Artemis II Crew Completes Lunar Flyby Mission and Prepares for Earth Return

The Artemis II crew, consisting of four astronauts, has finished its lunar flyby and is returning to Earth aboard the Orion spacecraft. The mission launched on September 14, 2024, and involved orbiting the Moon without landing. Splashdown is expected off the coast of San Diego at approximately 20:00 EDT on Friday, September 27, 2024.

The crew broke the record for the farthest human travel from Earth on Monday, September 23, 2024, at 13:56 EDT, reaching a distance of about 248,655 miles, surpassing the Apollo 13 record from 1970. During the flyby, the astronauts viewed the Moon's far side, which is not visible from Earth, including craters and lava plains.

This marked the first human observation of certain areas on that surface.

a news conference on Wednesday evening from NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston, the crew described their activities.

Commander Reid Wiseman noted the 40 minutes of communication blackout with Earth as a period for scientific observations and crew reflection. The team shared maple cookies and discussed their location during that time. Astronaut Victor Glover highlighted the data and images collected, stating the crew would process experiences over the coming days.

Pilot Christina Koch described the mission's camaraderie as a key aspect she would miss. Mission specialist Jeremy Hansen participated in naming a lunar crater after Wiseman's late wife, Carroll, who died in 2020. > "We have to get back.

“— Victor Glover, September 25, 2024 (BBC)”

The crew reported tech malfunctions during the mission, though specifics were not detailed in available accounts. Glover described viewing a lunar eclipse from beyond the Moon's far side as the greatest gift of the mission. Wiseman identified the crater naming as his pinnacle emotional moment, which moved other crew members.

The astronauts received news updates from family members, whom Wiseman described as biased sources on public perception of the mission. The return journey includes checks, experiments, and a re-entry at nearly 25,000 mph to test the capsule's heat shield and recovery systems.

President Donald Trump spoke with the crew after the flyby, congratulating them on the achievement.

II is NASA's first crewed mission under the Artemis program, aimed at returning humans to the Moon. The Orion spacecraft traveled around the Moon's far side, an area previously imaged only by satellites. The mission lasted under 10 days and focused on testing systems for future lunar landings.

The crew consists of Reid Wiseman as commander, Victor Glover as pilot, and mission specialists Christina Koch and Jeremy Hansen. This flight follows uncrewed tests and builds toward Artemis III, planned for a lunar landing. The mission's success verifies key technologies for sustained lunar exploration.