April 10, 2026 marks the long-awaited return to Earth of the astronauts from Artemis II. The mission set out to perform a lunar flyby that reached the Moon’s far side. Reid Wiseman, Christina Koch, Victor Glover, and Jeremy Hansen traveled farther than any human beings in history, a detail irresistible to sensational headlines. In keeping with the logic of a world shaped by social media, they took several photographs. A few selfies as well, which, out of discretion or contract, will not appear in scientific journals.

The large shadows on the right are remnants of ancient lava seas, formed when the Moon was still volcanically active. They belong to the near side, the hemisphere visible from Earth. The crater west of the dark expanse is the Orientale basin. Everything to the left falls within the side we cannot observe, since the Moon rotates on its axis at the same rate it orbits our planet.

There is something quietly frustrating in realizing that the face of the Moon we never managed to see is exactly the one we already know. For a long time, it was imagined as a refuge for the lost inhabitants of Atlantis, or for those extraterrestrials who tend the planet while waiting for its proper ripeness. Round things invite that kind of projection, the hidden side of an orange, the reverse of a beach ball. Illusion has little ground to stand on.

The photograph, which I hope is authentic, was published by New Scientist, Vol. 270, No. 3590, April 11, 2026. If you look closely, it had not yet officially reached circulation. It appears in black and white, perhaps to heighten its drama and its documentary authority. I would have preferred a trace of color, something restrained. So this is the world we get.