The First Crewed Spaceflight to Polar Orbit Is Now Complete...

SpaceX

Fram2 Returns to Earth (News Release)

After nearly four days on-orbit, Dragon and the Fram2 crew safely splashed down at 9:19 a.m. PDT off the coast of Oceanside, California, completing the first human spaceflight mission to explore Earth from a polar orbit and fly over the Earth’s polar regions. This was also Dragon’s first West Coast recovery since 2019 and the first Dragon human spaceflight mission to splash down in the Pacific Ocean.

Mission Objectives

During their multi-day mission, the crew conducted 22 research studies designed to help advance humanity’s capabilities for long-duration space exploration and the understanding of human health in space. The crew took the first x-ray in space, performed exercise studies to maintain muscle and skeletal mass, and grew mushrooms in microgravity.

Additionally, after safely returning to Earth, the crew exited the Dragon spacecraft without additional medical and operational assistance, helping researchers characterize the ability of astronauts to perform unassisted functional tasks after short and long durations in space.

The Crew

This was the first human spaceflight for Mission Commander Chun Wang, Vehicle Commander Jannicke Mikkelsen, Vehicle Pilot Rabea Rogge, and Mission Specialist and Medical Officer Eric Philips.

Source: SpaceX

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SpaceX

Hello, Antarctica.

Unlike previously anticipated, from 460 km above, it is only pure white, no human activity is visible. pic.twitter.com/i7JawFYzW2

— Chun (@satofishi) April 2, 2025

Throughout their first two full days on-orbit, the crew took the first-ever X-ray in space, 130 years after the first X-ray was captured.

The @framonauts did a brain mapping EEG experiment and contributed to a continuous glucose monitor study examining how fluid shifts in space… pic.twitter.com/Tpvp3l5Zrh

— SpaceX (@SpaceX) April 3, 2025

The @Framonauts aboard #Fram2 are seeing something that no human eyes have seen before: both of our home world's polar regions in the same orbit. This is also an excellent preview of future #astrobiology expeditions to ice worlds such as Encealdus, Europa - and maybe Hoth ;-).… pic.twitter.com/6He1HNr7k3

— Astrobiology (@astrobiology) April 2, 2025

The Mission Patch for Orion's First Crewed Flight to the Moon Has Been Revealed...

NASA / Robert Markowitz

Artemis II Insignia Honors All (News Release)

The four astronauts who will be the first to fly to the Moon under NASA’s Artemis campaign have designed an emblem to represent their mission that references both their distant destination and the home they will return to. The crew unveiled their patch in this April 2, 2025, photo.

The crew explained the patch’s symbolism, and its play on the abbreviation of Artemis II to AII, with the following description: The Artemis II test flight begins when a mighty team launches the first crew of the Artemis generation. This patch designates the mission as “AII,” signifying not only the second major flight of the Artemis campaign, but also an endeavor of discovery that seeks to explore for all and by all. Framed in Apollo 8’s famous Earthrise photo, the scene of the Earth and the Moon represents the dual nature of human spaceflight, both equally compelling: The Moon represents our exploration destination, focused on discovery of the unknown.

The Earth represents home, focused on the perspective we gain when we look back at our shared planet and learn what it is to be uniquely human. The orbit around Earth highlights the ongoing exploration missions that have enabled Artemis to set sights on a long-term presence on the Moon and soon, Mars.

Commander Reid Wiseman, pilot Victor Glover, and mission specialist Christina Koch from NASA, and mission specialist Jeremy Hansen from CSA (Canadian Space Agency), will venture around the Moon in 2026 on Artemis II. The 10-day flight will test NASA’s foundational human deep space exploration capabilities, the SLS rocket and Orion spacecraft, for the first time with astronauts. Through Artemis, NASA will send astronauts to explore the Moon for scientific discovery, economic benefits, and build the foundation for the first crewed missions to Mars.

Source: NASA.Gov

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NASA

The Artemis II mission patch is being projected onto the VAB tonight!

Live: https://t.co/mz1DIvnofq pic.twitter.com/riYmzpG9RO

— Gav Cornwell (@spaceOFFSHORE) April 4, 2025

NASA celebrating the launch of the official Artemis II patch with a sunset presentation on the Vehicle Assembly Building at the Kennedy Space Center.@NASASpaceflight https://t.co/BEepgAJYUG pic.twitter.com/by5UziIqnL

— Elisar Priel (@ENNEPS) April 4, 2025

The Latest Update on the First Crewed Flight to the Moon in 50+ Years...

NASA

NASA Trains for Orion Water Recovery Ahead of Artemis II Launch (News Release - March 31)

Preparations for NASA’s next Artemis flight recently took to the seas as a joint NASA and Department of Defense team, led by NASA’s Exploration Ground Systems Program, spent a week aboard the USS Somerset off the coast of California practicing procedures for recovering the Artemis II spacecraft and crew.

Following successful completion of Underway Recovery Test-12 (URT-12) on Monday, NASA’s Landing and Recovery team and their Defense Department counterparts are certified to recover the Orion spacecraft as part of the upcoming Artemis II test flight that will send NASA astronauts Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover and Christina Koch, as well as CSA (Canadian Space Agency) astronaut Jeremy Hansen, on a 10-day journey around the Moon.

“This will be NASA’s first crewed mission to the Moon under the Artemis program,” said Lili Villarreal, the landing and recovery director for Artemis II. “A lot of practice led up to this week’s event, and seeing everything come together at sea gives me great confidence that the air, water, ground and medical support teams are ready to safely recover the spacecraft and the crew for this historic mission.”

Once Orion reenters Earth’s atmosphere, the capsule will keep the crew safe as it slows from nearly 25,000 mph to about 325 mph. Then its system of 11 parachutes will deploy in a precise sequence to slow the capsule and crew to a relatively gentle 20 mph for splashdown off the coast of California. From the time it enters Earth’s atmosphere, the Artemis II spacecraft will fly 1,775 nautical miles to its landing spot in the Pacific Ocean.

This direct approach for reentry allows NASA to control the amount of time the spacecraft will spend in extremely high-temperature ranges.

The Artemis II astronauts trained during URT-11 in February 2024, when they donned Orion Crew Survival System suits and practiced a range of recovery operations at sea using the Crew Module Test Article, a stand-in for their spacecraft.

For the 12th training exercise, NASA astronauts Deniz Burnham and Andre Douglas, along with ESA (European Space Agency) astronaut Luca Parmitano, did the same, moving from the simulated crew module to the USS Somerset, with helicopters, a team of Navy divers in small boats, NASA’s open water lead – a technical expert and lead design engineer for all open water operations – as well as Navy and NASA medical teams rehearsing different recovery scenarios.

“Allowing astronauts to participate when they are not directly involved in a mission gives them valuable experience by exposing them to a lot of different scenarios,” said Glover, who will pilot Artemis II. “Learning about different systems and working with ground control teams also broadens their skillsets and prepares them for future roles. It also allows astronauts like me who are assigned to the mission to experience other roles – in this case, I am serving in the role of Joe Acaba, Chief of the Astronaut Office.”

As the astronauts safely arrive at the ship for medical checkouts, recovery teams focus on returning the spacecraft and its auxiliary ground support hardware to the amphibious transport dock.

Navy divers attach a connection collar to the spacecraft and an additional line to a pneumatic winch inside the USS Somerset’s well deck, allowing joint NASA and Navy teams to tow Orion toward the ship. A team of sailors and NASA recovery personnel inside the ship manually pull some of the lines to help align Orion with its stand, which will secure the spacecraft for its trip to the shore. Following a safe and precise recovery, sailors will drain the well deck of water, and the ship will make its way back to Naval Base San Diego.

The Artemis II test flight will confirm the foundational systems and hardware needed for human deep space exploration, taking another step towards missions on the lunar surface and helping the agency prepare for human missions to Mars.

Source: NASA.Gov

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