`Splashdown success` Artemis II crew back after historic lunar mission

NASAs Artemis II astronauts splashed down safely in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of San Diego at 8:07 p. m. Eastern time on Friday, completing a historic 10-day mission around the Moon and marking humanitys return to deep space after more than 50 years.

The Orion spacecraft carrying NASA astronauts Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover and Christina Koch, along with Canadian astronaut Jeremy Hansen, made a parachute-assisted landing as recovery teams moved in to retrieve the crew, NASA said in official updates.

SPLASHDOWN! NASA said, confirming the crew was back on Earth after completing the mission, reported IANS. What a journey, Wiseman said moments after landing during a livestream. We are stable one. Four green crewmembers.

The mission marked the first crewed test flight of NASAs Orion spacecraft and Space Launch System rocket, sending astronauts beyond low Earth orbit, around the Moon and back.

Artemis crew completes historic lunar flyby, sets records and milestones According to reporting by Smithsonian Magazine, the crew completed a nearly 10-day journey and splashed down off the California coast, marking the first time humans have travelled near the Moon in more than half a century and setting the stage for future lunar missions.

During the mission, the astronauts travelled as far as 252,756 miles from Earth, breaking the previous distance record set during the Apollo 13 mission, and observed the Moons far side and multiple lunar surface targets, including ancient basins and crater, reported IANS.

The flight also marked several milestones: Glover became the first Black astronaut to reach the Moons vicinity, Koch the first woman, and Hansen the first Canadian. The journey was not without technical challenges.

Minor issues, including problems with the spacecrafts toilet system and unusual odours inside the cabin, were reported during the mission, though they did not affect its outcome, Smithsonian Magazine noted.