John Paul M. Joaquin Science 12.02.2022 00:Dec AM EST

NASA’s Orion Spacecraft Is Almost Earthbound — When Will It Get Home?

NASA's Orion spacecraft has taken its first step on its journey back home.

The space agency recently announced that its Orion spacecraft had left its distant lunar retrograde orbit in preparation for its return to Earth after spending more than two weeks in space.

The Orion spacecraft was previously attached to NASA's Artemis 1 Space Launch System (SLS) rocket when it first successfully launched on Nov. 16 following numerous tests and repairs.

(Photo : NASA)
A camera mounted on one of Orion’s solar arrays snapped this image of our Moon as the spacecraft prepared to exit distant retrograde orbit during the Artemis I mission.

NASA Orion Spacecraft Status Details

NASA mentioned that its Orion spacecraft left the distant lunar retrograde orbit it took to leave the moon through a successful departure burn of its main engine on the European Service Module at 3:53 PM CST. The space agency added that it fired its main engine, a modified orbital maneuvering system engine created by Aerojet Rocketdyne, for almost two minutes to set it on course for one last lunar flyby before going home.

During this final flyby, NASA will have Orion perform a trajectory correction burn at around 9:53 PM CST using its auxiliary thrusters to fine-tune its path around the moon.

This departure burn changed the spacecraft's velocity by about 454 ft. per second, allowing it to position itself to escape the moon's gravity and begin its journey home. It is also one of the two maneuvers the spacecraft needs to do to return home via splashdown in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of California.

NASA expects that the second maneuver will occur on Dec. 5, when Orion will fly around 79 miles above the lunar surface and execute the return flyby burn to set it on course towards Earth.

Meanwhile, NASA's teams continued thermal tests of the star trackers the spacecraft has to navigate space in their eighth and final planned test. These tests help NASA experts understand star tracker findings correlated to thruster findings.

The Orion spacecraft is traveling at a steady 2,300 mph around the moon around 4:30 PM CST on Dec. 1, with it traveling 237,600 miles from Earth while being 52,900 miles from the moon.

When Will The Orion Spacecraft Return Home?

If all goes according to plan, the Orion spacecraft will splash down in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of California on Dec. 11. NASA and the US Navy are already training their personnel on the spacecraft's recovery operation, marking the end of the Artemis 1 mission, according to a Space.com report.

You may recall that the Artemis 1 mission doesn't have a crew, allowing NASA to test if its Orion spacecraft and SLS rocket are ready for the demands of regular launches. Its next mission, Artemis 2, will take a few crew members around the moon for the first time since 1972, per a separate Space.com article.

Once that mission is successful, the Artemis 3 mission will come next, with it taking humanity back to the surface of the moon since NASA's Apollo 17 mission in 1972, per NASA.