US exhibition squad, the Harlem Globetrotters, met the pontiff in the Vatican, helping him to spin a basketball on the tip of his finger.
Pope Leo XIV was seen spinning a basketball on his finger at his weekly general audience in Saint Peter's Square.
Players from the US exhibition basketball crew, the Harlem Globetrotters, aided the pontiff, who learned the new skill in front of a cheering crowd.
The four astronauts said they were returning to Earth with "so many more pictures, so many more stories".
Voters in key Indian regions are casting ballots in local elections that will test the support for Prime Minister Narendra Modi
The Artemis II crew answered a question from the BBC from their space capsule, ahead of their likely splashdown on Saturday.