Mission Control
Artemis II Live Tracker
Orion re-enters Earth's atmosphere, splashes down, and transitions to recovery operations.
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Live Telemetry
Mission complete
Recovery teams are tracking Orion to splashdown.
Phase
Re-entry and Splashdown
Elapsed
T+10:00:00:00
Earth Dist
0 km
0 mi
Velocity
11.0 km/s
24,606 mph
Moon Dist
384,400 km
238,855 mi
Quick Navigation
Move through the mission stack fast
Timeline Preview
2026-04-01 16:00:00 UTC
Launch
SLS lifts Orion from Kennedy Space Center and carries the Artemis II crew into orbit.
Launch validates the integrated stack under crewed conditions and turns years of ground testing into real mission execution.
Featured Reading
Mission logs and explainers
2026-04-10 · evergreen
Why Splashdown Is a Mission-Critical Phase
Why the last hours of Artemis II matter as much as the launch and flyby, from re-entry loads to recovery operations.
2026-04-06 · evergreen
How Artemis II's Lunar Flyby Trajectory Works
An explainer on the free-return style trajectory, why the Moon bends Orion home, and what makes the flyby strategically important.
2026-04-05 · mission-day
Mission Day 5: Why the Translunar Coast Matters
A mid-mission analysis of the translunar coast and the systems checks that make Artemis II credible.