The Artemis II astronauts are on track for a splashdown in the Pacific to close out humanity's first voyage to the moon in more than half a century. The tension in Houston's Mission Control is mounting as the miles melt away between the four returning astronauts and Earth. Their Orion capsule is expected to hit 32 times the speed of sound as it reenters the atmosphere Friday. It's a blistering blur not seen since NASA's Apollo moonshots of the 1960s and 1970s. The recovery ship is already in position, awaiting the crew's arrival, along with military planes and helicopters.
The Artemis II astronauts are tidying up their lunar cruiser for Friday's "fireball" return to Earth. They're also reflecting on their historic journey around the moon, describing it as surreal and profound. The three Americans and one Canadian are now under 150,000 miles from home. Humanity's first lunar explorers in more than a half-century, they set a new distance record during Monday's lunar flyby. Artemis II is aiming for a splashdown in the Pacific off the San Diego coast.
The Artemis II astronauts are chatting it up with their friends aboard the International Space Station. Still aglow from their triumphant lunar flyby, the three Americans and one Canadian put in a call to their station colleagues Tuesday while heading home from the moon. It's the first such moonship-to-spaceship radio linkup ever. "We have been waiting for this like you can't imagine," the commander Reid Wiseman said. NASA's Apollo moonshots had no off-the-planet company back in the 1960s and 1970s. For Artemis II's Christina Koch and the station's Jessica Meir, it was a joyous space reunion despite being 230,000 miles apart. The two teamed up for the world's first all-female spacewalk in 2019.
The Artemis II astronauts have kicked off their record-breaking trip around the moon that already is providing unprecedented views of the far side. Monday's lunar journey comes after the three Americans and one Canadian broke Apollo 13's distance record, the farthest that humans have ever traveled from Earth. During the hourslong flyby, Artemis II will temporarily lose contact with Mission Control as the capsule passes behind the moon without stopping. Astronauts will split into pairs and take turns capturing the magnificent lunar scenes with cameras. They'll also don special glasses to witness a total solar eclipse.
The Artemis II astronauts have captured Earth's brilliant blue beauty as they zoom ever closer to the moon. NASA released the crew's first downlinked images Friday, 1 1/2 days into the first astronaut moonshot in more than half a century. The first photo taken by commander Reid Wiseman shows a curved slice of Earth in one of the capsule's windows. The second shows the entire globe with the oceans topped by swirling white tendrils of clouds. It even includes a pale green aurora. As of midday Friday, the crew was 100,000 miles from Earth and quickly gaining on the moon.
On March 3, 1991, motorist Rodney King was severely beaten by Los Angeles police officers after a high-speed chase in a scene captured on amateur video that sparked public outrage. (The subsequent acquittal of four officers of felony assault and other charges in April 1992 triggered days of rioting and dozens of deaths in Los Angeles.)
On Nov. 16, 1973, President Richard Nixon signed the Trans-Alaska Pipeline Authorization Act into law, authorizing the construction of an 800-mile (1,290-kilometer) oil pipeline from the Alaska North Slope to the port city of Valdez.
On Aug. 13, 1961, on what would become known as Barbed Wire Sunday, East Germany sealed the border between Berlin's eastern and western sectors before building a wall that would divide the city for the next 28 years.
A privately owned lunar lander has touched down on the moon. But flight controllers in Texas cannot confirm its condition or whether it's even upright near the south pole. The last time Intuitive Machines landed a spacecraft on the moon, a year ago, it ended up sideways. The company's newest Athena lander dropped out of lunar orbit as planned Thursday, carrying an ice drill, a drone and two rovers for NASA and others. The descent appeared to go well. But it took a while for Mission Control to confirm touchdown. More than an hour after landing, the Houston company had yet to provide an update.
