On July 3, one of NASA’s twin ESCAPADE (Escape and Plasma Acceleration and Dynamics Explorers) spacecraft successfully captured detailed images of Earth and the Moon using both visible light and thermal infrared imaging systems. At the time of capture, the spacecraft was positioned approximately 363,250 miles (584,600 kilometers) from Earth and 115,600 miles (186,100 kilometers) from the Moon, resulting in a remarkably clear view of Earth’s nearest celestial neighbor.
The visible light photograph reveals both planetary bodies as crescents, with only about 8% of each surface illuminated by the Sun. In contrast, the thermal infrared imagery presents a striking difference: Earth’s shadowed regions emit a faint glow from residual heat stored in its atmosphere and surface, registering temperatures between minus 10 to minus 44 degrees Fahrenheit (250 to 280 kelvins). The Moon, lacking substantial atmospheric insulation and oceanic heat retention, shows significantly cooler temperatures on its far side at approximately minus 280 degrees Fahrenheit (100 kelvins).
These images were acquired using ESCAPADE’s Visible and Infrared Observation System (VIROS) cameras, developed by Northern Arizona University in Flagstaff. While visually impressive, these photographs serve a greater scientific purpose beyond documentation.
“We are thrilled that ESCAPADE was able to accommodate these excellent space-qualified cameras which will search for visible Martian aurora and investigate thermal properties of the Martian surface and atmosphere,” said Rob Lillis, the mission’s principal investigator at the University of California, Berkeley. “Since Earth and the Moon are well-known targets, imaging them provides an important calibration check for ESCAPADE’s cameras.”
Currently, both ESCAPADE spacecraft—built by Rocket Lab—are stationed in a “loiter” orbit around Lagrange point 2, located roughly one million miles from Earth. In November 2026, the mission will execute a gravity assist maneuver by flying close to Earth, using the planet’s gravitational pull to propel the spacecraft toward Mars. Upon arrival in September 2027, the twin spacecraft will investigate how the solar wind—a continuous stream of charged particles traveling at speeds exceeding one million miles per hour—interacts with the Martian environment and contributes to atmospheric loss on the Red Planet.
The ESCAPADE mission receives funding through NASA’s Heliophysics Division as part of the Small Innovative Missions for Planetary Exploration program. Leadership for the mission resides at UC Berkeley’s Space Sciences Laboratory, working alongside key partners including Rocket Lab, NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, Advanced Space, and Blue Origin.
By Mara Johnson-Groh
NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Md.