The Artemis II crew is re-entering Earth's atmosphere at 24,000 mph and NASA says despite a known heat shield flaw the astronauts will be just fine

NASA is confident that the Artemis II heat shield will hold up during its re-entry to Earth despite it having a known flaw. 

The Artemis II astronauts blasted off the 10-day long history-making mission on April 1. 

The team, made up of NASA’s Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, Christina Koch and Canadian astronaut Jeremy Hansen, have traveled further into space than anyone has ever been, and photographed parts of the dark side of the Moon that has never been seen before. 

However, experts have warned that the most dangerous part of the mission could still be ahead, as the spacecraft makes it way back to Earth.

The heat shield has undergone extensive testing, but one former astronaut has concerns

The spacecraft will hit speeds of up to 24,000 miles per hour as Astemis II returns to Earth on Friday. 

On the bottom of the spacecraft, there’s a a critical component at the bottom of the craft that protects and the team inside from the blistering temperatures at it travels through the Earth’s atmosphere. 

However, concerns have been raised about the heat shield. 

Following the uncrewed Artemis I mission in late 2022, the Orion spacecraft was discovered to have experienced unexpected damage and char loss. 

In response, NASA officials launched an invesigtation and further analysis and testing was carried out. 

The findings were finalized in December 2023, and NASA made the decision to keep the same design for the heat shield for the Artemis II spacecraft. 

Speaking in January, NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman said the the extensive testing of the heat shield ‘got us comfortable that we can undertake this mission with lots of margin to spare’. 

NASA also said the temperature data from inside Artemis I showed that it remained in the mid-70s-Fahrenheit during the heat shield issues and that it had ‘exceeded expectations’.

The Artemis II astronauts are also confident in the heat shield.

“We have actually been there every single step of the way of the spacecraft being built,” Wiseman said last year.

However, former NASA astronaut Charlie Camarda has raised concerns. 

In an interview with The New York Times, he said the US space agency ‘should never have launched Artemis II’. 

“I’m going to pray that nothing happens,” he said in an interview in the days leading up to the launch. 

NASA boss Jared Issacman says there is ‘no plan B’

Aretmis II is set to splash down off the San Diego coast a little after 5pm PT on Friday. 

Prior to that the spacecraft will be hurtling at up to 24,000mph and enduring temperatures of almost 5,000F. 

In a press conference on Tuesday, Issacman was asked about the heat shield and told reporters it ‘had to work’. 

 “In terms of what keeps me up at night, my blood pressure will be elevated until they’re under parachutes in the water off the West Coast,” he said.

“There’s no plan B there. That is the thermal protection system. The heat shield has to work.”

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