By Sharon Challenger
(December 11, 2022)—Today the Orion spacecraft returned safely to Earth, making its splashdown at 12:39 p.m. ET in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of Baja California.
“The splashdown of the Orion spacecraft – which occurred 50 years to the day of the Apollo 17 Moon landing – is the crowning achievement of Artemis I. From the launch of the world’s most powerful rocket to the exceptional journey around the Moon and back to Earth, this flight test is a major step forward in the Artemis Generation of lunar exploration,” said NASA Administrator Bill Nelson.
Orion landed in stable upright position via three large orange and white parachutes. Upon entry into the water the vessel was supported by 5 bright orange flotation balls.
Approximately 5 miles away, the U.S.S. Portland awaited the splashdown. Two Navy helicopters were deployed to assess the spacecraft. After circling repeatedly, they indicated there appeared to be no damage to the spacecraft and no signs of fuel leakage.
The U.S.S. Portland crew had to wait for the ammonia boiloff before approaching Orion. Ammonia is used to keep the interior of the capsule cool and will help future astronauts as they travel to the Moon in 2023 for the Artemis II mission.
NASA Administrator, Bill Nelson Nelson remarked, “Orion exceeded the expectations. The heat shield worked beautifully. Parachutes had to work, and they did. This is a defining day, a whole new technology, for a whole new breed of astronauts.”
The Mission which began on November 16, 2022, took 25 days and 10 hours total time from start to finish.
Over the 25 days NASA reported the following information:
- Orion performed two lunar flybys, coming within 80 miles of the lunar surface.
- Orion traveled nearly 270,000 miles from our home planet
- Orion endured temperatures about half as hot as the surface of the Sun at about 5,000 degrees Fahrenheit
- Within about 20 minutes, Orion slowed from nearly 25,000 mph to about 20 mph for its parachute-assisted splashdown
- During the flight test, Orion stayed in space longer than any spacecraft designed for astronauts has done without docking to a space station
- While in a distant lunar orbit, Orion surpassed the record for distance traveled by a spacecraft designed to carry humans, previously set during Apollo 13
What’s next for Orion?
Special teams will work to secure Orion for the journey back to the Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Several payloads will be unloaded including Commander Moonikin Campos, the space biology experiments, Snoopy , and the official flight kit. Next, the capsule and its heat shield will undergo testing and analysis over the course of several months.
“With Orion safely returned to Earth we can begin to see our next mission (Artemis II) on the horizon which will fly crew to the Moon for the first time as a part of the next era of exploration,” said Jim Free, NASA associate administrator for the Exploration Systems Development Mission Directorate.
https://www.nasa.gov/exploration/systems/orion/index.html
Photos courtesy of NASA
