Houston: NASA astronauts will be allowed to carry the latest smartphones on upcoming Moon missions, the space agency's Administrator Jared Isaacman announced on Thursday.

According to Anadolu Agency, astronauts will fly with smartphones beginning with the Crew-12 mission in February and Artemis II in March. 'We are giving our crews the tools to capture special moments for their families and share inspiring images and video with the world,' Isaacman wrote on the US social media company X.

He further explained that NASA teams challenged 'long-standing processes' and qualified modern hardware for spaceflight on an 'expedited timeline.' 'That operational urgency will serve NASA well as we pursue the highest-value science and research in orbit and on the lunar surface. This is a small step in the right direction,' he added.