'Welcome home, Artemis': Crew celebrates historic 10-day moon mission

The Orion crew module will be falling to Earth at over 24,000 mph when it encounters the atmosphere. As the atmosphere thickens, friction will slow the spacecraft. It will also create a lot of heat -- up to 5,000 degrees Fahrenheit, which is more than twice as hot as lava from a volcano -- turning Orion into a fireball.

Orion's heat shield, located on the underside of the spacecraft, will protect the spacecraft and its crew from the intense temperatures of reentry. Onboard maneuvering jets ensure Orion maintains the orientation required to keep the heat shield pointed toward Earth during reentry.

"Importantly, there's this coating on the outside that's meant to melt upon being heated rather than absorbing that energy," ABC News contributor and astrophysicist Hakeem Oluseyi said. "So, it's much in the same way that a car is meant to crumple in an accident rather than being a stiff object. You want to dissipate that energy. You need the energy to go somewhere that is not inside the capsule."

2:52

How Orion’s heat shield can withstand up to 5,000 degrees on reentryABC News contributor and astrophysicist Hakeem Oluseyi discusses the physics and science behind the Artemis II crew’s reentry to Earth.

ABCNews.com

Artemis II Commander Reid Wiseman gave a shoutout to teams around the world for their role in creating the Orion spacecraft.

"We just want to give a huge shoutout to that ESA [European Space Agency] Airbus team, to our friends in the Netherlands and Germany and at the Glenn Research Center," Wiseman said. "This vehicle powered us and propelled us from the Earth to the moon and back with extreme precision, and we are excited to be a part of your team."

-ABC News' Briana Alvarado

Orion completed its final return correction burn successfully at 2:53 p.m. ET.

This burn ensures the spacecraft maintains the proper trajectory back to Earth.

The crew and service module will separate and reveal the Orion heat shield at 7:33 p.m. ET.

-ABC News' Matthew Glasser

Splashdown remains tentatively scheduled for 8:07 p.m. ET on Friday, likely within 100 miles of the San Diego coast, according to NASA. However, the exact timing could still change depending on various conditions.

Weather-wise, it's still looking like a go with no big changes to the forecast at this time. The criteria required for splashdown are expected to be met off the coast of San Diego. Rain should remain well to the north of the region, and clouds shouldn't exceed the safety threshold.

While conditions continue to look favorable, weather and ocean conditions will remain closely monitored right up to retry to determine if any small trajectory shifts are required to ensure the Orion spacecraft arrives home in the most favorable conditions possible.

Weather criteria needed for a nominal splashdown and recovery, according to NASA, are:

-Significant wave height must be less than six feet
-No precipitation or lightning within 35 miles
-Winds under 28 mph
-Good visibility and minimal cloud cover below a certain height

-ABC News' Daniel Peck