Desk Correspondent , Washington DC - NASA's Artemis II mission has triumphed with a flawless splashdown in the Pacific Ocean, marking humanity's first crewed lunar trip in over 50 years. The four astronauts, Commander Reid Wiseman, Pilot Victor Glover, Mission Specialist Christina Koch, and CSA astronaut Jeremy Hansen exited their Orion capsule unharmed after a 10 day journey that broke distance records.

Launched on April 1, 2026, aboard the Space Launch System (SLS), Orion executed a free return trajectory, looping the Moon's far side without landing and traveling farther from Earth than any humans since 1972. The crew conducted tests of Orion's systems, received wake up calls with Apollo era music, and hit re entry speeds up to 25,000 mph before a textbook splashdown at 5:07 p.m. PDT. Recovery teams from the USS John P. Murtha airlifted the astronauts post splashdown, confirming their excellent condition after the 10 day mission dubbed a success by NASA. This paves the way for Artemis III's planned lunar landing, despite challenges ahead.

Artemis II validates NASA's deep space capabilities, boosting international collaboration with Canada and setting records for distance and speed in human spaceflight.