Nasa’s Orion spacecraft enters lunar orbit as test flight nears halfway mark

As it neared the halfway point of its test flight, the capsule entered an elliptical circle around the moon.

More than a week after the demo was launched, the capsule and its three test dummies entered the moon. It will stay in this broad but stable path for a week before heading home.

The capsule was 238,000 miles away from Earth. It will reach a maximum distance in a few days. It will set a new distance record for a capsule.

Jim Geffre said in an interview that it was symbolic for what it represented. It is about pushing beyond the limits of what we have already explored.

The next moon flyby is considered a dress rehearsal by NASA. There is a chance that a lunar landing by astronauts will happen in the near future. Fifty years ago, astronauts visited the moon.

Mission Control in Houston lost contact with the capsule. The communication link between the Deep Space Network and the spaceship was being adjusted. The officials said the craft was in good shape.