Watch: Artemis II capsule reenters Earth's atmosphere, begins communication blackout period

NASA's uncrewed Orion spacecraft successfully reentered Earth's atmosphere over the Pacific Ocean on Friday, December 9, 2022, concluding its historic Artemis I mission around the Moon and triggering a critical, pre-planned six-minute communications blackout caused by intense plasma buildup during atmospheric entry. The capsule, having traveled approximately 1.4 million miles on a 25.5-day journey, faced temperatures nearing 5,000 degrees Fahrenheit as it slammed into the atmosphere at speeds of about 25,000 mph, creating a superheated plasma sheath that temporarily blocks radio signals. This blackout period, a standard but tense phase of any spacecraft return, represents a crucial test of the capsule's heat shield—the largest ever built—and its ability to protect future astronauts. Mission controllers at NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston anxiously monitored their consoles, awaiting the reacquisition of signal that would confirm Orion had survived the fiery descent. The successful navigation of this phase is a non-negotiable prerequisite for NASA's plans to return humans to the lunar surface. The event marks the final major milestone of the Artemis I mission, a foundational test flight designed to validate the Space Launch System rocket and the Orion spacecraft's systems before a crew is onboard. The capsule's subsequent splashdown off the coast of Baja California, Mexico, and recovery by a U.S. Navy team paves the way for Artemis II, which will carry astronauts on a similar lunar flyby, and ultimately the Artemis III mission aiming to land the first woman and the next man on the Moon later this decade.