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NASA’s NASA Artemis II astronauts have returned safely to Earth, completing the first crewed mission to travel around the Moon in more than 50 years.
The Orion spacecraft splashed down in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of California at 5:07pm local time (00:07 GMT) on Friday, following a high-speed and high-temperature re-entry through Earth’s atmosphere.
Recovery teams positioned in advance moved swiftly to secure the capsule and assist the crew.
According to Al Jazeera, on board were Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, Christina Koch, and Canadian astronaut Jeremy Hansen.
Read more: Techbytes: Artemis II blasts off in historic return of humans to deep space (Al Jazeera)
Minutes before re-entry, mission commander Wiseman radioed Mission Control:
“We got a great view of the Moon out window 2 – looks a little smaller than yesterday.”
“Guess we’ll have to go back,” Houston replied.
The return marked a critical test of the Orion spacecraft’s ability to withstand the extreme conditions of a lunar re-entry.
During the dramatic 13-minute descent, the capsule slammed into the atmosphere at tremendous speed, with its heat shield enduring temperatures of about 2,760°C (5,000°F)—hot enough to form a plasma sheath that temporarily cut off communications.
Contact was restored as Orion’s parachutes deployed, slowing the spacecraft for a gentle splashdown. Recovery crews later opened the hatch and extracted the astronauts, who reported only minor communication issues but were otherwise in good condition.
“We are back in the business of sending astronauts to the Moon, bringing them back safely and set up for a series more,” said Jared Isaacman from a U.S. Navy recovery ship.
The four astronauts launched just over a week ago from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida, beginning a 10-day journey that took them farther from Earth than any humans since the Apollo era.
Their mission included a flight around the far side of the Moon to test life-support, navigation, and communication systems that will be used in future Artemis missions—including the planned Artemis III landing.
NASA hailed the mission as a major step toward returning humans to the lunar surface, marking a successful milestone in America’s renewed push for deep-space exploration.
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