Artemis II Crew Returns Safely After Pacific Ocean Splashdown

The Artemis II mission concluded with the Orion spacecraft landing in the Pacific Ocean, marking the end of a 10-day journey for its four-person crew.

Splashdown took place off the coast of San Diego, California, at approximately 5:07 p.m. PDT on April 10, 2026. The mission began with a launch on April 1, 2026, and ended with the safe return of the astronauts to Earth.

The crew consisted of Commander Reid Wiseman, Pilot Victor Glover, Mission Specialist Christina Koch from NASA, and Mission Specialist Jeremy Hansen representing the Canadian Space Agency. The Orion capsule carried the astronauts throughout the mission and brought them back to the designated recovery zone in the Pacific Ocean.

After splashdown, recovery teams reached the capsule and extracted the crew within two hours. The astronauts were then transported to the USS John P. Murtha, where they underwent medical evaluations as part of the standard post-mission process.

What the numbers show

• The mission lasted approximately 10 days from April 1 to April 10, 2026
• Splashdown occurred at 5:07 p.m. PDT (8:07 p.m. EDT) on April 10
• Four astronauts participated in the Artemis II mission

This recovery marked the first time since the Apollo-Soyuz Test Project in 1975 that a crewed NASA mission was retrieved by the U.S. Navy. The use of naval assets for recovery operations followed established protocols for astronaut safety and post-flight assessment.

The Orion spacecraft, designed for deep space missions, completed its assigned objectives during the flight. The mission included activities to test systems and procedures in preparation for future lunar expeditions.

Following their extraction, the crew was flown by helicopter from the recovery site to the USS John P. Murtha. Medical staff on board conducted evaluations to ensure the astronauts’ well-being after their return from space.

The Artemis II mission is part of NASA’s ongoing efforts to conduct crewed missions beyond low Earth orbit. The procedures followed during splashdown and recovery align with established safety and operational guidelines for human spaceflight missions.

* This article is based on publicly available information at the time of writing.