Day 064, orbit 0994 — #WorldAmateurRadioDay "Huge thanks to the ARISS educational programme teams and to all the radio amateurs who create a direct link between young people and astronauts, turning space exploration into a personal and memorable experience."
– @esa.int astronaut Sophie Adenot
"Day 063, Orbit 0979 — Huge thanks to the ground teams for helping us place a ship-to-ship call to the spacecraft of our NASA & CSA friends as they came back from their mission around the Moon – the first of its kind in 53 years!" says @esa.int astronaut Sophie Adenot.
🔗 www.esa.int/ESA_Multimed...
NASA will support @esa.int's Rosalind Franklin mission. Scheduled to launch in 2028, our Mars rover will be the first ever to drill up to two metres below the Red Planet's surface, searching for signs of past or present life on Mars 🔴 go.nasa.gov/4vAIeX1
"Day 062, orbit 0963 – DYK we get 16 sunrises/sunsets every day as we orbit Earth? They come & go quickly, but the colours are so intense! This billowing cloud, captured at sunset, stood out w/ its incredible shades of orange", says @esa.int astronaut Sophie Adenot.
📷 NASA/ESA – S. Adenot #εpsilon
Just opened: five tonnes of science and supplies! @esa.int astronaut Sophie Adenot and NASA astronauts Jack Hathaway, Jessica Meir and Chris Williams take a moment to capture the occasion as they first open the Cygnus NG‑24 cargo spacecraft.
🔗 www.esa.int/ESA_Multimed...
📷 Roscosmos/ A. Fedyaev
📷 Roscosmos/ A. Fedyaev (1)
NASA/ESA – S. Adenot (2, 3, 4)
"Day 060, Orbit 0934 – Welcoming a cargo vehicle is such a special experience: you know you’ll be receiving care packages from teams and families, along with a wealth of scientific experiments – and maybe even some fresh fruits too (fingers crossed!)", says @esa.int astronaut Sophie Adenot.
Artemis II just took humankind farther than ever before. 🚀
Our European Service Module sent Orion around the Moon and safely back home, providing power, propulsion and life support for the crew.
Relive the mission with our highlights video. 👇
@exploration.esa.int
Did you know the high‑resolution photos can be found on
Sophie Adenot's #Flickr account?
🔗 flic.kr/p/2s79GLs
"Day 059, orbit 0912 – 👏 Huge congratulations to everyone who ran the #Paris Marathon!
The photo below was taken on April 9 – and it looks like café terraces were pretty busy 🌷☀", says ESA astronaut Sophie Adenot.
📷 NASA/ESA – S. Adenot
#ParisMarathon #εpsilon
"Day 057, orbit 0896 – Sunday morning science with Sophie, episode 3: Weighing yourself in weightlessness, part 2 ⚖️.
The device used in this video to measure mass is called the Mass Measurement Device (MMD) or Измеритель Масс (ИМ) in Russian!", explains @esa.int astronaut Sophie Adenot 👇
Forward to the Moon 👉🌕
Our lunar team lead Sara Pastor tells you about what's next for Moon exploration 🚀
blogs.esa.int/orion/2026/0...
Shaun the Sheep on the left in his blue suit with the ESA logo and the Artemis II rocket on its launchpad in the distance on the right
Shaun the Sheep on the left admiring the plume left behind in the clear blue sky by the Artemis II rocket launch
🐑 After flying on Baaartemis I, Shaun the Sheep returned to NASA's Kennedy Space Center to cheer on the #Artemis II crew 🚀
Read his diary 📖
blogs.esa.int/orion/2026/0...
"Day 057, orbit 0886 – Fun timelapse of the last activities on the Cygnus NG-23 cargo spacecraft before it was detached from the ISS and released into Earth orbit using the Canadarm2 robotic arm. The next Cygnus cargo ship, NG-24, launched earlier today!", says ESA astronaut Sophie Adenot. #εpsilon
NASA's Orion spacecraft and its crew splashed down safely in a deep blue Pacific Ocean, marking the successful end of the Artemis II mission.
🎉#Artemis II update: Integrity is back on Earth! At 01:07 BST/02:07 CEST, Orion and its crew splashed down in the Pacific Ocean.
🚀Our European Service Module propelled Orion over 1 million km through deep space, before burning up in Earth's atmosphere, its job complete 🔥
www.esa.int/Science_Expl...
Huge cheers from our international teams in the Orion Mission Evaluation Room at NASA’s Johnson Space Center 🥳
Cheers from the joint Orion team in the Mission Evaluation Room at NASA’s Johnson Space Center after a successful separation 🥳
🛰️ Our European Service Module has successfully separated from Orion's crew module!
🚀 After propelling the spacecraft over 1 million km in deep space, it will now burn up in Earth's atmosphere, as the astronauts continue their journey home 🌍
#Artemis II update: 20 minutes until crew and service module separation 🛰️
Our European engineers gathered in the Orion Mission Evaluation Room at NASA's Johnson Space Center earlier, ready to monitor all systems 🌕
📸:ESA-M. Cowan
View of half-illuminated Earth, blue surface and white clouds, from one of European Service Module's solar array cams, the service module is on the left in partial shadow.
✅ #Artemis II update: Day 10, Orion travelling at 15 884 km/h, 31 182 km from Earth and 359 527 km from the Moon. View now from one of European Service Module's solar array cams (pic: NASA). Safe travels, Integrity! Track at www.nasa.gov/missions/art...
@exploration.esa.int
#Artemis II question: why does Orion speed up and slow down throughout the lunar journey? 🌕
Our European Service Module propulsion lead Tobias Langener tells you in 20 seconds ⛰️
ESA and Airbus on console in the Orion Mission Evaluation Room
The ESM spacecraft console in the Orion Mission Evaluation Room
The ESM propulsion console in Orion's Mission Evaluation Room
ESA at the ESM spacecraft console in Orion's Mission Evaluation Room
Behind the scenes at NASA's Johnson Space Center 👀
📈 @esa.int and Airbus engineers in the Orion Mission Evaluation Room are monitoring data from the European Service Module ahead of its separation from the crew module 🔀.
📸: ESA-M. Cowan
Thanks for the shout-out Reid! Safe travels from your European friends at @esa.int and Airbus 💞
Orion and its crew heading back to Earth on flight day 10 of the Artemis mission. On the right a crescent Earth, on the left Orion and our European Service Module, with the main engine and auxiliary thrusters and a solar array visible.
One final burn 🔥
Our European Service Module reaction control system engines fired for 8 seconds for the last trajectory correction burn of #Artemis II, crucially adjusting speed and orientation before reentry in just a few hours 🚀
🌙 Managing the Artemis orchestra
Our @esa.int European Service Module managers take you behind the scenes of a lunar programme 🚀
blogs.esa.int/orion/2026/0...
Earth getting bigger, seen from cameras on the European Service Module on 10 April, as the Artemis II mission approaches its conclusion. Orion seen on left with a solar array wing across top of the image.
💻 #WatchLive: the final stages of the #Artemis II mission from 23:30 BST/00:30 CEST on youtube.com/watch?v=nfhD...
Expected times in CEST:
🚀01:33 Separation of European Service Module
🌠01:53 Crew Module reentry begins
🪂02:03 Parachute deployment
💦02:07 Splashdown
@exploration.esa.int
Orion during flight day 7 of the Artemis II mission. The European Service Module is visible on the left, with the main engine and 8 auxiliary thrusters and 2 solar arrays.
🚀 #Artemis II update: the 8 auxiliary engines on our European Service Module burned for about 9 seconds to fine-tune Orion's trajectory on the way back to Earth 🌍.
One more trajectory correction burn is planned tomorrow, a few hours before the crew and service modules separate 🔀.
"Day 055, orbit 0855 – The Richat structure, in Mauritania, is unmistakable from above and one of the most frequently photographed landmarks from orbit! It is about 40 km in diameter (...) a real treasure trove for geologists!", explains ESA astronaut Sophie Adenot. #εpsilon
📷 NASA/ESA – S. Adenot
"Four crew members. One spacecraft. One global team." 🌍
From Mission Control’s Mission Evaluation Room, international experts such as @esa.int's Luca Fossati support the European Service Module - supplying Orion with propulsion, power, air and water for Artemis II
(📽️NASA) @exploration.esa.int
