The crew of NASA’s Artemis II mission has safely returned to Earth after completing a groundbreaking journey around the Moon, marking humanity’s first crewed mission to the lunar vicinity in more than 50 years.
The Orion capsule, named Integrity, splashed down in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of Southern California on Friday, April 10, shortly after 5:07 p.m. Pacific Time (0007 GMT Saturday), bringing an end to a nearly 10-day mission in deep space.
The spacecraft carried four astronauts — Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, Christina Koch, and Canadian Jeremy Hansen — who traveled farther from Earth than any human crew in history, reaching a distance of 252,756 miles.
“A perfect bull’s eye splashdown for Integrity and its four astronauts,” NASA commentator Rob Navias said moments after landing.
Mission commander Wiseman confirmed the crew’s safety shortly after touchdown, reporting: “We are stable one – four green crew members.”
Recovery teams from NASA and the U.S. Navy swiftly moved in, securing the capsule within two hours. The astronauts were assisted out of the spacecraft, transferred to an inflatable raft, and airlifted by helicopter to the USS John P. Murtha for initial medical checks. They are expected to return to Houston on Saturday to reunite with their families.
The Artemis II mission tested the Orion spacecraft under extreme conditions, particularly during re-entry, widely regarded as the most dangerous phase of the journey. The capsule re-entered Earth’s atmosphere at 32 times the speed of sound, enduring temperatures of about 5,000 degrees Fahrenheit (2,760°C). A brief communications blackout lasting over six minutes occurred as expected due to ionized gases surrounding the spacecraft.
Contact was restored shortly before parachutes deployed, slowing the capsule’s descent before it gently landed in the ocean.
Launched on April 1 from Cape Canaveral aboard NASA’s Space Launch System rocket, the mission included two Earth orbits followed by a lunar flyby approximately 4,000 miles from the Moon’s surface. It is the first crewed Artemis mission, following the uncrewed Artemis I test flight in 2022.
The mission also marked several historic firsts: Victor Glover became the first Black astronaut to take part in a lunar mission, Christina Koch the first woman, and Jeremy Hansen the first non-American.
“This is an incredible test of an incredible machine,” said NASA Associate Administrator Amit Kshatriya.
The successful flight represents a major step in NASA’s Artemis program, which aims to return humans to the Moon as early as 2028 and establish a long-term presence as a stepping stone for future missions to Mars.
The Artemis II crew also surpassed the previous distance record set by the Apollo 13 astronauts in 1970.
NASA officials say the mission provides critical data for future flights, including Artemis III, which is expected to test docking systems in Earth orbit before attempting a lunar landing in subsequent missions.
As the crew began their descent back to Earth, Wiseman reflected on the journey, telling mission control: “We got a great view of the moon out the window 2, looks a little smaller than yesterday.”
From Houston, astronaut Jacki Mahaffey responded with a lighthearted remark: “Guess we’ll have to go back.”
Soure: Reuters
