Artemis II picking up speed as astronauts prepare for re-entry

The cynthia II crew is pick up velocity as their hunter space vehicle continues its journey home.

Crew members woke up 322,316 kilometres from Earth on Wednesday — and 134,459 kilometres from the moon — to the sounds of Queen and David Bowie's Under Pressure.

Commander Reid Wiseman, pilot Victor Glover and mission specialists Christina Koch and Jeremy Hansen are spending the day conducting important tests as they prepare for their Friday splashdown in the Pacific Ocean.

At 7:20 p.m. ET, Hansen will get a call from Canada, where he will speak with Prime Minister Mark Carney, Minister of Industry Melanie Joly and Canadian Space Agency astronaut Joshua Kutryk, as well as take questions from young Canadians.

NASA officials updated media on the historic lunar mission at a late afternoon press conference.

Artemis II entry flight director Rick Henfling says the spacecraft will hit a maximum speed of 38,366 km/h before re-entry.

"We're continuing to speed up as we speak," he said. 

Henfling said all four crew members took turns Wednesday testing and evaluating the "orthostatic intolerance garment," which is designed to apply lower-body compression, help them maintain blood pressure and circulation and stave off dizziness and fainting on their transition back to Earth's gravity.

They've also been preparing the cabin, studying entry procedures, stowing equipment and installing their seats to make sure everything is secured for re-entry.

Henfling said three different sets of parachutes will deploy to slow the spacecraft down, between about 6,700 metres and 1,500 metres above ground, before it lands in the ocean.

NASA officials say the USS John P. Murtha ship has left port and is headed to the midway point toward the recovery site in the Pacific Ocean to assist with the splashdown, scheduled for 8:07 p.m. ET Friday.

Members of NASA and the U.S. Military are aboard the ship, preparing to get the crew to safety.

Artemis II crew is on its way home. So what did they accomplish?

Artemis II landing and recovery director Liliana Villarreal said divers will open the Orion hatch after splashdown and help the astronauts from their seats onto a large inflatable raft called the front porch.

That's where they will await pickup from two Navy helicopters, which will rotate picking up all four crew members before they return to the recovery ship "within a few minutes of each other," Villareal said.

The crew members will then undergo routine post-flight medical checkups on the ship.

Officials say the spacecraft appears to be in excellent condition for re-entry, and weather conditions are looking favourable — but they said there's still a lot of work to be done by crews on land, sea and sky to ensure a safe landing.

"We're down to the wire now," said Lakiesha Hawkins, acting deputy associate administrator for NASA's Exploration Systems Development Mission Directorate.

"Obviously getting the crew back home and getting them landed safely is a significant part of the risk that's still in front of us."

Artemis II broke the distance record Monday as the farthest humans have flown from Earth. The spacecraft reached 406,771 kilometres on the far side of the moon, beating the previous record of 400,171 kilometres set by Apollo 13 in 1970.

The astronauts spent several hours capturing images and describing the sights as they looped around the moon before heading back toward Earth.

Digital Writer

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