The four astronauts of NASA's Artemis II mission have safely returned to Earth, splashing down in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of San Diego on Friday evening. The Orion spacecraft completed a 10-day journey around the Moon, travelling 694,481 miles before touching down at 5.07pm local time. All crew members are reported to be in good health.
Commander Reid Wiseman, pilot Victor Glover, mission specialist Christina Koch of NASA, and Jeremy Hansen of the Canadian Space Agency became the first humans to travel to the Moon since Apollo 17 in 1972. They join an exclusive group of just 24 others who have made the journey and returned safely. Koch also became the only woman to have flown to the Moon and back.
Speaking at a press conference after the splashdown, NASA associate administrator Amit Kshatriya said: '53 years ago, humanity left the Moon. This time we return to stay.' NASA administrator Jared Isaacman, aboard the recovery ship USS John P Murtha, described the crew as 'ambassadors from humanity to the stars' and emphasised that this is 'just the beginning'.
The mission marks a key step towards NASA's goal of a crewed Moon landing in 2028. The Artemis II crew will now undergo debriefing as preparations begin for Artemis III. During the flyby, Koch described an overwhelming sense of being moved by the lunar landscape, saying: 'The Moon really is its own unique body in the universe.'
