Artemis II splashdown tracker: Watch live as the Orion crew returns to Earth

The NASA astronauts are set to return today, splashing down off the coast of California near San Diego. Here’s how you can follow along.

Humanity is always aspiring to stretch itself to achieve new goals, including exploring new frontiers.

The Artemis II crew accomplished this, traveling 252,000 miles away from Earth, the farthest any human has ever been before, breaking the Apollo 13 record.

The four brave individuals are set to return Friday, splashing down off the coast of California, near San Diego. Here’s everything you need to know about the landing, including how to tune in.

How did the Artemis get its name?

The name Artemis is a throwback to the first NASA moon missions. Apollo 11 saw Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin take giant leaps for mankind on the surface of the moon on July 20, 1969.

Artemis is the twin sister of Apollo in Greek mythology, so the moniker reflects the hope that it will follow in the previous big footsteps.

Artemis II’s goal is to test the Space Launch System rocket and Orion spacecraft with people on board. (No moon landings just yet.) The roughly 10-day mission circled the moon to test the systems so Artemis III can eventually land on the lunar surface.

All about the Artemis II crew

The head honcho of the Artemis II crew is commander Reid Wiseman. This isn’t his first rodeo in space as he has already logged 165 days on the International Space Station.

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