NASA astronaut Jessica Wittner uses an early design of the Artemis lunar camera to take photos during planetary geological field training in Lanzarote, Spain.on the moon in the 1960s, they did so with some very 1960s camera technology. Lacking viewfinders, the astronauts had to attach their cameras to their spacesuits' chests. Reliant on photographic film, the astronauts needed separate equipment entirely to capture video.
Now, NASA and its partner agencies ESA and JAXA have begun putting the camera through rigorous testing. Astronauts have used the HULC during geology training on Lanzarote in the Canary Islands, and suited astronauts have taken the HULC on simulated moonwalks in Arizona.when that mission departs — now scheduled for 2026 — as it will put the first humans on the moon since Apollo 17's last camera-snaps in 1972.
Rahul Rao is a graduate of New York University's SHERP and a freelance science writer, regularly covering physics, space, and infrastructure. His work has appeared in Gizmodo, Popular Science, Inverse, IEEE Spectrum, and Continuum. He enjoys riding trains for fun, and he has seen every surviving episode of Doctor Who.