Nine days after launching from Kennedy Space Center in Florida to set off on a historic flyby around the moon, the four astronauts who are part of the Artemis II mission are set to splash down on Friday, April 10.
The return home for Artemis II crew — NASA astronauts Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, Christina Koch and Canadian Space Agency astronaut Jeremy Hansen — comes after they traveled farther from Earth than anyone ever has.
They captured images of the moon’s far side, which hadn’t been done before in-person, while their Orion capsule circled the moon.
Here’s what to know about their homecoming:
When do the astronauts come back to Earth?
The astronauts are returning to Earth on Friday, April 10, four days after their fly-by of the moon and completing their 694,481-mile journey.
When is the Artemis II splashdown?
The Orion will splash down in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of San Diego at about 7:07 p.m. CT. A combined NASA and U.S. military recovery team will welcome the Artemis II crew home.
Recovery teams will retrieve the crew within two hours of the splashdown and assist them onto an inflatable raft before they’re taken by helicopters to the USS John P. Murtha. The astronauts will then undergo post‑mission medical evaluations. A awaiting aircraft will take them to NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston, NASA says on its website.
Watch Artemis II splashdown
NASA will have coverage beginning at 5:30 p.m. CT on its YouTube page and NASA+, the space agency’s streaming service.
Other coverage will be on Amazon Prime, Apple TV, Netflix, HBO Max, Discovery+, Peacock and Roku. Major TV networks will also carry the splashdown.
When does Artemis II come back
Artemis II is on its way back to Earth after its nine-day mission around the moon, a first-of-its-kind exploration for humans toward the Moon since 1972.
According to NASA, the Artemis II crew began the final phase of their journey home with some music.
“Run to the Water” by Live, which was selected by the crew, and “Free” by Zac Brown Band, played as they shifted into full re-entry and splashdown preparations, NASA said on its website at 11:38 a.m. When they woke up, they were 61,326 miles from Earth.
Where is Artemis II now?
NASA has an Artemis II tracker online and on its mobile app that anyone can follow.
Viewers can see the mission elapsed time, the current velocity distance, distance from earth and distance to the moon.
As of 3:25 p.m., the Orion is just over 32,200 miles from Earth and traveling at 7,700 mph.
How long was the Artemis II mission?
It went from Wednesday, April 1 to Friday, April 10.
Artemis II moon launch to splashdown: What to know:
NASA explains the mission:
Watch NASA’s Artemis II moon mission
Watch a live feed of the Artemis II splashdown:
Artemis II photos
See the mission from the takeoff to the photos the astronauts captured of the moon:
This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: When does Artemis 2 come back? What to know about the splashdown time
Reporting by Christopher Kuhagen, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
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