Never seen before images from the dark side of the moon, including an 'unbelievable' solar eclipse, continue to be downlinked from Orion by the Integrity crew, which held a news conference with reporters Wednesday night.

As NASA sends astronauts farther into space than any human has traveled in decades, the most dangerous part of the mission isn’t the launch… or even the trip around the moon.

On April 10, 2026, NASA’s Artemis 2 mission will see astronauts Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, Christina Koch, and Jeremy Hansen re-enter Earth’s atmosphere at a record-breaking speed of 23,840 mph. This incredible feat is part of the Artemis program’s ambitious goal to return astronauts to the Moon and beyond.

Orion will slam into Earth's atmosphere at more than 30 times the speed of sound, in what NASA expects to be the most demanding part of the Artemis II moon mission.

The Artemis II crew woke up 237,115 kilometres above Earth on Thursday. Commander Reid Wiseman, pilot Victor Glover and mission specialists Jeremy Hansen and Christina Koch began their last full day

Their journey back will culminate in a high-speed, hypersonic and extremely hot re-entry into Earth's atmosphere before their spacecraft splashes down in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of California at roughly 8 p.m. April 10 local time.

NASA's Artemis 2 crew are scheduled to return to Earth on April 10, 2026. Entry flight director Rick Henfling, Orion deputy program manager Debbie Korth and landing and recover director Liliana Villarreal explains the plan.

Over the past eight days, the world has watched four intrepid explorers leave Earth, fly around the Moon, and make spaceflight history. The moments of reverence, camaraderie, and bravery we’ve witnessed since the launch of NASA’s Artemis 2 mission have done wonders for my faith in humanity, but sadly, all good things must come to an end.

The Artemis II crew lifted off at 6:35 p.m. ET on Wednesday, April 1.