurized rover — which is being designed, developed, and operated by JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) — is seen driving across the lunar terrain. The pressurized rover will serve as a mobile habitat and laboratory for the astronauts to live and work for extended periods of time on the Moon.

Logo

meatball-color.png?w=2048
Credit: NASA

The NASA “meatball” logo. The round red, white, and blue insignia was designed by employee James Modarelli in 1959, NASA’s second year. The design incorporates references to different aspects of NASA’s missions.

logos.png?w=2048
Credit: NASA

The NASA meatball logo (left) and Artemis logo side by side.

Moon Phases

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Credit: NASA

The different phases of the Moon, shown in variations of shadowing, extend across this virtual background.

Orion

orion-c.png?w=2048
Credit: NASA

On flight day 5 during Artemis I, the Orion spacecraft took a selfie while approaching the Moon ahead of the outbound powered flyby — a burn of Orion’s main engine that placed the spacecraft into lunar orbit. During this maneuver, Orion came within 81 miles of the lunar surface.

orion-b.png?w=2048
Credit: NASA

On flight day 13 during Artemis I, Orion reached its maximum distance from Earth at 268,563 miles away from our home planet, traveling farther than any other spacecraft built for humans.

In this first high-resolution image, taken on the first day of the Artemis I mission, the Orion spacecraft’s service module is seen at left, seemingly framing a slightly blurred Earth to its right with one dark, rectangular solar array. Intricate reddish wires cover the solar array like fine threads. The spacecraft, gleaming white, is slightly shadowed against the black expanse of space.
Credit: NASA

This first high-resolution image, taken on the first day of the Artemis I mission, was captured by a camera on the tip of one of Orion’s solar arrays. The spacecraft was 57,000 miles from home and distancing itself from planet Earth as it approached the Moon and distant retrograde orbit.

Silhouettes

In this virtual background, various scenes from Earth, Moon, and Mars are depicted within the silhouette outlines of three suited astronauts, artistically representing the interconnected nature of human space exploration from low Earth orbit to the Moon and, one day, human missions to Mars.
Credit: NASA

In this virtual background, various scenes from Earth, Moon, and Mars are depicted within the silhouette outlines of three suited astronauts, artistically representing the interconnected nature of human space exploration from low Earth orbit to the Moon and, one day, human missions to Mars.

SLS (Space Launch System)

virtual-backgrounds-review-110424-page-3
Credit: Joel Kowsky

In this sunrise photo at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, NASA’s SLS rocket with the Orion spacecraft aboard is seen atop the mobile launcher at Launch Pad 39B as preparations continued for the Artemis I launch.

virtual-backgrounds-review-110424-page-3
Credit: NASA/Joel Kowsky

In this close-up image, NASA’s SLS rocket with the Orion spacecraft aboard is seen atop the mobile launcher at Launch Pad 39B on Nov. 12, 2022, at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

virtual-backgrounds-review-110424-page-3
Credit: NASA/Joel Kowsky

NASA’s SLS rocket with the Orion spacecraft aboard is seen at sunrise atop the mobile launcher at Launch Pad 39B on Nov. 7, 2022, at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

Earth, Moon, and Mars

From left, an artist’s concept of the Moon, Earth, and Mars sharing the jet-black backdrop of space. At far left, a tiny Moon shrouded in shadow, the bottom half gleaming gray and bright white. Below the Moon and slightly off to the right, the bottom half of Earth is visible, showing cloud tops and an oceanic view, with the top covered in shadow. At the very far right of the virtual background, toward the upper quadrant, a partially shrouded Mars is visible. Mars is bigger than the Moon but smaller than Earth in this virtual background, its surface gleaming a rust-colored orange.
Credit: NASA

From left, an artist’s concept of the Moon, Earth, and Mars sharing space. NASA’s long-term goal is to send humans to Mars, and we will use what we learn at the Moon to help us get there. This is the agency’s Moon to Mars exploration approach.  

In this artist’s concept, the upper portion of a blended sphere represents the Earth, Moon, and Mars. The left third of the celestial body is oceanic blue, representing Earth’s oceans. The Earth piece blends into the center portion, which is shown as variations of gray with craters and other surface features reminiscent of the Moon. The Moon piece blends into the right third, which is colored in orange and indicative of Mars.
Credit: NASA

In this artist’s concept, the upper portion of a blended sphere represents the Earth, Moon, and Mars.

An artist’s concept showing, from left, the Earth, Moon, and Mars in sequence. At the left quadrant of the pitch-black background, nearly half of the Earth is shown close up, showing details like deep blue oceans and white clouds on the far-right portion. A shadow covers Earth on the left side. Slightly further in the distance and smaller in size is the Moon in a waxing crescent phase, with most of the Moon in shadow except a bright sliver visible at the right side. Further in distance and smaller in size from the Moon, Mars is also shown in mostly covered in shadow, with only a sliver of the pale orange planet visible at the right side.
Credit: NASA

An artist’s concept showing, from left, the Earth, Moon, and Mars in sequence. Mars remains our horizon goal for human exploration because it is a rich destination for scientific discovery and a driver of technologies that will enable humans to travel and explore far from Earth. 

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Catherine E. Williams

Catherine E. Williams

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      Stunning images like this, and an array of discoveries in the study of exoplanets, galaxies through time, star formation, and our own solar system, are still just the beginning. Recently, scientists from all over the world applied for observation time with Webb during its fourth year of science operations, which begins in July 2025.
      General Observer time with Webb is more competitive than ever. A record-breaking 2,377 proposals were submitted by the Oct. 15, 2024, deadline, requesting about 78,000 hours of observation time. This is an oversubscription rate, the ratio defining the observation hours requested versus the actual time available in one year of Webb’s operations, of around 9 to 1.
      The proposals cover a wide array of science topics, with distant galaxies being among the most requested observation time, followed by exoplanet atmospheres, stars and stellar populations, then exoplanet systems.
      The Space Telescope Science Institute manages the proposal and program selection process for NASA. The submissions will now be evaluated by a Telescope Allocation Committee, a group of hundreds of members of the worldwide astronomical community, on a dual-anonymous basis, with selections announced in March 2025.
      While time on Webb is limited, data from all of Webb’s programs is publicly archived, immediately after it’s taken, or after a time of exclusive access, in the Mikulski Archive for Space Telescopes (MAST) so it can be used by anyone in the world.
      The James Webb Space Telescope is the world’s premier space science observatory. Webb is solving mysteries in our solar system, looking beyond to distant worlds around other stars, and probing the mysterious structures and origins of our universe and our place in it. Webb is an international program led by NASA with its partners, ESA (European Space Agency) and CSA (Canadian Space Agency).
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      View/Download all image products at all resolutions for this article from the Space Telescope Science Institute.
      Media Contacts
      Laura Betz – laura.e.betz@nasa.gov
      NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Md.
      Hannah Braun – hbraun@stsci.edu, Christine Pulliam – cpulliam@stsci.edu
      Space Telescope Science Institute, Baltimore, Md.
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      Messier 104 (The Sombrero Galaxy)


      Hubble easily resolves some of the Sombrero galaxy’s roughly 2,000 globular clusters.

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      Details
      Last Updated Nov 25, 2024 Editor Marty McCoy Contact Laura Betz laura.e.betz@nasa.gov Related Terms
      Astrophysics Galaxies Goddard Space Flight Center James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) Science & Research Spiral Galaxies The Universe View the full article
    • European Space Agency
      Sombrero Galaxy dazzles in new Webb image
      By European Space Agency
      A new mid-infrared image from the NASA/ESA/CSA James Webb Space Telescope features the Sombrero galaxy, also known as Messier 104 (M104). The signature, glowing core seen in visible-light images does not shine, and instead a smooth inner disk is revealed. The sharp resolution of Webb’s MIRI (Mid-Infrared Instrument) also brings into focus details of the galaxy’s outer ring, providing insights into how the dust, an essential building block for astronomical objects in the Universe, is distributed. The galaxy’s outer ring shows intricate clumps in the infrared for the first time.
      View the full article
    • NASA
      NASA, SpaceX Illustrate Key Moments of Artemis Lunar Lander Mission
      By NASA
      An artist’s concept of SpaceX’s Starship Human Landing System (HLS) on the Moon. NASA is working with SpaceX to develop the Starship HLS to carry astronauts from lunar orbit to the Moon’s surface and back for Artemis III and Artemis IV. Starship HLS is roughly 50 meters tall, or about the length of an Olympic swimming pool. SpaceX This artist’s concept depicts a SpaceX Starship tanker (bottom) transferring propellant to a Starship depot (top) in low Earth orbit. Before astronauts launch in Orion atop the agency’s SLS (Space Launch System) rocket, SpaceX will launch a storage depot to Earth orbit. For the Artemis III and Artemis IV missions, SpaceX plans to complete propellant loading operations in Earth orbit to send a fully fueled Starship Human Landing System (HLS) to the Moon. SpaceX An artist’s concept shows how a crewed Orion spacecraft will dock to SpaceX’s Starship Human Landing System (HLS) in lunar orbit for Artemis III. Starship HLS will dock directly to Orion so that two astronauts can transfer to the lander to descend to the Moon’s surface, while two others remain in Orion. Beginning with Artemis IV, NASA’s Gateway lunar space station will serve as the crew transfer point. SpaceX The artist’s concept shows two Artemis III astronauts preparing to step off the elevator at the bottom of SpaceX’s Starship HLS to the Moon’s surface. At about 164 feet (50 m), Starship HLS will be about the same height as a 15-story building. (SpaceX)The elevator will be used to transport crew and cargo between the lander and the surface. SpaceX NASA is working with U.S. industry to develop the human landing systems that will safely carry astronauts from lunar orbit to the surface of the Moon and back throughout the agency’s Artemis campaign.
      For Artemis III, the first crewed return to the lunar surface in over 50 years, NASA is working with SpaceX to develop the company’s Starship Human Landing System (HLS). Newly updated artist’s conceptual renders show how Starship HLS will dock with NASA’s Orion spacecraft in lunar orbit, then two Artemis crew members will transfer from Orion to Starship and descend to the surface. There, astronauts will collect samples, perform science experiments, and observe the Moon’s environment before returning in Starship to Orion waiting in lunar orbit. Prior to the crewed Artemis III mission, SpaceX will perform an uncrewed landing demonstration mission on the Moon.
      NASA is also working with SpaceX to further develop the company’s Starship lander to meet an extended set of requirements for Artemis IV. These requirements include landing more mass on the Moon and docking with the agency’s Gateway lunar space station for crew transfer.
      The artist’s concept portrays SpaceX’s Starship HLS with two Raptor engines lit performing a braking burn prior to its Moon landing. The burn will occur after Starship HLS departs low lunar orbit to reduce the lander’s velocity prior to final descent to the lunar surface. SpaceX With Artemis, NASA will explore more of the Moon than ever before, learn how to live and work away from home, and prepare for future human exploration of Mars. NASA’s SLS (Space Launch System) rocket, exploration ground systems, and Orion spacecraft, along with the human landing system, next-generation spacesuits, Gateway lunar space station, and future rovers are NASA’s foundation for deep space exploration.
      For more on HLS, visit: 
      https://www.nasa.gov/humans-in-space/human-landing-system
      News Media Contact
      Corinne Beckinger 
      Marshall Space Flight Center, Huntsville, Ala. 
      256.544.0034  
      corinne.m.beckinger@nasa.gov 
      View the full article

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