NASA's Orion spacecraft begins journey back to Earth
In this image released by NASA on November 28, 2022, flight day 13, the Orion spacecraft reached its maximum distance from Earth (R rear) during the Artemis I Moon (C rear) mission when it was 268,563 miles (432,210kms) away from our home planet. Orion has now traveled farther than any other spacecraft built for humans.
NASA's Orion spacecraft has left its distant lunar orbit and is on its return journey back to Earth, according to NASA.
Orion conducted an engine burn on Thursday to propel the spacecraft out of its distant lunar orbit.
The burn is one of two maneuvers required ahead of Orion's splashdown in the Pacific Ocean on December 11, according to NASA.
The second will occur on December 5, when the spacecraft will fly 126.7 kilometers (79.2 miles) above the lunar surface and perform the return powered flyby burn, which will commit Orion on its course toward Earth.
Orion was launched onboard NASA's Space Launch System rocket on November 16 from NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida.
The Artemis I flight test is an uncrewed mission around the moon that will pave the way for a crewed flight test and future human lunar exploration as part of NASA's Artemis lunar program.
