After completing a nine-day manned test flight around the moon, NASA's Orion spacecraft is about to return to Earth carrying four Artemis II mission astronauts. The mission set a new record for the farthest distance humans have ever flown from the Earth, marking a key step forward in the United States' plan to return to the moon.
According to the plan, the Orion spacecraft will splashdown in the Pacific Ocean near San Diego on the west coast of the United States after completing the high-speed re-entry into the atmosphere. The estimated time is 5:07 pm Pacific Time (8:07 pm Eastern Time).
After splashdown, the U.S. Navy recovery force will be responsible for transferring the spacecraft and astronauts to the amphibious dock transport ship "USS John P. Murtha". The astronauts will receive initial physical examination and medical evaluation on the ship, and then return to land by helicopter.
The four astronauts on the Artemis II mission are mission commander Reid Wiseman, pilot Victor Glover, mission specialist Christina Koch, and Canadian Space Agency astronaut and mission specialist Jeremy Hansen.
The four people flew over the far side of the moon aboard the Orion spacecraft and conducted comprehensive tests of the manned system in the deep space environment to verify key technologies and processes for subsequent lunar landing missions.
According to NASA's assessment, the re-entry stage has always been regarded as the riskiest part of manned spaceflight. For Artemis II, this stage is particularly risky due to known design issues with the heat shield of the Orion spacecraft.
The heat shield is a key component that protects astronauts from the high temperatures when re-entering the atmosphere. However, during the unmanned Artemis I test flight in 2022, the heat shield experienced unexpected damage. This flaw was determined to be a design flaw in subsequent analysis.
This manned return will be the first severe test of the reliability of the improved heat shield, and is also regarded by the outside world as one of the key nodes that determine the success or failure of the Artemis project.
The public can watch the Artemis II mission's splashdown in real time through a variety of channels.
NASA will broadcast the entire process live on its official YouTube channel, and the footage is expected to cover the critical stages of re-entry, parachute deployment and deceleration to the spacecraft splashing down into the sea.
In addition, major U.S. television news channels, streaming media platforms such as Netflix, and other partner platforms listed in NASA’s official blog link will also broadcast relevant live broadcasts and special programs starting at 6:30 pm Eastern Time.
In the Artemis program, Artemis II is the first manned far-moon test mission after the unmanned test flight of Artemis I. The goal is to verify the overall performance and safety of the SLS large launch vehicle and the Orion spacecraft in the manned state without landing on the moon.
If the key stages of returning to the Earth and re-entering the atmosphere are successfully completed, it will lay the foundation for subsequent plans to implement manned orbiting and landing on the moon, as well as establishing long-term residency capabilities on the moon.