Houston Still in awe of their lunar mission, the Artemis II astronauts received a roaring welcome home Saturday from hundreds of people participating in NASA’s lunar return that set a record for deep space travel.
The crew of four arrived at Ellington Field, near NASA’s Johnson Space Center and Mission Control, flying from San Diego, where they had landed at sea the day before.
After a quick reunion with their spouses and children, Commander Reid Wiseman, pilot Victor Glover, Christina Koch and Canadian Jeremy Hansen took the hangar stage, surrounded by space center workers and other guests. They were introduced by NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman, one of the first to greet them aboard the recovery ship on Friday.
“Ladies and gentlemen, the crew of the Artemis II,” Isaacman said to a standing ovation.
Among the jubilant crowd were flight directors and the launch director, those responsible for the Orion capsule and the exploration system, high-ranking military officials, members of Congress, the entire corps of the space agency’s blue-suited astronauts and even some retirees, and much more.
1 / 29 | This was the return of the Orion capsule to Earth. Artemis II mission pilot Victor Glover descends from the recovery helicopter onto a Navy ship in the Pacific off the coast of California. -NASA
Their return home was poignant: They returned to the NASA base in Houston on the 56th anniversary of the launch of Apollo 13, whose refrain “Houston, we’ve had a problem” turned a disaster into a triumph.
“It hasn’t been easy,” said an emotional Wiseman. “Before you jump in, you feel like it’s the biggest dream on Earth. And when you’re out there, you just want to get back to your families and your friends. It’s something special to be human, and it’s something special to be on planet Earth.”
Added Glover: “I haven’t processed what we just did and I’m scared to even start trying.”
Hansen said the four embodied love “and drew joy from it” as the four came together to stand in a row, hugging each other. “When you look up here, you’re not looking at us. We’re a mirror that reflects you. And if you like what you see, look a little deeper. This is you.”
During the nearly 10-day Artemis II mission, astronauts traveled farther into space than lunar explorers of decades past and captured views of the far side of the Moon never before seen by human eyes. A total solar eclipse contributed to the cosmic wonder.
In their record-breaking flyby, the astronauts reached a maximum of 252,756 miles (406,771 kilometers) from Earth before making a U-turn behind the Moon, eclipsing Apollo 13’s distance record.
The mission also revealed a new facet of our planet with a sunset photograph, showing our blue marble hiding behind the gray, pockmarked moon. The image was reminiscent of the famous 1968 Earthrise photograph taken by the world’s first lunar visitors, Apollo 8.
1/18 | From the silence of space: Artemis II reveals stunning images of Earth. This image provided by NASA shows a view of Earth captured by NASA astronaut and Artemis II commander Reid Wiseman from the window of the Orion spacecraft after completing the translunar injection maneuver. – NASA via AP
“Honestly, what impressed me was not necessarily the Earth, but all the blackness around it. The Earth was nothing more than a lifeboat hanging undisturbed in the universe,” Koch said. “Planet Earth is a crew.”
Despite the achievements, the Artemis II astronauts had to deal with a more mundane problem: a malfunctioning space toilet. NASA promised a solution before longer moon landing missions.
Wiseman, Glover, Koch and Hansen were the first humans to fly to the Moon since Apollo 17 closed NASA’s first era of exploration in 1972. Twenty-four astronauts flew to the Moon during Apollo, including 12 moonwalkers.
Apollo 13 commander Jim Lovell, who also flew on Apollo 8, encouraged the Artemis II crew in a recorded message before he died last summer.
For NASA it was crucial that Artemis II turned out well. The space agency is already preparing for next year’s Artemis III, in which a new crew will practice docking their capsule with a lunar lander in orbit around Earth. This will set the stage for the all-important Artemis IV lunar landing in 2028, when two astronauts attempt to land near the lunar south pole.
“The long wait is over. After a brief intermission of 53 years, the show continues,” Isaacman said.
This story was translated from English to Spanish with an artificial intelligence tool and was reviewed by an editor before publication.