![Artemis II Mission Accomplished: Crew Re-Entry Updates, Splash down and Safe return home [Watch Videos]](https://indiainternationaltimes.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/splash-1.jpg "Artemis II Mission Accomplished: Crew Re-Entry Updates, Splash down and Safe return home [Watch Videos]")
Artemis II launched aboard NASA’s Space Launch System, carrying four astronauts in the Orion spacecraft on a deep-space mission beyond low Earth orbit. The crew conducted system checks and performed a historic lunar flyby, travelling thousands of kilometres beyond the Moon before beginning their return journey. After completing a roughly 10-day mission, Orion safely re-entered […]
At 2:53 p.m. EDT, the Orion spacecraft ignited its thrusters for 8 seconds, producing a change in velocity of 4.2 feet-per-second and pushing Artemis II toward Earth. NASA astronauts Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, Christina Koch and CSA (Canadian Space Agency) astronaut Jeremy Hansen reviewed procedures and monitored the spacecraft’s configuration and navigation data. The crew continues to wrap up cabin configuration for re-entry and move into their entry checklist. Splashdown is targeted for 8:07 p.m. EDT (5:07 p.m. PDT) off the coast of San […]
The Artemis II crew — NASA astronauts Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, Christina Koch and CSA (Canadian Space Agency) astronaut Jeremy Hansen — began the final phase of their journey home to the songs “Run to the Water” by Live, selected by the crew, and “Free” by Zac Brown Band, as they prepared for their third return trajectory correction burn and shifted into full […]
Thrusters Fire To Steer Orion Home: At 10:53 p.m. EDT, the Orion spacecraft executed a brief nine-second thruster burn, increasing its velocity by 5.3 feet per second and nudging the Artemis II crew further along their return path to Earth. With the maneuver complete, the crew has now crossed the halfway mark on their journey […]
Dan Florez is one of the NASA test directors for the Exploration Ground Systems Program. The test directors are a group of 20 engineers at the agency’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida who plan and execute integrated testing for Artemis missions. Their work includes developing timelines and procedures for launch countdown, propellant loading, emergency egress, […]
The acquisition of the radio frequency signal from the Artemis II crewed mission to the Moon by NASA’s Deep Space Network (DSN) is indicated by the peak in the data signal shown below on the computer screen. Soon after the mission’s launch on April 1, 2026, at 6:35 p.m. EDT, NASA’s Near Space Network led […]
Blanca Renteria, operations chief for the Artemis Deep Space Network (DSN), monitored incoming data from the Space Flight Operations Facility at Jet Propulsion Laboratory shortly after Artemis II lifted off on April 1, 2026. The launch took place at 6:35 p.m. EDT from Kennedy Space Center, with mission control teams quickly transitioning to deep space […]
A Ritual Before Liftoff A container of “lucky peanuts” was placed above workstations inside the Space Flight Operations Facility at Jet Propulsion Laboratory ahead of the Artemis II launch on April 1, 2026. The quirky ritual—eating peanuts before major mission events—has long been observed at JPL, seen by teams as a symbol of good fortune […]
Mission Control Comes Alive In California Inside the Space Flight Operations Facility at Jet Propulsion Laboratory, the Artemis II mission took center stage on April 1, 2026, moments before liftoff. The central display featured the mission patch, while adjacent screens mapped real-time activity across the agency’s Deep Space Network (DSN), with active antennas highlighted as […]
Final Day In Orbit On their final full day in space, the Artemis II crew began the morning with “Lonesome Drifter” by Charley Crockett as their spacecraft closed in on Earth from a distance of 147,337 miles. Astronauts Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, and Christina Koch of NASA, along with Jeremy Hansen of the Canadian Space […]
NASA’s Artemis II mission is drawing support from a pair of nearly identical control rooms in Alabama, each playing a distinct role in keeping astronauts safe and operations on track as the crew heads back to Earth, Friday, April 10. At the National Aeronautics and Space Administration’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, two facilities, […]
Artemis II moved into another critical phase of its return journey as the crew began Flight Day 8 with a focus on testing systems and preparing for reentry. Aboard the Orion spacecraft, named Integrity, the four astronauts woke to music and a message from the Canadian Space Agency. At the start of the day, they […]
Astronauts aboard the International Space Station spoke with the Artemis II crew on April 8 following their lunar flyby, marking a rare ship-to-ship exchange between deep space and low Earth orbit. The Artemis II crew is returning to Earth after circling the Moon, while Expedition 74 astronauts continued biomedical research and mission training aboard the […]
NASA’s Artemis II crew began their return journey to Earth on April 7 after completing a historic lunar flyby a day earlier. The crew, traveling aboard the Orion spacecraft about 236,000 miles from Earth, exited the Moon’s gravitational influence and initiated return procedures. The mission includes a call with International Space Station astronauts, scientific debriefs, […]
![President Trump Calls Artemis II Astronauts before crew wraps up historic Lunar Flyby [Watch Videos]](https://indiainternationaltimes.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/trump-artemis.jpg "President Trump Calls Artemis II Astronauts before crew wraps up historic Lunar Flyby [Watch Videos]")
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration launched four astronauts on April 2 from Kennedy Space Center in Florida aboard the Artemis II mission. The crew is set for a 10-day test flight around the Moon, marking the first human lunar flyby since the Apollo era. The mission aims to validate spacecraft systems and pave the […]
Live lunar flyby updates for NASA’s Artemis II mission will be published on this page. All times are Eastern. 9:35 p.m. The Artemis II crew has completed the mission’s lunar observation period and is now beginning the return trip home. On Tuesday, April 7, Orion will exit the lunar sphere of influence at approximately 1:25 p.m., at a distance of […]
The four astronauts aboard NASA’s Artemis II mission woke up to a milestone few humans have experienced. Less than 19,000 miles from the Moon, they began final preparations for a lunar flyby that will mark humanity’s return to deep space after more than five decades. Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, Christina Koch, and Canadian astronaut Jeremy […]
Astronauts aboard Artemis II continue their workday aboard the Orion spacecraft, testing survival suits and preparing for a lunar flyby set for Monday, April 6. The crew is set to enter the Moon’s gravitational influence just after midnight and execute a key trajectory correction burn later in the day. Final science targets, including major lunar […]
Astronauts aboard Artemis II began Flight Day 5 by testing their Orion survival suits as the Orion spacecraft closed to within 65,235 miles of the Moon. The activities include a full suit evaluation, a planned trajectory correction burn, and entry into the Moon’s gravitational sphere of influence. The mission is transitioning into its final approach […]
Astronauts aboard Artemis II completed a 41-minute manual piloting test of the Orion spacecraft on Flight Day 4, taking turns controlling the vehicle in deep space. The demonstration, carried out tested thruster modes and maneuvering capabilities as the crew also reviewed targets for an upcoming lunar flyby. The mission continues on a stable trajectory toward […]