Artemis II Splashdown and Recovery Operations

NASA's Orion spacecraft carrying Artemis II Commander Reid Wiseman, Pilot Victor Glover, and Mission Specialist Christina Koch from NASA, along with Mission Specialist Jeremy Hansen from the CSA (Canadian Space Agency), floats in the Pacific Ocean near San Diego, California, at 5:07 p.m. PDT, (8:07 p.m. EDT) on Friday, April 10, 2026. NASA’s Landing and Recovery team and U.S. Navy personnel aboard an inflatable raft, called the front porch, and a H60-S Seahawk helicopter hovers above to communicate Orion’s location back to USS John P. Murtha to coordinate efforts to secure the spacecraft in the well deck of the ship. The Artemis II test flight launched on Wednesday, April 1, from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida to begin its 10-day journey around the Moon for scientific discovery, economic benefits, and to build on our foundation for the first crewed missions to Mars.