NASA Artemis II Report: The Moon’s Color Is Not Yellow and White, But “Mud Green

During their close flyby of the Moon, the astronauts on NASA’s Artemis II mission saw a much more colorful landscape than they expected. The “yellowish orange” and “mud green” tones they encountered on the lunar surface were revealed in a new report. The area known as the Aristarchus Plateaus is located on the side of the Moon facing Earth. This wide and high terrain is one of the most densely populated areas of the oldest volcanic features on the Moon’s northwest. It contains dark lava deposits and colorful volcanic glass fragments. Surprised by the distinct yellow tones they encountered in the area, Mission Specialist Koch described the plateau as “yellow snow mountains.” He described the bright “snow” of the craters as “the yellowed side of the Moon.” Pilot Glover shared his observations while filming the area: “Now there are so many colors. There’s also green. Especially in Aristarchus and to the north, I see brown stripes going down.” According to the report’s authors, these colorful tones can be attributed to titanium-rich yellow and magnesium-rich green glass beads, similar to those found in different regions of the Moon. These colorations could provide clues for future missions to identify landing and exploration sites. Another colorful area that caught the crew’s attention was a massive impact crater. Measuring approximately three times the width of Massachusetts, this young and highly-rimmed crater spans both the visible and invisible sides of the Moon. Rarely visible from Earth, the structure completely covered the area as the crew entered orbit behind the Moon. Mission Commander Wiseman noted that the structure “created chaos across the entire area.” As they passed through the wide basin, the crew saw gray, brown, tan, and green tones below. Koch saw “almost mud-like colors” on the outer rim of the basin, while Glover described a landscape of white dust-like deposits on the slopes and peaks of the mountains. The crater chains moving away from the impact center gave Koch the impression of “bubbles rising from under the water.”

These observations may seem like random statements, but the Artemis II team spent more than two years training to study and describe the Moon’s geology. This training included individual and group lectures, simulated flight transitions, and the acquisition of “reference materials of their choice” to read during the journey in the Orion capsule.

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