The Orion crew set course for Earth after orbiting the Moon
The four astronauts on the Artemis II mission have successfully completed a historic phase of their journey by performing a maneuver around the far side of the Moon.
During this phase, the Orion spacecraft traveled 400,000 kilometers from Earth, officially breaking the record for the farthest human flight into deep space.
According to NASA, the spacecraft is currently using the Moon’s gravity as a “space slingshot.”
This gravitational maneuver allows the spacecraft to gain the necessary acceleration to return home without additional fuel consumption.
An emotional moment of the mission was a speech by astronaut Christina Koch, who emphasized the global goal of the research.
“When we began this flight to the Moon, I said that we are not leaving Earth, but choosing it,” she noted, adding that future scientific outposts and the space industry will ultimately serve as an inspiration for humanity.
The crew consists of experienced specialists: Commander Reid Wiseman, Pilot Victor Glover, and specialists Christina Koch and Jeremy Hansen.
The return journey will take about four more days, during which the spacecraft’s systems will operate in maximum test mode before re-entry.
The capsule with the astronauts is expected to splash down in the Pacific Ocean near the coast of California on Friday, April 10, 2026.
As a reminder, the Artemis II astronauts lost contact with Earth while near the Moon.
The Orion spacecraft, with four astronauts on board, officially crossed the boundary of the Moon’s gravitational sphere.
The Artemis II mission crew has reached the halfway point to the Moon and sent back the first photos of Earth from deep space. This is the first human flight beyond Earth’s orbit since 1972.
