The Artemis 2 astronauts will make their return to Earth on Friday when they splash down in the Pacific Ocean near California.

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.

NASA's latest photos from the Artemis II mission show Earth in stunning details as the astronauts near a milestone distance of 100,000 miles away.

Photos of Earth taken by the Artemis 2 astronauts reveal their perspective as they zoom farther away from our home planet than any have gone before.

Artemis II left the lunar sphere of influence on Tuesday afternoon – a milestone in the journey which will have the crew falling back home for the rest of its journey to Earth.

Part of Artemis II's mission includes collecting samples of ice from the moon that will be compared to Earth’s oceans.

The finds come from the Rubin Observatory. which is expected will eventually reveal nearly 90,000 new near-Earth objects.

A new study has found that in 2025 our oceans absorbed more heat than ever before. This is fueling stronger storms and more intense flooding events.