The four-member crew of NASA's Artemis II mission has successfully splashed down in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of California, following a 10-day lunar voyage that marks the first crewed mission to the moon in over half a century. US astronauts Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, and Christina Koch, along with Canadian astronaut Jeremy Hansen, returned aboard the Orion spacecraft named Integrity.

During the mission, the crew broke the record for venturing deeper into space than any other humans. Upon reentry, a six-minute communications blackout occurred as expected before the spacecraft entered Earth's atmosphere, with contact later restored. Mission commander Wiseman stated, "We have you loud and clear," adding, "What a journey, we are stable."

A critical test of the mission was the heat shield's performance. The Orion spacecraft's 5-meter-wide heat shield is designed to withstand temperatures up to 2,760 degrees Celsius. However, during the Artemis I mission in 2022, the shield did not melt as anticipated, with excess charring observed, differing from NASA's expectations. The agency expressed confidence for this mission, but failure could delay future crewed landings.

The successful return paves the way for the Artemis III mission, which could see humans back on the moon. Recovery efforts involved US Navy ships and divers to secure the spacecraft, with astronauts undergoing medical checks before returning to NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston. Questions about the mission's cost and who bears it remain, highlighting the economic challenges of space exploration.

Source: www.dw.com