Artemis Ii's Moon-traveling Astronauts Return Home To Cheers After A Record-breaking Trip

HOUSTON — Still marveling complete their satellite mission, nan Artemis II astronauts received a thunderous invited location Saturday from hundreds who took portion successful NASA’s lunar comeback that group a grounds for heavy abstraction travel.

The unit of 4 arrived astatine Ellington Field adjacent NASA’s Johnson Space Center and Mission Control, flying successful from San Diego, wherever they splashed down conscionable offshore nan evening before.

After a speedy reunion pinch their spouses and children, nan astronauts took nan hangar stage, surrounded by abstraction halfway workers and different invited guests. The crowd included NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman, formation board and nan motorboat director, Orion capsule and exploration strategy managers, high-ranking subject officers, nan abstraction agency’s full blue-suited astronaut corps and moreover retired ones, and more.

“Welcome home, Artemis II,” Isaacman announced.

Cmdr. Reid Wiseman and his U.S.-Canadian crew’s homecoming was poignant: They returned to their Houston location guidelines connected nan 56th day of nan motorboat of Apollo 13, whose “Houston, we’ve had a problem” refrain turned a near-disaster into triumph.

During Artemis II’s astir 10-day mission, they voyaged deeper into abstraction than nan satellite explorers of decades past and captured views of nan lunar acold broadside ne'er witnessed earlier by quality eyes. A full star eclipse added to nan cosmic wonder.

On their record-breaking flyby, nan astronauts reached a maximum 252,756 miles from Earth earlier hanging a U-turn down nan moon, eclipsing Apollo 13‘s region record.

The ngo besides revealed a caller broadside of our satellite pinch an Earthset photo, showing our Blue Marble mounting down nan gray, pockmarked moon. The image echoed nan celebrated Earthrise changeable from 1968 taken by nan world’s first lunar visitors, Apollo 8.

Despite nan accomplishments, Artemis II astronauts had to contend pinch a much mundane problem — a malfunctioning abstraction toilet. NASA promised a creation hole earlier longer moon-landing missions.

Wiseman, aviator Victor Glover, Christina Koch and Canada’s Jeremy Hansen were nan first humans to alert to nan satellite since Apollo 17 closed retired NASA’s first exploration era successful 1972. Twenty-four astronauts flew to nan satellite during Apollo, including 12 moonwalkers.

Apollo 13 Cmdr. Jim Lovell — who besides flew connected Apollo 8 — shouted nan Artemis II unit connected successful a wake-up connection recorded earlier he died past summer.

It was important for NASA that Artemis II spell well. The abstraction agency is already preparing for adjacent year’s Artemis III, which will spot a caller unit believe docking its capsule pinch a lunar lander successful orbit astir Earth. That will group nan shape for nan all-important Artemis IV satellite landing successful 2028, erstwhile 2 astronauts effort a touchdown adjacent nan lunar southbound pole.

Dunn writes for nan Associated Press. The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from nan Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Department of Science Education and nan Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. The AP is solely responsible for each content.