The astronauts on the Artemis-2 mission are back on Earth, with their Orion capsule landing in the Pacific on Saturday. Upon arrival, the capsule was slowed down using a system of eleven parachutes, descending from about 480 km/h to an initial speed of 30 km/h for water recovery. Reports indicate that the four astronauts are safe.
Artemis 2 launched on April 1st, marking the first crewed lunar flight since Apollo 17 in 1972. Although the mission did not land on the Moon, the spacecraft successfully orbited it. This mission served as a preliminary test for the Orion spacecraft and its launcher, the Space Launch System (SLS), in preparation for future crewed Moon missions.
The objective of Artemis 2 was to test all the systems and procedures necessary for crewed lunar missions under real flight conditions. During the mission, systems such as navigation, communication, life support, propulsion, thermal protection, approach maneuvers, as well as launch, flight, and reentry sequences, and the recovery of the spacecraft, were tested. Additionally, data were collected regarding radiation, loads, acoustics, and thermal environments.
The Artemis-2 crew also set a record for the greatest distance from Earth ever reached by humans, traveling 406,765 kilometers; this surpassed the record set by the Apollo 13 mission in 1970 by approximately 6,600 kilometers.