ORLANDO, Fla. — NASA chased down the Orion spacecraft after its record-breaking reentry into Earth’s atmosphere Sunday to conclude the Artemis I mission that lifted off from Kennedy Space Center more than three weeks ago.
“And there it is, high over the Pacific, America’s new ticket to ride to the moon and beyond now in view,” said Rob Navias with NASA communications as the first images emerged of the capsule descending under three unfurled main parachutes 1,000 feet in the air.
It hit the water slowed to only 19 mph at 12:40 p.m. after 25 days, 10 hours, 54 minutes and 50 seconds in space. Only 20 minutes earlier, Orion had hit the atmosphere at a reported 24,464 mph, which is faster than any previous human-rated spacecraft.
