A look at the risks as Artemis II crew prepares to splash down in the Pacific

The four astronauts of NASA's Artemis II mission are scheduled to splash down in the Pacific Ocean on Friday, concluding their historic journey around the far side of the moon. This critical phase of their return, as explained by CBS News correspondent Mark Strassmann, involves navigating the significant risks of atmospheric reentry, where the Orion capsule will endure extreme temperatures and forces to deliver the crew safely back to Earth. The splashdown, planned for a location off the coast of California, represents the final and most perilous leg of the Artemis II flight test. After traveling hundreds of thousands of miles and performing a lunar flyby, the crew must now transition from the vacuum of space back into Earth's atmosphere. The primary dangers during this phase include the intense heat generated by friction as the capsule plummates through the atmosphere at speeds exceeding 25,000 miles per hour, and the subsequent deployment of parachutes to slow the descent for a gentle ocean landing. Any failure in the heat shield's integrity or the parachute system could have catastrophic consequences. This mission serves as a crucial precursor to NASA's goal of returning humans to the lunar surface with Artemis III. The successful splashdown and recovery of the crew—NASA astronauts Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, Christina Koch, and Canadian Space Agency astronaut Jeremy Hansen—will validate the Orion spacecraft's life support and reentry systems for future, longer-duration missions. The data gathered from this reentry profile is vital for ensuring the safety of astronauts on upcoming Artemis missions, which aim to establish a sustainable human presence on the moon and eventually prepare for crewed missions to Mars.