The four-member crew of the Orion spacecraft is completing its mission around the Moon and is set to splash down in the ocean near the coast of San Diego. The landing is scheduled for early Saturday morning.

The entire landing process, which begins with the separation of the European Service Module, takes approximately 42 minutes. Re-entry into Earth's atmosphere is considered the most dangerous part of the Artemis II mission.

Upon entering the visible atmosphere at approximately 120 kilometers above the Pacific Ocean, the spacecraft will be traveling at 38,000 km/h - fast enough to cover the distance from Los Angeles to New York in about 6 minutes.

Within seconds, temperatures on the 5-meter-wide heat shield will climb to approximately 2,760 degrees Celsius - roughly half the temperature of the Sun's surface - as the spacecraft rapidly decelerates in an electrically charged fireball of atmospheric friction.