After a flight around the Moon, the mission’s 4 astronauts return to Earth at around 9:07 pm this Friday (April 10, 2026), off the coast of California, in the United States. The space journey of marked the return of humans to the Moon after more than 50 years.
The return process begins even before the Orion capsule enters the Earth’s atmosphere. Throughout the day, the crew will review essential procedures – such as trajectory and weather conditions – and organize themselves to ensure safety.
When it is about 20 minutes away from entering the atmosphere, Orion’s service module will be jettisoned. This is when the reentry process will begin at high speed – approximately 38,000 km/h – and in extreme temperatures, which can exceed 2,760 degrees Celsius. They will be incommunicado for 6 minutes.
After crossing the Earth’s atmosphere, the capsule will begin to open its parachutes in stages. They are:
- initially, the stabilization parachutes will be opened, at around 6.7 km altitude;
- Next, it will be the turn of the 3 main parachutes, responsible for reducing speed for landing in the ocean.
After the splashdown (as landing in the ocean is called), the astronauts will be removed from the capsule within 2 hours.
They will then be transported by helicopter to the military ship USS John P. Murtha, where they will be evaluated by doctors. Only then will the crew head to the continent to continue monitoring.
Read the full schedule:
- 8:33 pm: separation of the service module;
- 8:37 pm: last trajectory adjustment burn;
- 20:53: beginning of the communication blackout, caused by the plasma around the capsule;
- maximum speed of close to 38,400 km/h before entering the atmosphere;
- crew can face up to 3.9 times the force of gravity;
- 9:03 pm: opening of the stabilization parachutes (drogues), at approximately 6.7 km altitude;
- 9:04 pm: opening of the 3 main parachutes, approximately 1.8 km away;
- 9:07 pm: Landing in the Pacific Ocean.
ARTEMIS 2
The Artemis 2 mission, the first manned flight of NASA’s lunar program since 1972, was launched on April 1, 2026, from the Kennedy Space Center, in the USA. Four astronauts – Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, Christina Koch and Jeremy Hansen (Canadian Space Agency) – are on board Orion, on a flight around the Moon with a return to Earth in around 10 days.
The objective is to test Orion systems – including life support, communication and propulsion – and manned flight procedures around the Moon, in addition to evaluating the crew’s routine and performance in microgravity conditions. Astronauts will conduct experiments, systems monitoring and navigation maneuvers, ensuring the safety and effectiveness of future lunar missions.
Watch the moment of Artemis 2 launch (3min45s):
