{"id":82976,"date":"2026-04-12T00:01:00","date_gmt":"2026-04-12T06:01:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.opinionpublica.tv\/portada\/?p=82976"},"modified":"2026-04-11T19:55:27","modified_gmt":"2026-04-12T01:55:27","slug":"artemis-ii-crew-reunites-with-families-and-fellow-nasa-astronauts","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.opinionpublica.tv\/portada\/artemis-ii-crew-reunites-with-families-and-fellow-nasa-astronauts\/","title":{"rendered":"Artemis II crew reunites with families and fellow NASA astronauts"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"Artemis<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Compared with going to the moon and back, the flight from San Diego to Houston was a small hop.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Yet for the four crew members of NASA\u2019s Artemis II, who had traveled more than 700,000 miles on the first trip by humanity into deep space in more than half a century, flying to Texas was an emotional last leg of their journey as they reunited with friends and family on Saturday afternoon.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI have absolutely no idea what to say,\u201d Reid Wiseman, the mission\u2019s commander, said, drawing laughter from the audience during a welcome-back ceremony.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Artemis II astronauts \u2014 Mr. Wiseman, along with Victor Glover and Christina Koch of NASA and Jeremy Hansen of the Canadian Space Agency \u2014 sat on a stage at Ellington Field, a small airport in Houston near NASA\u2019s Johnson Space Center.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It was less than a day after they were plucked out of the Pacific Ocean at the end of a successful 10-day mission that zipped around the moon without landing and then returned to Earth.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cTwenty hours ago, the Earth was that big out the window,\u201d Mr. Wiseman said, his hands indicating something about the size of a basketball, \u201cand we were doing Mach 39. And here we are back at Ellington, at home.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Space officials like Jared Isaacman, the NASA administrator, and Lisa Campbell, the president of the Canadian Space Agency, gave valedictory speeches, as did politicians like Brian Babin, the Republican representative whose congressional district contains the NASA Johnson Space Center.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mr. Isaacman noted that, a couple of months ago, Mr. Wiseman had said in an interview that he hoped Artemis II would eventually be forgotten, overshadowed by much greater space achievements to come.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cBut I\u2019m very sorry to disappoint you all,\u201d Mr. Isaacman said. \u201cArtemis II will always be remembered.\u00bb<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He thanked the astronauts. \u201cThank you for showing us the moon again,\u201d Mr. Isaacman said. \u201cThank you for showing us planet Earth again.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Each of the astronauts spoke. Each touched on the themes of unity and humanity sharing a planet.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mr. Wiseman noted how difficult it was for the families back on Earth, including his two daughters.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThis was not easy, being 200,000 plus miles away from home,\u201d he said. \u201cBefore you launch, it feels like it\u2019s the greatest dream on Earth, and when you\u2019re out there, you just want to get back to your families and your friends.\u00bb<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He added that \u201cIt\u2019s a special thing to be a human, and it\u2019s a special thing to be on planet Earth.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The four astronauts then gave each other a group hug, one of many.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Victor Glover, the pilot, spoke briefly. \u201cI\u2019m afraid to start talking,\u201d he said. \u201cI have not processed what we just did, and I\u2019m afraid to start even trying.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He thanked God, as he had eight days earlier from space. \u201cBecause of seeing what we saw, doing what we did, and being with who I was with, it\u2019s too big to be in one body,\u201d Mr. Glover said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ms. Koch talked about what the word \u201ccrew\u201d meant to her now \u2014 \u201ca group that is in it all the time, no matter what\u201d \u2014 and about how, when she looked at Earth from the neighborhood of the moon, it \u201cwas just this lifeboat hanging undisturbingly in the universe.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

She concluded, \u201cThere\u2019s one new thing I know, and that is: Planet Earth, you are a crew.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mr. Hansen said that, if people liked how the Artemis II astronauts worked together, that joy was something everyone could share.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI would suggest to you that, when you look up here, you\u2019re not looking at us,\u201d he said. \u201cWe are a mirror reflecting you. And if you like what you see, then just look a little deeper.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n