The Artemis II mission is a crewed test flight under NASA's Artemis program involving the Orion spacecraft returning to Earth after a trip around the Moon. The crew consists of NASA astronauts Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, Christina Koch, and Canadian Space Agency astronaut Jeremy Hansen. This approximately 10-day lunar flyby represents a critical step toward returning humans to the lunar surface. According to www.bbc.com, President Trump described the mission as making history and making all America proud.
The crew lifted off at 6:35 p.m. EDT on April 1 from launch pad 39B at Kennedy Space Center in Florida, according to official sources. They are expected to travel a total of 695,081 miles from launch to splashdown, according to official sources. This extensive journey takes them farther from Earth than any previous human spaceflight mission. The mission tests how the spacecraft's systems operate in a deep space environment, including manual spacecraft operations and evaluation of life-support, propulsion, and other systems, according to official sources.
The most critical part of the journey is when the spacecraft re-enters Earth's atmosphere.
During the lunar flyby, the spacecraft passed within 4,066 miles of the lunar surface during its closest approach, according to official sources. The crew traveled further from Earth than anyone ever has before, setting a distance record. According to www.bbc.com, Jeremy Hansen described surpassing the furthest distance humans have ever traveled from planet Earth while honoring the extraordinary efforts of predecessors. The spacecraft flew around the far side of the Moon, which is never visible from Earth, and the astronauts were the first human eyes to see some parts of its surface, according to research sources. According to www.bbc.com, Reid Wiseman described seeing sights that no human has ever seen, not even Apollo.
The crew lost contact with Earth for 40 minutes as they traveled behind the Moon, according to research sources. They witnessed a total eclipse of the Sun as the Moon blocked out its light, according to research sources. During the lunar flyby on April 6, 2026, the Moon and Earth aligned in the same frame, each partially illuminated by the Sun, according to official sources. According to BBC News - Science, Victor Glover described the crew's eagerness to share what they had seen with the world.
If they succeed in the re-entry, the entire mission is a total success.
The crew named a crater after Commander Reid Wiseman's late wife, Carroll Taylor Wiseman, who died from cancer in 2020. According to Daily Mirror - World News, Reid Wiseman described the crater naming as the pinnacle of the adventure and that the crew pretty much broke down right there. The crew also requested to name another crater 'Integrity', the name they gave to the Orion capsule, according to research sources. According to www.bbc.com, Jeremy Hansen explained that years ago they started this journey and lost a loved one, with the named feature being visible from Earth at certain times.
The crew is preparing for re-entry to Earth, which is the most dangerous part of the mission. According to Sveriges Radio Nyheter, Linn Bolt-Christmas described the most critical part of the journey as when the spacecraft re-enters Earth's atmosphere. The Orion capsule will re-enter Earth's atmosphere at speeds up to 23,839 mph, about 40 times the speed of a normal airplane flight, according to major media reports. The spacecraft will turn into a fireball during re-entry due to plasma buildup from friction, with temperatures reaching up to 1600 degrees Celsius, according to major media reports.
The crater naming was the 'pinnacle' of the adventure and that the crew 'pretty much broke down right there.'
A heat shield protects the crew from high temperatures during re-entry, according to major media reports. Communications with NASA will be blocked during re-entry due to plasma, with a planned blackout lasting six minutes, according to major media reports. The crew will experience up to 3.9 Gs during re-entry in the planned entry profile, according to major media reports. According to Sveriges Radio Nyheter, Linn Bolt-Christmas described success in re-entry as making the entire mission a total success.
The Orion crew module and service module will separate at 4:33 p.m. PT, with the service module burning up in Earth's atmosphere, according to major media reports. A crew module raise burn occurs at 4:37 p.m. PT to set the proper entry angle, according to major media reports. Orion's entry interface is at 4:53 p.m. PT, causing a brief blackout, according to major media reports. Jeff Radigan, lead flight director, stated at a press conference that the team has less than a degree of an angle to hit the correct flight path for successful re-entry.
The crew was eager to share what they had seen with the world.
Drogue parachutes deploy at about 5:03 p.m. PT, followed by main parachutes, before splashdown at 5:07 p.m. PT, according to major media reports. Main parachutes reduce Orion's speed to less than 136 mph before splashdown, according to major media reports. Splashdown is scheduled for Friday, April 10, around 8:07 p.m. EDT off the coast of San Diego in the Pacific Ocean. This timing corresponds to 7 minutes past midnight Icelandic time on April 11, reflecting time zone differences that create confusion about the exact timing for international audiences.
The splashdown will occur far off the southern California coast and not be visible from California, with a large exclusion zone for safety, according to major media reports. Debris, including the forward bay cover and parachutes, will fall into a keep-out zone in the water, and the public must stay away, according to major media reports. The USS John P. Murtha will assist with recovery operations, expected to take between an hour and an hour and a half. Recovery teams must initially remain at a safe distance while the crew safes the spacecraft before opening the hatch, according to major media reports.
The astronauts are returning with useful experiences for future space travels.
Once aboard the USS John P. Murtha, the astronauts will undergo post-mission medical evaluations before traveling back to shore to meet with an aircraft bound for NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston. The exact health status of the astronauts post-splashdown and any immediate medical concerns from the re-entry have not been disclosed. The astronauts are configuring the Orion capsule for re-entry by stowing equipment, securing cargo, and adjusting crew seats, according to major media reports. The crew reviews updated weather briefings, recovery force status, and entry timeline as part of preparations, according to major media reports.
Orion's thrusters ignite for a second return trajectory correction burn at 9:53 p.m. EDT to fine-tune the path toward Earth, according to major media reports. Amit Kshatriya, a NASA official, stated at a press conference that to every engineer and technician that touched this machine, tomorrow belongs to you, with the crew having done their part and now the team needing to do theirs. Real-time coverage continues throughout the mission on NASA's YouTube channel, with separate live streams of views from the Orion spacecraft as bandwidth allows, according to official sources. Daily mission status briefings are held live from Johnson Space Center in Houston through splashdown, except for Monday, April 6, due to lunar flyby activities, according to official sources.
It's so great to hear the Earth again.
The crew's kit included two professional digital SLR cameras, one fitted with a wide-angle lens, according to research sources. According to Barometern-OT, Jonas Appelberg described the astronauts returning with useful experiences for future space travels. According to www.bbc.com, Christina Koch described it as so great to hear the Earth again after the communication blackout. The full extent of the scientific data and observations collected during the lunar flyby, and when it will be released to the public, remains unknown.
Specific technical issues or anomalies encountered during the mission that could affect future Artemis missions have not been detailed. The detailed results of the systems tests conducted during the mission, and how they impact the timeline for Artemis III, are still being analyzed. The spacecraft reached a maximum distance from Earth, with NASA reporting 252,757 miles while BBC reported about 248,655 miles, creating a discrepancy in understanding the exact record achievement. Specific safety protocols and contingency plans in place for re-entry and splashdown, beyond the general details provided, have not been fully disclosed.
As we surpass the furthest distance humans have ever traveled from planet Earth, we do so in honoring the extraordinary efforts and feats of our predecessors in human space exploration.
Today, you've made history and made all America really proud, incredibly proud.
We saw sights that no human has ever seen, not even Apollo, and that was amazing for us.
A number of years ago we started this journey.. and we lost a loved one and there's a feature on a really neat place on the moon... at certain times of the Moon's transit around Earth we will be able to see this from Earth.