Heading Home, NPS Alumni Leading Artemis II Locked In for Return to Earth

Next stop — Earth.

Following a historic lunar flyby at a record-setting distance, the Artemis II crew is now on its return journey, with splashdown expected Friday in the Pacific Ocean, approximately 50-60 miles off the coast of San Diego. Awaiting their arrival will be USS John P. Murtha (LPD-26), positioned to recover the astronauts and capsule.

For NPS alumnus and mission commander, retired U.S. Navy Capt. Reid Wiseman, the focus has shifted decisively to the most critical phase of the mission — bringing the crew home safely.

“We are locked in,” said Wiseman. “We are definitely excited for the second half of this mission. And we are on guard. We are the first crew to fly this vehicle. We are ready for any contingency and any scenario. We are going to stay locked in every second until we are back on that Navy ship, at home reunited with our families.”

Wiseman and spacecraft pilot, U.S. Navy Capt. Victor Glover, also an NPS alumnus, are drawing on years of experience as Navy test pilots, combined with advanced education and astronaut training, to guide the spacecraft, coined Integrity by the crew, safely back to Earth.

NPS alumni U.S. Navy Capt. Victor Glover, spacecraft pilot, and mission commander retired U.S. Navy Capt. Reid Wiseman, along with mission specialist Jeremy Hansen of the Canadian Space Agency prepare for their journey around the far side of the Moon by configuring their camera equipment shortly before beginning their lunar flyby observations. (Credit NASA)

As our blue planet grows steadily larger in the capsule’s windows, the significance of their mission is already clear. Their journey around the Moon has generated critical insights that will inform future Artemis missions and advance NASA’s long-term goal of human exploration beyond lunar orbit.

On Day 6, the crew entered the Moon’s sphere of influence — the point at which lunar gravity overtakes Earth’s pull — marking a key milestone in the mission. For hours, the astronauts conducted detailed observations of the Moon’s near and far sides, capturing new imagery and data.

Wiseman and Glover, alongside crewmates Christina Koch and Jeremy Hansen, passed within 4,070 miles of the lunar surface and experienced a 40-minute communications blackout, another defining moment of the mission.

That moment was made even more meaningful by a pre-recorded message from Apollo 8 and Apollo 13 astronaut Jim Lovell, a fellow naval aviator and test pilot, who passed away in 2025 at age 97.

NPS alumnus and Artemis II mission commander retired U.S. Navy Capt. Reid Wiseman peers out the window of the Orion spacecraft just as his first lunar observation period of the day begins. Throughout the course of the sixth day of the mission, Wiseman and his crewmates took turns at the windows, capturing images and video of the Moon, along with recorded observations. (Credit NASA)

“Hello Artemis II. This is Apollo astronaut Jim Lovell. Welcome to my old neighborhood,” the message read. “I’m proud to pass that torch to you as you swing around the Moon and lay the groundwork for missions to Mars for the benefit of all … Good luck and Godspeed from all those here on the good Earth.”

The symbolism was powerful. Lovell, commander of Apollo 13, held the previous record for the farthest distance traveled from Earth at 248,655 miles. Artemis II surpassed that mark, reaching 252,760 miles, more than 4,000 miles farther than any human spaceflight before it.

The crew worked in rotating pairs during the Moon flyby, conducting more than six hours of focused observation of the lunar surface. They witnessed Earth set behind the Moon and later rise again followed by an extremely rare view of a solar eclipse as the Moon passed between the spacecraft and the Sun, a first for human eyes.

Captured by the Artemis II crew during their lunar flyby on April 6, 2026, this image shows the Moon fully eclipsing the Sun. From the crew’s perspective, the Moon appears large enough to completely block the Sun, as it passed between the spacecraft and the Sun, another first in astronaut history. (Credit NASA)

While the Artemis II crew observed the Moon, another spacecraft was watching them.

NASA’s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO), a robotic spacecraft with ties to NPS, captured images of the Integrity capsule as it swung around the Moon. LRO’s mission includes mapping the Moon’s surface, identifying potential resources such as water and ice, and helping determine safe landing sites for future missions. NPS faculty and students contributed to the LRO’s fast attitude maneuvering control system, which enables the spacecraft to precisely reorient, capabilities essential for tracking and imaging.

Data from Artemis II and imagery from LRO are now being processed and are eagerly anticipated by researchers at NASA and partner institutions, including NPS.

This collaboration reflects a broader, enduring partnership between NASA and NPS that advances both cutting-edge research and the education of future operational leaders and astronauts. The ability to connect real-world missions with graduate-level education remains a hallmark of the NPS experience.

At mission control in Johnson Space Center, notably called “Houston” in the communications back and forth with the crew of Integrity, the flight controllers take a moment for a team photo. Running 24/7 during the mission, three shifts of controllers operate more than a dozen stations that control and monitor all facets of the Artemis II mission to and from the Moon. (U.S. Navy Photo by Dan Linehan)

NPS’ science writer Dan Linehan is embedded at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston, reporting on the mission and its broader impact.

“It’s been amazing to track the many facets of Artemis II mission firsthand and our two NPS alumni’s efforts,” said Linehan. “Being here at Houston to watch as Integrity streaked toward the Moon was incredible to witness, especially being there when mission control transmitted the congratulatory words of naval aviator and astronaut Jim Lovell to the crew. And because of the excellent and continued collaboration with NASA, I felt welcomed as a representative from NPS by the NASA team to make the right connections.”

Since first putting humans in space, the Navy, NPS, and NASA have had an inseparable bond in space education and research; in naval aviators turned astronauts, from the Mercury Program to today’s Artemis II; in the U.S. Navy ships and Sailors returning the astronauts home after splashdown; and to the scientists, engineers, and leaders filling everywhere in-between.

With seven NPS alumni in the active NASA astronaut corps, the Navy and NPS remain vital contributors to America’s future lunar missions and space exploration.

Read the pre-launch story: "Naval Postgraduate School Alumni Lead NASA’s Artemis II Moon Mission”