World
Artemis II’s moon-traveling astronauts return home to cheers after a record-breaking trip
HOUSTON (AP) — Still marveling over their moon mission, the Artemis II astronauts received a thunderous welcome home Saturday from hundreds who took part in NASA’s lunar comeback that set a record for deep space travel.
The crew of four arrived at Ellington Field near NASA’s Johnson Space Center and Mission Control, flying in from San Diego, where they splashed down just offshore the evening before.
After a quick reunion with their spouses and children, commander Reid Wiseman, pilot Victor Glover, Christina Koch and Canada’s Jeremy Hansen took the hangar stage, surrounded by space center workers and other invited guests. They were introduced by NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman, among the first to greet them aboard the recovery ship Friday.
“Ladies and gentlemen, your Artemis II crew,” Isaacman said to a standing ovation.
The jubilant crowd included flight directors and the launch director, Orion capsule and exploration system managers, high-ranking military officers, members of Congress, the space agency’s entire blue-suited astronaut corps and even retired ones, and more.
Their homecoming was poignant: They returned to NASA’s Houston base on the 56th anniversary of the launch of Apollo 13, whose “Houston, we’ve had a problem” refrain turned a near-disaster into triumph.
“This was not easy.” an emotional Wiseman said. “Before you launch, it feels like it’s the greatest dream on Earth. And when you’re out there, you just want to get back to your families and your friends. It’s a special thing to be a human, and it’s a special thing to be on planet Earth.”
Added Glover: “I have not processed what we just did and I’m afraid to start even trying.”
Hansen said the four of them embodied love “and extracting joy out of that” as the four joined together to stand in a row, embracing one another. “When you look up here, you’re not looking at us. We are a mirror reflecting you. And if you like what you see, then just look a little deeper. This is you.”
During Artemis II’s nearly 10-day mission, the astronauts voyaged deeper into space than the moon explorers of decades past and captured views of the lunar far side never witnessed before by human eyes. A total solar eclipse added to the cosmic wonder.
On their record-breaking flyby, the astronauts reached a maximum 252,756 miles (406,771 kilometers) from Earth before hanging a U-turn behind the moon, eclipsing Apollo’s 13 distance record.
The mission also revealed a new side of our planet with an Earthset photo, showing our Blue Marble setting behind the gray, pockmarked moon. The image echoed the famous Earthrise shot from 1968 taken by the world’s first lunar visitors, Apollo 8.
“Honestly, what struck me wasn’t necessarily just Earth, it was all the blackness around it. Earth was just this lifeboat hanging undisturbedly in the universe,” Koch said. “Planet Earth you are a crew.”
Despite the accomplishments, Artemis II astronauts had to contend with a more mundane problem — a malfunctioning space toilet. NASA promised a design fix before longer moon-landing missions.
Wiseman, Glover, Koch and Hansen were the first humans to fly to the moon since Apollo 17 closed out NASA’s first exploration era in 1972. Twenty-four astronauts flew to the moon during Apollo, including 12 moonwalkers.
Apollo 13 commander Jim Lovell — who also flew on Apollo 8 — cheered the Artemis II crew on in a wake-up message recorded before he died last summer.
It was crucial for NASA that Artemis II go well. The space agency is already preparing for next year’s Artemis III, which will see a new crew practice docking its capsule with a lunar lander in orbit around Earth. That will set the stage for the all-important Artemis IV moon landing in 2028, when two astronauts attempt a touchdown near the lunar south pole.
“The long wait is over. After a brief 53-year intermission, the show goes on,” Isaacman said.
___
The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Department of Science Education and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. The AP is solely responsible for all content.
The UK says it’s banning access to social media for those under age 16.
The United Kingdom is the latest country to put in place tough restrictions for young people who use social media.
Prime Minister Keir Starmer says his government will ban access to those under the age of 16.
The plan will also include further restrictions on gaming platforms and livestreaming apps.
This follows moves from other nations that have introduced similar measures in recent years.
While the move has been widely welcomed by many, critics say a blanket ban will be ineffective and difficult to enforce.
But will this policy work? And how will it be enforced?
Presenter: Scott McLean
Guests:
Charlotte Armitage – Psychologist, psychotherapist and author of the book Generation Zombie: Why Devices Are Harming Our Children and What We Can Do About It
Paolo Gerbaudo – Sociologist and political theorist at Complutense University in Madrid
Bhargav Srinivasa Desikan – AI and tech lead at the Autonomy Institute and a doctoral researcher at the Oxford Internet Institute
Published On 15 Jun 2026
new video loaded: Russian Attack on Kyiv Damages Historic Orthodox Cathedral
By Monika Cvorak
June 15, 2026
Influential Artist David Hockney Dies at Age 88
1:31
Disorder Breaks Out After Belfast Knife Attack
1:47
Suspect Arrested in Belfast Knife Attack
1:53
Several Workers Injured After Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner Collapses
0:38
Protests Over Murder Case in Britain Turn Violent
2:10
Albanians Protest Luxury Resort Linked to Kushner
0:58
Today’s Videos
U.S.
Politics
Immigration
NY Region
Science
Business
Culture
Books
Wellness
World
Africa
Americas
Asia
South Asia
Donald Trump
Middle East Crisis
Russia-Ukraine Crisis
Visual Investigations
Opinion Video
Advertisement
SKIP ADVERTISEMENT
NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles!
The Islamic Republic of Iran’s state-controlled media is promoting the memorandum of understanding with the U.S. to re-open the Strait of Hormuz and address Tehran’s illicit nuclear weapons program as its triumph over the U.S. and Israel.
The major diplomatic breakthrough, known as by its initials MOU, is slated to be sealed at a signing ceremony on June 19 in Switzerland. Iranian state-controlled TV boasted that the “U.S. is forced to sign agreement to end the war.”
The State Department has classified Iran as the world’s worst state-sponsor of terrorism and its state-controlled media apparatus is notorious, according to Iran experts, for spreading anti-U.S. propoganda.
TRUMP ANNOUNCES PEACE DEAL WITH IRAN, DECLARES STRAIT OF HORMUZ WILL REOPEN: ‘LET THE OIL FLOW!’
A woman walks past a billboard showing a military hand holding the Strait of Hormuz with Farsi text which reads, “In Iran’s hands forever,” “Trump couldn’t do a damn thing,” “The control of Strait of Hormuz will be Iran’s forever,” in Vanak Square, in northern Tehran, Iran, on April 16, 2026. (Vahid Salemi/AP)
Iran’s Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi said, according to the country’s Tasnim News Agency, “This memorandum does not mean trusting the enemy; it has been written with active distrust. We will monitor the implementation of U.S. commitments.”
Iran’s Islamic Republic News Agency (IRNA) reported that the nation’s Foreign Minister, Abbas Araghchi, “emphasized that national cohesion and the active presence of the people serve as important capital and a primary pillar of Iran’s diplomatic authority.”
Araghchi said, according to IRNA,” that the true image of Iran’s power on the global stage stems not only from its military capabilities but also from national cohesion, resilience, and the active involvement of its people.”
Members of security forces watch over the crowd during a funeral procession held for IRGC Navy Chief Alireza Tangsiri, alongside other senior naval commanders and their families who were killed in US-Israeli strikes in late March, on April 1, 2026 in Tehran, Iran. Majid Saeedi/Getty Images (Majid Saeedi/Getty Images)
Tehran’s top diplomat stated that the,”Iranian nation achieved not only tactical victories during the 12-day imposed war in June last year and the recent war, but also important strategic accomplishments whose impact can be observed in both regional and global equations.”
President Trump announced some of the elements of the MOU on Sunday. He wrote on social media. “The Deal with the Islamic Republic of Iran is now complete.” He noted that “I hereby fully authorize the toll free opening of the Strait of Hormuz, and, simultaneously herewith, authorize the immediate removal of the United States Naval blockade. Ships of the World, start your engines. Let the oil flow!”
IRAN HOLDS FUNERAL FOR TOP COMMANDERS, NUCLEAR SCIENTISTS KILLED IN ISRAELI OPERATION
There are additional components of the MOU that have not been confirmed, including the timetable for sanctions relief and the end of Iran’s enrichment of uranium for the construction of nuclear weapons.
Iran’s Supreme National Security Council said in a Sunday statement that all military operations across multiple fronts, including those in Lebanon, will cease “immediately and permanently” starting Sunday night.
A woman is seen holding an Iranian flag during a religious ceremony during Eid al-Adha on May 26, 2026 in Qom, Iran. (Majid Saeedi/Getty Images)
Lisa Daftari, the founder and editor-in-chief of The Foreign Desk told Fox News Digital that, “Inside Iran, state media is selling this as a victory, not a compromise. The message on Iranian television is that a ‘strong and proud’ Islamic Republic has forced Washington to recognize its control over the Strait of Hormuz and to ease military pressure, while Tehran supposedly gives up very little in return.”
Daftari, a leading expert on the Islamic Republic, added “The Islamic Republic’s very DNA is built on delay, deceit and deniability. Every agreement it has signed has been treated as a tactical pause on the way to more missiles, more proxies and more leverage, not a real change in behavior. So while it’s important to read the fine print of this new deal, it’s even more important to remember who is signing it. A system that survives by holding deadly weapons over its neighbors and by lying to its own people is not suddenly going to become a trustworthy partner.”
She concluded, “The Trump administration should assume from day one that Tehran will test every loophole, hide every capability it can, and resume its nuclear program, amass its drones and missiles, fund its deadly proxies while continuing to torture the Iranian people at home.”
A billboard showing a portrait of the late Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei looms over an empty square in Tehran, Iran, on March 5, 2026. (Vahid Salemi/AP Photo)
Vice President JD Vance told Fox News’ “The Big Weekend Show” Sunday that “I think it’s a big moment for the United States of America. Thanks, of course, to the President’s leadership and the hard work of the entire team. Three things that I think are important for the American people just to appreciate about what this deal does for all of us as Americans.”
LETHAL ELITE ‘BLACK-CLAD’ KILL SQUAD GUARDS IRAN’S NEW SUPREME LEADER MOJTABA KHAMENEI
He stressed that” Number one, this is the immediate opening of the straits of Hormuz and, of course, the lifting of the naval blockade that we’ve had on Iran along with it. The number two thing that it means is that Iran will never have a nuclear weapon and not just pursue a nuclear weapon for procure or try to buy a nuclear weapon as well.”
Cameron Khansarinia, the chief of staff for Reza Pahlavi, the leader of the Iranian democratic opposition and exiled former crown prince of Iran, wrote on x: “Deal or no deal, the people of Iran will not stop the fight for freedom. Iran’s future has always been for Iranians for determine. And they will. With or without help, Iranians will topple the Islamic Republic. The fight continues. Prince Reza Pahlavi will lead Iran to freedom.”
An Iranian flag is placed amid rubble next to a destroyed residential building near Ferdowsi Square in Tehran on March 3, 2026. (ATTA KENARE / AFP via Getty Images)
Another leading Iranian opposition group’s leader, Maryam Rajavi, President-elect of the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI), said in a statement that, “The Iranian Resistance, which for nearly five decades has sought freedom and peace, welcomes any understanding to end the war and the suffering of the Iranian people. In Iran, no one except the remnants of the mullahs and the Shah has wanted or wants war.”
CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS APP
She added that “The effort to produce nuclear weapons, warmongering, and meddling in the countries of the region are part of the survival strategy of the religious fascism ruling Iran, and it will not abandon them as long as it can. War is this regime’s shield against popular uprisings, while peace and a ceasefire are, as Khomeini put it, like “poison” for it. The overthrow of the regime is the responsibility of the Iranian people and their organized Resistance. I reiterate once again that any international agreement to end the war must include an end to the execution of political prisoners and the killing of protesters.”
-
World4 minutes agoCan a social media ban protect young users?
-
News27 minutes agoAs Luigi Mangione’s lawyers head to court, support grows for the accused ‘vigilante’
-
Los Angeles, Ca2 hours agoWoman hospitalized in L.A. nearly 2 weeks with no ID found
-
Detroit, MI2 hours agoDetroit man arrested over investigation into stolen vehicle infotainment systems
-
Miami, FL2 hours agoSaudi Arabia vs. Uruguay kicks off Miami’s first World Cup match Monday night
-
San Francisco, CA2 hours agoSF moving July 4 fireworks show to Golden Gate Bridge
-
Dallas, TX2 hours ago5 most intriguing non-division games on the Cowboys schedule
-
Boston, MA3 hours agoHarvard Book Store to open Boston location near Faneuil Hall
