At 12:40 p.m. EST, Dec. 11, 2022, NASAs Orion spacecraft for the Artemis I objective splashed down in the Pacific Ocean after a 25.5 day mission to the Moon. Orion will be recovered by NASAs Landing and Recovery group, U.S. Navy and Department of Defense partners aboard the USS Portland. Credit: NASA/Kim Shiflett
At 9:40 a.m. PST, 12:40 p.m. EST, NASAs Orion spacecraft successfully finished a parachute-assisted splashdown in the Pacific Ocean as the final significant turning point of the Artemis I objective. Engineers carried out numerous extra tests while Orion was in the water and prior to powering down the spacecraft and handing it over to the healing team aboard the USS Portland.
At 12:40 p.m. EST, December 11, 2022, NASAs Orion spacecraft for the Artemis I objective sprinkled down in the Pacific Ocean after a 25.5 day objective to the Moon. Orion will be recuperated by NASAs Landing and Recovery group, U.S. Navy and Department of Defense partners aboard the USS Portland. Credit: NASA
At the instructions of the NASA recovery director, Navy scuba divers and other team members in numerous inflatable boats approached the spacecraft. When Orion was ready to be pulled into the ships well deck at the waterline, the scuba divers connected a cable, called the winch line, to pull the spacecraft into the ship and as much as 4 extra tending lines to connect points on the crew module. The winch pulled Orion into a specifically designed cradle inside the ships well deck and the other lines controlled the motion of the spacecraft. When Orion was positioned above the cradle assembly, specialists drained the well deck and protected it on the cradle.
At 12:40 p.m. EST, Dec. 11, 2022, NASAs Orion spacecraft for the Artemis I mission sprinkled down in the Pacific Ocean after a 25.5 day mission to the Moon. At 12:40 p.m. EST, December 11, 2022, NASAs Orion spacecraft for the Artemis I mission splashed down in the Pacific Ocean after a 25.5 day objective to the Moon. NASAs Orion spacecraft for the Artemis I objective was successfully recovered inside the well deck of the USS Portland on December 11, 2022, off the coast of Baja California. At 12:40 p.m. EST, December 11, 2022, NASAs Orion spacecraft for the Artemis I mission sprinkled down in the Pacific Ocean after a 25.5 day mission to the Moon.
NASAs Orion spacecraft for the Artemis I objective was effectively recovered inside the well deck of the USS Portland on December 11, 2022, off the coast of Baja California. After releasing atop the Space Launch System rocket on November 16, 2022, from the agencys Kennedy Space Center in Florida, Orion spent 25.5 days in area before returning to Earth, completing the Artemis I objective. Credit: NASA
As soon as aboard the vessel, groups took the spacecraft to U.S. Naval Base San Diego. They will quickly return it to NASAs Kennedy Space Center for evaluation. Technicians in Florida will thoroughly check Orion, retrieving information recorded on board, eliminating onboard payloads, and more.
At 12:40 p.m. EST, December 11, 2022, NASAs Orion spacecraft for the Artemis I objective sprinkled down in the Pacific Ocean after a 25.5 day mission to the Moon. Seen here is NASAs Landing and Recovery group, U.S. Navy and Department of Defense partners recovering the Orion spacecraft aboard the USS Portland off the coast of California. Credit: NASA
Artemis I was the first integrated test of NASAs deep area exploration systems– the Orion spacecraft, SLS rocket, and the supporting ground systems– and the very first in a series of progressively intricate missions at the Moon. Through Artemis missions, NASA will establish a long-term lunar existence for clinical discovery and get ready for human missions to Mars.
NASA hosted a post-splashdown press conference.
Individuals include:
Bill Nelson, NASA administratorJim Free, NASA associate administrator for the Exploration System Development Mission Directorate, NASA HeadquartersVanessa Wyche, director, JohnsonJanet Petro, director, KennedyMike Sarafin, objective supervisor, NASA HeadquartersHoward Hu, Orion Program supervisor, JohnsonEmily Nelson, chief flight director, JohnsonMelissa Jones, healing director, Kennedy
