NASA’s Artemis II Mission Concludes as Orion Capsule Returns to Earth

• April 11, 2026

NASA’s Artemis II Mission Concludes with Successful Orion Splashdown

The Artemis II mission, a key step in NASA’s efforts to return humans to the Moon, reached its conclusion as the Orion spacecraft completed its journey and returned safely to Earth. After spending over nine days in space, the capsule carrying astronauts splashed down in the Pacific Ocean on April 10, near San Diego, California.

Launched with the objective of performing a crewed lunar flyby, Artemis II marked an essential milestone in the agency’s Artemis program, designed to pave the way for future lunar exploration and establish a sustainable human presence beyond Earth. The Orion capsule’s return marks a successful completion of the planned mission profile that included orbiting around the Moon.

The spacecraft re-entered Earth’s atmosphere and executed a targeted splashdown at approximately 8:07 p.m. Eastern Time on April 10, 2026, enabling prompt recovery operations. This marks a significant achievement in the spacecraft’s design to safely transport astronauts on deep space missions.

The Artemis program is NASA’s flagship initiative aiming to advance human spaceflight capabilities beyond low Earth orbit. With Artemis II’s mission complete, the focus now shifts to building on the data and experience gathered for upcoming crewed lunar landings and other ambitious exploration objectives.

NASA’s Artemis II spacecraft completed its lunar flyby and safely splashed down near San Diego after over nine days in space.