What comes next after a successful mission
They are safely home!
The Artemis II crew splashed down off the coast of California tonight to end a 10-day mission that took the four astronauts around the far side of the moon and farther from Earth than any human has been.
Commander Reid Wiseman, mission pilot Victor Glover, and mission specialists Christina Koch and Jeremy Hansen — now the first Canadian to fly to the moon — landed in the Pacific Ocean right on time at 8:07 p.m. ET.
This mission achieved a lot. Clearly, the heat shield that some were concerned about wasn’t an issue this time. The new re-entry procedures seem to have worked, protecting Hansen, Wiseman, Glover and Koch.
The analysis of how the Orion spacecraft performed will likely begin soon in order to prepare for Artemis III and Artemis IV missions.
Artemis III will dock with either a Blue Origin or SpaceX lunar lander that will shepherd astronauts to the lunar surface in the Artemis IV mission.
Aside from some learning curves and issues (I’m looking at you, space toilet), this mission will undoubtedly be considered a great success.
