Artemis II Heat Shield After Splashdown

Following the Artemis II splashdown on April 10, 2026, U.S. Navy divers captured underwater imagery of the Orion spacecraft’s heat shield. In the following months, NASA conducted a rigorous analysis to determine if the thermal protection system effectively safeguarded the crew and Orion systems during reentry into Earth’s atmosphere. This detailed evaluation was performed to confirm the performance of the thermal protection system after the spacecraft successfully returned to Earth from its mission.