NASA’s Artemis II crew heads home, with an estimated 7:07 p.m. CT splashdown time

The Artemis II crew is set for a Pacific splashdown. NASA astronauts Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover and Christina Koch flew with Canadian Space Agency astronaut Jeremy Hansen. According to NASA, they began final preparations to songs like "Run to the Water" by Live.

Splashdown targets 8:07 EDT (7:07 p.m. CT) off the coast of San Diego. The crew woke 61,326 miles from Earth, NASA confirmed. A third trajectory correction burn was planned for 2:53 p.m., meaning the crew made adjustments for the spacecraft to stay on its proper course.

Reentry challenges and timeline

The Orion capsule, named Integrity, will hit the atmosphere at nearly 35 times the speed of sound, ABC7 reports. NASA says that crews expect up to 3.9 Gs of force. Additionally, temperatures will reach about 3,000 degrees Fahrenheit.

According to NASA’s timeline, at 7:33 p.m. EDT, the crew module will separate from the service module. This exposes the heat shield. An 18-second raise burn follows at 7:37 p.m. EDT to set the entry angle.

Entry starts at 7:53 p.m. at 400,000 feet, NASA confirms. A six-minute communications blackout ensues as plasma forms. Drogue parachutes deploy at 22,000 feet, then main parachutes at 6,000 feet.

Orion slows to 20 mph for splashdown, as reported by NASA. The mission covered 694,481 miles, and broke Apollo 13's distance record at 252,756 miles from Earth.

Launched on Wednesday, April 1, on the SLS rocket from Kennedy Space Center, the crew completed a historic lunar flyby, NASA stated. This marked humanity's return to the moon's vicinity since 1972. Astronauts tested Orion systems in deep space.

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They viewed the lunar far side and a total solar eclipse. "It just blew all of us away," said Glover, according to ABC7.

Lead flight director Jeff Radigan noted some "irrational fear" before parachutes, as reported by ABC7. "It just makes you want to continue to go back," Radigan said, regarding the upcoming splashdown.

Commander Wiseman hoped the mission would make the world "pause and remember that this is a beautiful planet," per ABC7.

Recovery teams from NASA and the U.S. military stand ready. Helicopters will lift the crew to the USS John P. Murtha, NASA says. Medical checks follow before a flight to Houston's Johnson Space Center.

This test flight paves the way for Artemis program goals. According to ABC7, Artemis III plans docking practice next year and Artemis IV aims for a south pole landing in 2028.

Live coverage streams on NASA+, YouTube and more from 6:30 p.m. EDT.