Artemis II commander Reid Wiseman described a moment of panic during the historic moon mission when his crew briefly feared they had overshot their return point, according to a speech at the Starmus VIII festival.
A Moment of Panic in the Deep
Wiseman, speaking at the Starmus VIII festival in Tenerife, Spain, recalled watching the spacecraft’s odometer climb past the designated return point. I saw it hit 219,667, and I thought, 'Great, this is the farthest we will be from Earth, and the next number I will see will be 219,666—we'll be going home,'
he said. But about three minutes later, I didn't see 219,666; I saw 219,668.
It went up.
I was like, 'Huh?
Details First Crewed Moon Mission Since 1972
The Artemis II mission, which launched from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center on April 1, marked the first crewed flight of the Orion capsule and the first human journey to the moon since Apollo 17 in 1972. Wiseman, who traveled farther from Earth than any human before, described the view of the moon and Earth during the mission. Tiny Earth was as big as your thumbnail,
he recalled, noting the stark contrast between the moon’s gray surface and the vibrant blue of Earth.
During a discussion at Johns Hopkins University’s Bloomberg Center, Wiseman reflected on the mission’s emotional weight. “I think if we had different words, we could use them, but those are the words that we have in this language to describe what it feels like. And there’s nothing else that we felt other than we wanted to get home to our families and our friends on this planet.” The crew’s shared experience, he said, created an extremely tight bond, especially during the 45 minutes they were cut off from Earth while traveling behind the moon.
A Gift from the Moon
Wiseman also shared a personal moment from the mission when he presented a Maryland flag that had flown around the moon to Johns Hopkins University President Ron Daniels. We would love for you to have [this flag] and put it in, maybe—it doesn't have to be a place of honor, but a place where maybe the students will come by and be a little motivated by it,
he said. Daniels accepted the gift, promising to display it in the university’s new Bloomberg Student Center. We're so proud of you,
he added, acknowledging the mission’s significance.
The Artemis II mission, which lasted nearly 10 days, was a milestone in space exploration, showcasing the engineering rigor of NASA and its partners.