Overview
- The Orion capsule, which is targeting an 8:07 p.m. EDT Friday splashdown off San Diego, is being readied as the crew stows gear and reviews entry procedures.
- NASA officials warn there is no backup if the thermal protection fails, a concern sharpened by Artemis I’s heat shield that cracked and shed more material than expected before engineers changed how Avcoat is applied.
- Flight teams shifted from Artemis I’s skip entry to a more direct, lofted path to manage heating and guidance, while controllers track winds, waves and spacecraft systems for any last‑minute adjustments.
- The four astronauts—Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, Christina Koch and Jeremy Hansen—set a new distance record and reported far‑side lunar observations, including a solar eclipse and an Earthset, while sending high‑resolution images home.
- Recovery forces plan to hoist the crew aboard the U.S. Navy ship USS John P. Murtha for medical checks before transport to Houston, with procedures in place to handle communications blackout and ocean conditions during retrieval.