The four astronauts on the Orion spacecraft have returned to Earth after a successful mission around the Moon. Named Integrity, their spacecraft was part of NASA’s Artemis II mission and landed in the Pacific Ocean near San Diego, California, at 5:07 p.m. Pacific Time. The crew — composed of three Americans and one Canadian — was in good condition following the Orion craft’s successful landing.
The team included Commander Reid Wiseman, pilot Victor Glover, and mission specialists Christina Koch and Jeremy Hansen. The mission lasted just over nine days, though NASA refers to it as a 10-day mission.
Artemis II marked NASA’s first Moon orbit mission in over 50 years. The crew reached a distance of approximately 252,760 miles from Earth, the farthest any humans have traveled. During their journey, they orbited the Moon, capturing photos of previously unseen surface areas and witnessing a total solar eclipse. They also identified new craters, naming one after Wiseman’s late wife, Carroll.
“These were the ambassadors to the stars that we sent out there,” said Jared Isaacman, NASA’s administrator. “I can’t imagine a better crew. It was a perfect mission.”