New Delhi: The Artemis II mission is now on its way back to Earth, and things are getting real. NASA confirmed on April 10, 2026, that the crew has crossed the halfway point of their return journey.
Right now, the Orion spacecraft is about 113,000 kilometres from Earth. It is moving at over 4,828.02 kilometres per hour. That is already fast, but it will get much faster during reentry. The crew is now shifting focus from exploration mode to safe return.
They’re halfway home.
The Artemis II astronauts have hit the “halfway” mark between the Moon and the Earth. They will splash down in the Pacific Ocean around 8:07 pm ET on Friday, April 10 (0007 UTC on Saturday, April 11), off the coast of San Diego. pic.twitter.com/CQmOuDTVGh
— NASA (@NASA) April 10, 2026
Artemis II crew prepares for final splashdown
The mission includes commander Reid Wiseman, pilot Victor Glover, mission specialist Christina Koch, and Canadian astronaut Jeremy Hansen. Hansen stands out here. He is the first Canadian to be part of a Moon mission.
NASA has confirmed that splashdown is scheduled for April 11 at 6:37 am IST. The landing will take place in the Pacific Ocean near San Diego, California.
From what NASA shared, the crew has already started preparing for this final phase. After days in space, everything now depends on precise timing and system checks.
Trajectory corrections and final approach
On the ninth day of the mission, Orion carried out its second return trajectory correction burn. This followed an earlier adjustment on April 7. These burns help fine tune the spacecraft’s path back to Earth.
Mission control at Johnson Space Center in Houston plans one last correction burn. This will happen about five hours before reentry.
Right now, Orion is going over 3,000mph! Follow along with the mission in real time: https://t.co/QTVDjJ96rQ
— NASA (@NASA) April 10, 2026
Reentry will test heat shield and parachutes
This is where things get intense. During reentry, Orion will hit speeds of about 38,367 kilometres per hour. The spacecraft will face temperatures up to 2,760 degrees Celsius.
The reentry sequence will last only a few minutes. After that, Orion will deploy 11 parachutes in stages. These parachutes will slow it down to less than 30 kilometres per hour before splashdown.
Where to watch the live return
NASA will begin live coverage of the reentry at 4 am IST. The stream will be available on multiple platforms including YouTube, X, NASA+, Amazon Prime, Apple TV, Netflix, HBO Max, Discovery+ and Peacock.