Almost a month after leaving for the Moon, Orion is back. The Artemis I mission is about to return to Earth. Here’s how to follow the final splash of the capsule in the Pacific Ocean live.
It’s time to go home for the first mission of the Artemis program. On November 16, 2022, after months of hardships, Artemis I was launched towards the Moon. The Orion capsule traveled to the star, circled it, even positioning itself in orbit, before returning to our planet. Last step before NASA declares its mission complete: the landing of the spacecraft in the Pacific Ocean.
The descent of the Artemis I capsule to Earth and its final splash can be followed live and online.
- When ? Sunday, December 11, 2022, from 5 p.m. (metropolitan France time). Landing is scheduled for 6:40 p.m.
- Where ? On NASA’s YouTube channel.
- What ? The return of Orion, the Artemis I capsule left around the Moon, on Earth, more precisely in the Pacific Ocean.
Orion last flew past the Moon on December 5, before beginning its journey back to Earth. Artemis I delivered on this occasion an image of the lunar flyby worthy of a science fiction film. It was not the first time that the NASA mission has amazed us. An improbable Earth eclipse by the Moon had also been immortalized by Orion, when the capsule was more than 430,000 km from us.
What to expect when Artemis I returns to Earth?
During the return trip to our planet, Orion’s trajectory was regularly adjusted to make a successful splashdown in the Pacific. Once close to Earth, the capsule must separate from its main propulsion system. It will then be time for Orion to descend into the Earth’s atmosphere, at the impressive speed of 39,400 km per hour. In order to protect the passenger compartment of the capsule from the surrounding very hot air, the shield will have to fully play its role (and help to slow down the speed of the vehicle).
At the appropriate time, parachutes will then be deployed to accompany the end of the descent of Artemis I. The capsule is expected to reach the Pacific Ocean within the field of view of a US Navy boat, which will have to retrieve. We can then consider the Artemis I mission as finished, and above all as a success.
Even if there are no astronauts on board Artemis I, this return will be just as scrutinized as the other stages of the mission by NASA. This flight serves as a test and the return of humans to the Moon depends on it. From the Artemis II mission, the space agency intends to send a crew, made up of 4 astronauts, in Orion to circumnavigate the Moon. Not only will they have to be sent up there, but above all the astronauts will have to return safe and sound to Earth.
While waiting for the start of the live broadcast, it is still possible to follow Orion’s odyssey from the capsule. Just over 50 years after the start of the Apollo 17 mission, the last manned mission to the Moon, Artemis I is preparing for the return of humans to Earth’s natural satellite.