Artemis II Astronauts Aboard USS John P. Murtha

The first astronauts to travel to the Moon in more than half a century are back on Earth after a record-setting mission aboard NASA’s Artemis II test flight.

NASA astronauts Reid Wiseman (commander), Christina Koch (mission specialist), Victor Glover (pilot), and CSA astronaut Jeremy Hansen (mission specialist) pose for a group photo in the well deck of the USS John P. Murtha after inspecting the Orion spacecraft on Saturday, April 11, 2026.

The crew splashed down in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of California on Friday, April 10, at 5:07 p.m. PDT (8:07 p.m. EDT), marking the completion of their Artemis II mission.

After splashdown in the Pacific Ocean, the astronauts were met by a combined NASA and U.S. military team that assisted them out of the spacecraft in open water and transported them via helicopter to the USS John P. Murtha for initial medical checkouts. 

Artemis II is the first crewed flight aboard NASA’s human deep space capabilities, paving the way for future lunar surface missions.