Artemis II astronauts make post-flight visit to ESA’s ESTEC

Artemis II astronauts visited ESTEC, ESA’s technical centre in the Netherlands, on 13 July 2026. ESA described the stop as the first in the crew’s post-flight visits.

During the visit, the astronauts went to the Eagle mission control room and met ESA specialists connected to the mission.

The visit took place on 13 July 2026 at ESTEC, which is ESA’s technical centre in the Netherlands. ESA said it was the first stop in the Artemis II astronauts’ post-flight visits.

On the day of the visit, the astronauts went to the Eagle mission control room and met ESA specialists.

ESA said the European Service Module was monitored around the clock throughout Artemis II.

Artemis II launched on 2026-04-01 and lasted 10 days. The mission was the first human Moon mission since Apollo 17.

The European Service Module supplied air and water for the crew. It has 4 solar arrays and travelled more than 1000000 kilometres during the mission.

ESA said the European Service Module was assembled by Airbus in Bremen with contributions from 13 countries, and it has now flown successfully on Artemis I and Artemis II.

For readers tracking the lunar industry, the visit highlights ESA’s operational role in Artemis II through the European Service Module and the teams supporting it from Europe.

It also connects a completed crewed lunar mission with the industrial and technical base behind it, including assembly in Bremen and contributions from 13 countries.

NASA and ESA are the organisations referenced in the visit and the European Service Module work.

ESA said the third European Service Module arrived at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in 2024. ESA also said Luca Parmitano is assigned as pilot on Artemis III and would become the first European to fly an Artemis mission.