Artemis II toilet malfunctions again as astronauts race toward Moon, set to surpass Apollo 13 record

More than halfway to the Moon, the Artemis II crew is preparing for a historic lunar flyby that will take them farther into space than even the Apollo-era astronauts.

The four-member team — three Americans and one Canadian — is set to reach the Moon on Monday, capturing images of its far side as they loop around it. The mission marks the first crewed journey toward the Moon in over 53 years, continuing where Apollo program left off.

“The Earth is quite small, and the Moon is definitely getting bigger,” pilot Victor Glover said from aboard the Orion spacecraft.

However, the journey hasn’t been without hiccups. The spacecraft’s toilet system has malfunctioned again, forcing astronauts to rely on backup urine collection bags. The issue began shortly after liftoff and has remained inconsistent since. Engineers suspect ice may be blocking a line, preventing proper waste disposal. Despite the glitch, the toilet remains usable for solid waste.

NASA officials say the crew is managing the situation well. “They’re OK. They trained to handle this,” said mission manager John Honeycutt.

The Orion capsule is expected to travel more than 252,000 miles (400,000 km) from Earth before looping behind the Moon and heading back — setting a new human distance record, surpassing Apollo 13.

Meanwhile, Jeremy Hansen is making history as the first non-American to travel to the Moon. “Today he is making history for Canada,” said Lisa Campbell.

Hansen, along with Reid Wiseman and Christina Koch, forms the first lunar crew since Apollo 17. Koch and Glover also mark historic firsts as the first woman and first Black astronaut to travel to the Moon.

The nearly 10-day mission, scheduled to end with a Pacific splashdown on April 10, is a key step in NASA’s long-term goal of establishing a sustained human presence on the Moon, with a planned landing near the lunar south pole by 2028.