The Artemis II mission has already hit a landmark achievement by taking humans farther from Earth than ever. Astronauts Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, Christina Koch and Jeremy Hansen have successfully flown past the Moon and conducted a bunch of scientific experiments as well as studies inside Integrity, the name for the Orion spacecraft. Now, they are on their way back and are facing one of the biggest hurdles of the mission – landing back on Earth.
Returning from the Moon isn’t a simple descent – it is a high-stakes physics experiment where the spacecraft must transform into a meteor and survive. When the Orion spacecraft hits Earth’s atmosphere at 25,000 mph, it carries enough kinetic energy to power a small city for hours. To ensure the astronauts inside remain cool, comfortable and safe, while the outside of their ship turns into glowing plasma, NASA relies on a suite of 21st-century technologies designed to combat extreme heat, crushing gravity, and the unpredictable nature of the Pacific Ocean.
So here is how the Orion spacecraft will rely on cutting-edge tech to navigate the most dangerous phase of deep-space exploration.
1. Avcoat shield of fire
The first and most vital line of protection is the 16.5-foot diameter heat shield bolted to Orion’s bottom. As the capsule slams into the atmosphere, the air cannot move out of the way fast enough, thus creating a shockwave that heats the surrounding gas to 5,000 degrees Fahrenheit.
To survive this stage, Orion uses a material called Avcoat. Unlike the metal skin of an airplane, Avcoat is ablative. This means it is designed to char and flake away. As the outer layer of the shield melts and vaporises, it carries the intense thermal energy away from the spacecraft, keeping the cabin at a steady room temperature. NASA’s modern engineering has refined this Apollo-era material into 3D-machined blocks, allowing for a more uniform and predictable ‘burn’ than ever before.
2. The ‘Skip’ manoeuvre for g-forces
If Orion were to dive straight into the atmosphere from the Moon, the G-forces would be high enough to injure the crew. To solve this, Orion uses a sophisticated “skip entry” manoeuvre.
Think of it like skipping a stone across a pond. While travelling at lightning speeds, the spacecraft dips into the upper atmosphere to bleed off some speed, and then uses its aerodynamic lift to “hop” back up into space briefly before making its final descent. This clever manoeuvre extends the landing range and, most importantly, breaks the reentry into two smaller braking events. This keeps the physical toll on the astronauts within a safe limit, ensuring they don’t experience the full, bone-crushing weight of reentry all at once.
3. Smart guidance in radio blackout
As the plasma field builds around the capsule, it creates a “blackout zone” where radio waves cannot pass. For several minutes, the astronauts cannot talk to Mission Control.
During this silence, Orion’s onboard flight computers take total control. Using advanced inertial measurement units and star trackers, the ship’s guidance system makes micro-adjustments to its orientation using small thrusters. This ensures the heat shield stays perfectly angled. If the shield tilts even a few degrees the wrong way, the heat could reach the unprotected sides of the capsule, leading to a catastrophic failure.
4. A well-choreographed ballet of parachutes
Once the atmosphere has slowed Orion down to 325 mph, the heat shield’s job is done, but the impact with the surface would still be fatal. To reach a survivable splashdown speed, Orion deploys a sequence of 11 different parachutes.
The process begins with the jettisoning of the Forward Bay Cover, followed by two drogue chutes that stabilise the spinning capsule. Finally, three massive main parachutes, large enough to cover a football field, unfurl. These chutes are made of Kevlar and Nylon, and are designed with redundant lines. Hence, Orion can land safely even if one of the main chutes fails to open – a tech safeguard that prioritises human life over mechanical perfection.
5. The active up-righting system
The action doesn’t end even when the capsule hits the water. If Orion splashes down at a weird angle, it could flip upside down, leaving the astronauts suspended from their seats in a “Stable 2” position (pointed toward the ocean floor).
To prevent this, Orion is equipped with a Crew Module Up-righting System (CMUS). This consists of five bright orange airbags on the tip of the capsule. Within seconds of splashdown, high-pressure gas tanks inflate these bags, forcing the capsule to flip upright. This ensures that the astronauts can breathe fresh air through the vents and makes it easier for Navy recovery teams to spot the bright green dye markers released into the water.
With all these systems in place, NASA plans to land the astronauts of the Artemis II mission safely back on Earth.