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After Flying Past the Moon, an Artemis II Astronaut Lands at a New Job in California
· Confirmed
In Short: At NASA’s Ames Research Center in California, researchers are using advanced simulators to train astronauts for potential Moon landings, simulating conditions that cannot be replicated outside of spaceflight.
Four astronauts safely returned to Earth on Thursday after an eight-month mission aboard the International Space Station (ISS), splashing down off the coast of California.
The returning crew included NASA astronauts Jessica Meir and Jack Hathaway, along with French astronaut Sophie Adenot and Russian cosmonaut Andrey Fedyaev.
Meir expressed excitement about being back on Earth, saying, “We are so excited to be back on planet Earth after an incredible mission on the International Space Station.”
After initial medical checks on the recovery ship, the astronauts were transported by helicopter to land and then flew to Houston, Texas, where NASA’s astronaut operations center is located.
During their mission, the crew conducted four spacewalks, with Adenot becoming the first French female astronaut to venture outside the space station.
Meanwhile, NASA is preparing for future missions as part of the Artemis program, which aims to land astronauts on the Moon by 2028.
The Artemis program also involves competition among private companies like SpaceX and Blue Origin to develop lunar landers.
NASA’s Artemis II astronauts are expected to launch into Earth orbit next year to test two commercially developed lunar landers slated for the Artemis IV mission in 2028.
The Artemis Accords, a set of guiding principles among nations, aim to promote international cooperation in space.
Buzz Aldrin, the second man to walk on the Moon, turned 96 on Tuesday, highlighting the legacy of space exploration.
What this adds
The splashdown occurred off the coast of Los Angeles, California, on October 8, 2026, with the capsule hoisted onto a specialized ship and the astronauts transported to land.
The mission was marked by a medical issue that prompted an early return for the Crew 11 astronauts, as seen during reentry over Los Angeles on January 15, 2026.
What's confirmed
- “We are so excited to be back on planet Earth after an incredible mission on the International Space Station,” Meir said after the landing.
What's still developing
- Using a combination of in-house and partner motion-based simulators, NASA is giving astronauts and engineering support teams simulated experiences before crew members pilot commercial human landing systems to the surface of the Moon.
- As part of a Golden Age of innovation and exploration, NASA will send Artemis astronauts on increasingly difficult missions near the lunar South Pole to explore more of the Moon than ever before.
- For more information about NASA’s Artemis program, visit: Jeanne Neal Ames Research Center, Calif.
- Members of the media are invited to tour a new lunar landing simulation at NASA’s Ames Research Center in California’s Silicon Valley on Thursday, Oct.
- In addition to providing economic benefits and advancing scientific discovery through its Moon missions, NASA will establish an enduring human presence on the lunar surface and build on the agency’s foundation for the first crewed mission to Mars.
- The SpaceX Dragon capsule Crew 11 returns early to Earth from space due to an astronaut’s medical issue as seen during reentry over Los Angeles, California on January 15, 2026 carrying four International Space Station (ISS) NASA astronauts Mike Fincke and Zena Cardman, Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) astronaut Kimiya Yui, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Oleg Platonov.
- Former astronaut Buzz Aldrin (left) and Anca Faur attend the 16th Annual Living Legends of Aviation Awards at The Beverly Hilton Hotel on Jan.
- 20, 1930, in Glen Ridge, New Jersey, the only son and youngest of three children of Edwin Aldrin and wife Marion, whose maiden name was Moon.
- He’s just one of four living moonwalkers and the oldest remaining astronaut still making trips around the sun.
- Marine colonel, he was selected as a NASA astronaut in 2004.
- “This test flight will enable us to prove we can carry out highly choreographed operations with our partners across hardware interfaces, software propulsion systems and life support elements with crew in the high-stakes space environment,” Jeremy Parsons, NASA’s Artemis program manager, said during NASA’s announcement on Tuesday.
- Bresnik has helped oversee development and testing of spacecraft for the Artemis program as an assistant to the chief of the Astronaut Office, which manages astronaut training and operations.