Nutella makes an unexpected cameo on NASA’s Moon mission
Nutella found itself at the centre of an unexpected brand moment when a jar floated through NASA’s live Artemis II broadcast during the crew’s lunar flyby preparations.
The brief sighting, inside the Orion spacecraft, showed the chocolate-hazelnut spread drifting weightlessly across the cabin with its label clearly visible before moving out of frame.
The moment was not planned, but it quickly took on a life of its own online, where viewers framed it as a perfectly timed piece of free exposure.
As clips spread across social media, the cameo gave Nutella a cultural moment few snack brands could hope to script.
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The jar was simply part of the astronauts’ onboard food supplies, yet its appearance felt oddly cinematic against the backdrop of one of NASA’s most closely watched missions in recent years.
Nutella’s own channels joined in, acknowledging that the product had now travelled farther from Earth than ever before.
The brand shared video of the delicious advertising accident, writing: “Honored to have traveled further than any spread in history. Taking spreading smiles to new heights.”
NASA press secretary Bethany Stevens told Futurism, “NASA does not select crew meals or food in association with brand partnerships. This was not a product placement,” she added.
Apple was another unexpected beneficiary of the Artemis II mission after NASA shared striking onboard images shot on the astronauts’ own iPhone 17 Pro Max devices.
The photos, published during the journey around the Moon, offered a more intimate view of the mission and gave Apple an unplanned link to one of the year’s biggest cultural moments.
The images were made possible by a NASA rule change allowing astronauts to bring smartphones onboard. Alongside the mission’s official camera equipment, the phone shots added a more familiar and human perspective.
This view just hits different 🌍
@Astro_Christina and @astro_reid take a moment to look back at Earth as they continue deep into space toward the Moon. pic.twitter.com/NMDeLj256K— NASA (@NASA) April 4, 2026
Among the most widely shared were images of Reid Wiseman and Christina Koch silhouetted against Earth from inside Orion.
Artemis II is the first crewed mission in the programme to head beyond low Earth orbit, with astronauts Reid Wiseman, Christina Koch, Victor Glover and Jeremy Hansen set to travel more than 250,000 miles from Earth during their journey around the Moon.
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