The four astronauts of the Artemis II mission have safely splashed down in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of California, concluding a record-breaking 10-day journey around the moon. The Orion spacecraft touched down at 5.07pm local time on Friday, having travelled 694,481 miles (1,117,659 km) in 9 days, 1 hour and 32 minutes.
All four crew members — Commander Reid Wiseman, Pilot Victor Glover, Mission Specialist Christina Koch of Nasa, and Canadian Space Agency astronaut Jeremy Hansen — are in good health. They are the first humans to travel to the moon and return safely since Apollo 17 in 1972, joining an exclusive club of 24 others.
Nasa associate administrator Amit Kshatriya said: '53 years ago, humanity left the moon. This time we return to stay.' Nasa administrator Jared Isaacman described the crew as 'ambassadors from humanity to the stars' and called the mission 'just the beginning.'
After landing, a recovery crew from the USS John P Murtha retrieved the astronauts, who were assessed by navy personnel and transferred to the ship via helicopter. Christina Koch, the only woman to have travelled to the moon, described her first impressions of the lunar surface as 'overwhelming.'
Nasa plans to build on this mission to prepare for a crewed moon landing in 2028. The Artemis programme aims to establish a sustainable presence on the lunar surface.
