NASA's Artemis II mission is set to return to Earth later today after its historic trip around the Moon. The Orion spacecraft, carrying astronauts Reid Wiseman, Christina Koch, Victor Glover, and Jeremy Hansen, is scheduled to splash down off the coast of San Diego at approximately 8:07PM ET. NASA will stream the landing on YouTube and its NASA+ website, with additional coverage from Netflix and HBO Max beginning at 6:30PM ET.

After spending nine days in space and traveling 695,081 miles (1,118,624 km), the most dangerous part of the mission still lies ahead. The Orion spacecraft will face temperatures up to 5,000 degrees Fahrenheit (2,760 degrees Celsius) during the 13-minute re-entry process. This mission follows concerns from the previous Artemis I flight, where the spacecraft experienced excess charring during a "skip reentry" maneuver that briefly lifted it back out of Earth's upper atmosphere.

This marks the first time in 53 years that NASA will guide a human crew back from the Moon. The mission has already captured amazing images along the way and demonstrated what's possible when nations work together. As the world watches, the Artemis II crew prepares for their historic return, bringing humanity one step closer to establishing a sustainable presence on the Moon.