Artemis II Soujourn A New Era Of Lunar Exploration: Amit Kshatriya

HOUSTON, TX– The four astronauts who ventured deeper into space than any humans before them returned safely to Earth on April 10, splashing down in the Pacific Ocean after the Artemis II mission, a milestone seen as advancing humanity’s return to the moon and future journeys beyond.

Millions watched the landing around the world as the crew completed a nine-day, one-hour mission that took them 404,409 kilometers from Earth, looping around the moon and setting a new record for the farthest distance travelled by humans from the planet.

“What a journey,” said Artemis II commander Reid Wiseman after touchdown.

The crew comprised three Americans – Wiseman, Christina Koch , and Victor Glover – along with Canadian astronaut Jeremy Hansen.

At Houston Johnson Space Center, NASA Associate Administrator Amit Kshatriya said the mission marked a renewed era of lunar exploration.

“Fifty-three years ago, humanity left the moon. This time we return to stay,” he said.

Next year, Artemis III is scheduled to launch with a crew that will test Orion for docking with a commercial spacecraft for a moon landing.

In 2028, humans are expected to land on the moon again in the Artemis IV mission, with further lunar missions planned annually thereafter.

After building a moon base, NASA’s longer-term ambition is to send astronauts to Mars.

The Orion spacecraft launched on April 1 from Kennedy Space Center, travelled around the moon in a figure-eight trajectory, and returned to Earth at a maximum speed of 39,458 kilometers per hour before parachutes deployed for splashdown near San Diego.

Its heat shield, which had raised concerns after damage seen on the uncrewed Artemis I mission, withstood temperatures of 2,750 degrees Celsius during re-entry.

Navy divers entered the capsule after landing to check the crew’s condition. Wiseman reported the crew status as “Green”, meaning healthy.

The astronauts were then airlifted to the amphibious landing ship USS John Murtha for further medical checks before returning to Houston.

The Artemis II crew also dealt with a toilet malfunction, a Microsoft Outlook software issue and a communications glitch during the mission, all of which were resolved.

Before launch, the mission had been postponed twice because of a liquid hydrogen leak, a helium flow glitch and hatch pressurization issues. (IANS)