After swooping around the moon, viewing an eclipse, breaking an Apollo distance record and testing out a space toilet, NASA's Artemis II mission is about to return to Earth. Here's what the astronauts must face to make it safely home.

The Artemis II astronauts are on track for a splashdown in the Pacific to close out humanity's first voyage to the moon in more than half a century.

The 10-day mission will conclude April 10 with a planned splashdown off the California coast. NASA expects the crew to land in the Pacific Ocean near San Diego at 5:07 p.m. PDT (7:07 p.m.

Over the past eight days, the world has watched four intrepid explorers leave Earth, fly around the Moon, and make spaceflight history. The moments of reverence, camaraderie, and bravery we’ve witnessed since the launch of NASA’s Artemis 2 mission have done wonders for my faith in humanity, but sadly, all good things must come to an end.

Following a groundbreaking voyage to orbit the Moon, NASA’s Artemis II mission is now gearing up for its most exciting part, the homecoming back to Ea.

The end of the historic Artemis II mission kicks off a race to establish a permanent human presence on the moon.

NASA spokesperson Lauren Low told PolitiFact that one of the reasons Earth appears duller is because the new photo was taken at night, with only moonlight lighting the planet. The 1972 photo was taken in direct sunlight. The two images were also processed differently, she said.