NASA astronauts splash down after Artemis II mission; share insights at press conference, marking first crewed test of Orion spacecraft.
Mission Overview
NASA astronaut Christina Koch, a specialist on the Artemis II mission, was photographed hugging the Orion spacecraft during a brief stop at the well deck of USS John P. Murtha on April 11, 2026.
Crew and Splashdown
The crew, including NASA astronauts Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, and Christina Koch, along with CSA (Canadian Space Agency) astronaut Jeremy Hansen, splashed down in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of California on Friday, April 10.
Post-Splashdown Operations
Upon splashdown, a joint NASA and U.S. military team coordinated the extraction process from the spacecraft into open water. The astronauts were then transported via helicopter to USS John P. Murtha for initial medical checkups.
Return and Conference
On April 11, the astronauts returned to the agency’s Johnson Space Center in Houston where they held a press conference to discuss their experiences and share insights from the mission.
Future Missions
Artemis II marks the first crewed flight of the program and serves as a critical step toward the return to the lunar surface and future missions, including potential manned expeditions to Mars. Further details on the Artemis cadence are available for reference.
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