Reid Wiseman Reveals What Moved Him to Tears Coming Back to Earth
After 10 days in the vacuum of space and a 24,000 mph "fireball" re-entry through Earth's atmosphere, Reid Wiseman didn't find his composure until he saw a cross on a stranger's collar.
During a NASA briefing on Thursday, the Artemis II Commander opened up about the emotional toll of the 695,000-mile journey. While the world saw a flawless technical execution, Wiseman described a mission filled with "otherworldly" sights and a deeply personal tribute that left him speechless.
The Naming of Crater Carroll During Artemis II Mission
Perhaps the most significant moment of the mission occurred 250,000 miles from Earth. Wiseman's crewmates - Victor Glover, Christina Koch, and Jeremy Hansen - hatched a secret plan to name a lunar crater after Wiseman's late wife, Carroll, who died of cancer in 2020.
"I thought it was the most beautiful thing I'd heard in my entire life," Wiseman said. "What man on this planet deserves a gift like that, to have your crew be so thoughtful and to do something so caring and so deep and so meaningful."
Reid Wiseman Said He 'Just Broke Down'
The mission ended with a high-stakes descent. Because of a known design flaw in the Orion heat shield, the crew was hyper-aware of every noise and mechanism as they streaked through the atmosphere.
NEW: Artemis II Commander Reid Wiseman reflects on being MOVED to tears by the Christian cross after returning to Earth from the historic expedition:
— Fox News (@FoxNews) April 16, 2026
"When I got back on the on the ship - I'm not really a religious person - but there was just no other avenue for me to explain… pic.twitter.com/yk2JBIkxrN
Shortly after splashdown and medical evaluation on a U.S. Navy ship, Wiseman requested a visit from the ship's chaplain. "I'm not a religious person," Wiseman admitted. "But when that man walked in... I saw the cross on his collar, and I just broke down in tears. It's very hard to fully grasp what we just went through."
Accomplishments on Artemis II Mission
The crew notched historic firsts, including the first human view of a solar eclipse from behind the moon. Wiseman recalled the moment the sun vanished behind the lunar disk: "I turned to Victor and I said, ‘I don't think humanity has evolved to the point of being able to comprehend what we were looking at right now.'"
Now back in Houston, the crew is beginning the long process of medical debriefs and readjusting to gravity - a transition Christina Koch described as "visceral joy," even as she admitted she still wakes up feeling as though she's floating.
This story was originally published by Men's Journal on Apr 17, 2026, where it first appeared in the News section. Add Men's Journal as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
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This story was originally published April 17, 2026 at 4:30 AM.