Artemis II astronauts hurtle home from moon toward splashdown - Reuters
Artemis II astronauts hurtle home from moon toward splashdown Reuters
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Notable Quotes
"I saw things I had never even imagined."
— Jeremy Hansen , Other
"We, most importantly, choose this moment to challenge this generation and the next to make sure this record is not long-lived."
— Jeremy Hansen , Other
"We have been waiting for this like you can’t imagine."
— Reid Wiseman , Other
"but I never thought it would be like this — it’s amazing."
— Christina Koch , Other
"I’m so happy that we are back in space together."
— Jessica Meir , Academic
"The specialness and preciousness of that really is emphasized when viewing the home planet from the moon."
— Christina Koch , Other
"Just for me personally, that was kind of the pinnacle moment of the mission for me."
— Reid Wiseman , Other
"We lost a loved one. Her name was Carroll, the spouse of Reid, the mother of Katie and Ellie."
— Jeremy Hansen , Other
"It was definitely a very emotional moment. I don’t think most of us knew it was coming."
— Ryan Watkins , Other
Key People
Carroll Wiseman was a neonatal nurse and the late wife of Reid Wiseman.
NASA astronaut also part of the Artemis 2 mission.
Astronaut from the Canadian Space Agency who flew on Artemis 2.
An astronaut with NASA who is part of the Crew-12 mission to the ISS.
Former Apollo 13 commander who recorded a message for the Artemis II crew.
Lead scientist for the Artemis II mission.
NASA astronaut who flew on the Artemis 2 mission.
Ryan Watkins is a NASA lunar scientist involved with Artemis II.
NASA astronaut who participated in the Artemis 2 mission.
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<a href="https://news.google.com/rss/articles/CBMiogFBVV95cUxQUlo4bTVBVXhKMWx2azNjUmdlaFotdTFmRXh6VXBiWno0LTFPSVlnY0cySWc0YVB5OUh3ZWtGQjRidjVPNXdTNkJHZFVNcDZESS1kMXNDTng3bzN5b0VPZVVUbTc3UlFLTGJoSUtmQmN6R0l4bmZBMzBURENfZUVnbEwyc25JcDEtNjJqX0RZUy1ZWWhlbi1Pam1nOGlHTnpiZXc?oc=5" target="_blank">Artemis II astronauts hurtle home from moon toward splashdown</a> <font color="#6f6f6f">Reuters</font>
As Artemis II astronauts near Earth after their historic lunar flyby, they reflect on the emotional and scientific magnitude of the journey, becoming the most distant humans in history and witnessing a rare total solar eclipse from space.
Artemis 2 successfully completed a groundbreaking lunar flyby on April 6, 2026, marking NASA's first crewed mission beyond low Earth orbit since Apollo 17 in 1972, reaching a new human spaceflight distance record of 252,756 miles from Earth.
During their historic Artemis II mission, astronauts continued a touching Apollo-era tradition by naming lunar features after loved ones, including proposing names for two small craters: 'Integrity' and 'Carroll'.
The Artemis II astronauts made history by conducting the first-ever moonship-to-spaceship radio call with the International Space Station while returning to Earth, sharing their experiences and transmitting over 50 gigabytes of data from their lunar journey.
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