NASA’s Artemis II lands in Pacific Ocean in ‘perfect’ landing for Moon mission

After 10 days, the four astronauts aboard the Orion spacecraft have returned to Earth and their mission around the Moon has been a success.

Integrity, the name of the crew spacecraft as part of NASA’s Artemis II mission, splashed down in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of San Diego, California, at 5:07 p.m. Pacific Time, according to NASA. The four crew members on board (three Americans and one Canadian) were all in “green” condition (or safe and healthy) after the “perfect” landing of the Orion spacecraft.

The crew consisted of Commander Reid Wiseman, pilot Victor Glover, and mission specialists Christina Koch and Jeremy Hansen. From liftoff to landing, the quartet was in space for just over nine days (and NASA rounded it up and called it a 10-day mission).

Artemis II was NASA’s first mission to orbit the Moon in more than 50 years. The crew traveled further from Earth than humans had ever done, reaching an estimated distance of 400,000 kilometers from our planet. During their trip, the crew orbited the Moon, taking photos from its flyby to parts of the surface never seen before, and even witness a total solar eclipse. They identified new craters, name one in honor of Wiseman’s wife, Carroll, who died of cancer in 2020.

“These were the ambassadors to the stars that we sent there,” Jared Isaacman, NASA administrator, said after landing. “I can’t imagine a better crew. It was a perfect mission.”

Isaacman, a commercial astronaut who has been on two private orbital missions, also traveled to X to celebrate the mission and noted that there would be more to come, noting that the United States is back in business.

“The United States is back in the business of sending astronauts to the Moon and bringing them home safely.” wrote in Xand then gave credit to the entire NASA workforce. “This was a test mission, the first crewed flight of SLS and Orion, going deeper than ever into the unforgiving environment of space, and it carried real risk. They accepted that risk for all we had to learn and for the exciting missions that follow, as we return to the lunar surface, build a lunar base, and prepare for what comes next.”