Keep pulling the thread on Artemis II.
The Artemis II mission was the first crewed flight of NASA's Space Launch System (SLS) rocket.
NASA's Artemis program, which involves returning to the Moon, is intended as a preparatory step for future human missions to Mars.
The Artemis II crew, consisting of Reed Wiseman, Victor Glover, Christina Koch, and Jeremy Hansen, was safely recovered aboard the USS John P. Murtha.
The Artemis II crew traveled 252,756 miles from Earth, setting a new record for the farthest humans have flown.
Blue Origin is scheduled to conduct a test flight of its Mark I lander, a subscale version of its lunar lander, later this year.
A test flight of the SpaceX Block III Starship and Super Heavy is expected to occur within the next few weeks.
The Artemis II mission successfully demonstrated optical communications technology by streaming 4K video from the Orion spacecraft.
NASA has a goal to conduct two separate crewed lunar landing missions in the year 2028.
The Artemis II mission was a flight test of the Orion space capsule with a human crew.
The Artemis II Orion capsule splashed down in the Pacific Ocean at 7:07 p.m. Central Time.
The Artemis II mission flew a total distance of 700,237 miles.
The Orion spacecraft on the Artemis II mission reached a peak velocity of 24,664 miles per hour during reentry.