NASA’s Artemis II splashed into the Pacific Ocean during a “perfect” landing for its lunar mission

After 10 days, the four astronauts on the Orion spacecraft returned to Earth and their mission around the Moon was successfully completed.

As part of NASA’s Artemis II mission, Integrity, the crew’s spacecraft name, splashed into the Pacific Ocean off the coast of San Diego, California at 5:07 p.m. Pacific Time, according to NASA. The four crew members on board — three Americans and one Canadian — were all in “green” (or safe and sound) status after Orion’s “perfect” landing.

The crew consisted of Commander Reid Wiseman, Pilot Victor Glover, and Mission Specialists Christina Koch and Jeremy Hansen. From launch to splashdown, the quartet spent more than nine days in space (NASA rounded up and called it a 10-day mission).

Artemis II was NASA’s first lunar orbit mission in more than 50 years. The crew traveled further from Earth than humans have ever been before – reaching a distance of approximately 252,760 miles from our planet. During their journey, the crew took the Moon into orbit photos From the flight of never-before-seen parts of the surface and even witnessed a total solar eclipse. They identified new craters, to name one After Wiseman’s wife Carroll, who died of cancer in 2020.

“These were ambassadors for the stars we sent up there,” NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman said after the landing. “I can’t imagine a better crew. It was a perfect mission.”

Isaacman, a commercial astronaut on two special orbital missions, also went to the X to celebrate the mission, noting that America is back to work, and that there is more to come.

“America gets back to sending astronauts to the moon and bringing them home safely” He wrote in Xlater credited the entire NASA workforce. “This was a test mission, the first crewed flight of SLS and Orion, pushing harder than ever into the unforgiving environment of space, and that was a real risk. They accepted that risk for everyone we have to learn as we return to the lunar surface, build a lunar base and prepare for what’s to come, and the exciting missions that follow.”