Overview
- Orion, which splashed down Friday in the Pacific, was recovered by NASA and U.S. Navy teams and ferried to Southern California aboard the USS John P. Murtha.
- The crew flew past the Moon, captured planned far‑side views, lost contact behind the lunar globe as expected, and reached a human distance record of about 406,771 kilometers.
- Reentry used a two‑step atmospheric “skip” that bled speed and sharpened targeting, placing splashdown within roughly 1.8 miles of the aim point for a faster pickup.
- The flight validated life support, navigation and propulsion on Orion, with the ESA‑built service module from Airbus providing the power and thrust, and Argentina’s ATENEA CubeSat relaying deep‑space data after release.
- Following an emotional Saturday press conference at Johnson Space Center, NASA outlined next steps that include in‑orbit docking trials with commercial landers, on‑orbit refueling demonstrations, and a staged return to the lunar surface starting in 2028.