Sunday, April 12, 2026

NASA Artemis II astronauts return from Moon mission

NASA's Artemis II mission successfully returned four astronauts — Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, Christina Koch, and Canadian Jeremy Hansen — to Earth after a 10-day journey around the Moon, the first crewed lunar mission in more than 50 years. The Orion spacecraft splashed down in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of San Diego on April 10, 2026, following a high-speed re-entry that tested the capsule's heat shield and systems. The mission is considered a critical milestone for NASA's broader Artemis program, which aims to eventually land astronauts on the lunar surface.