Families are invited for the experience of a lifetime at the San Diego Air & Space Museum during our Artemis II Splashdown Watch Party, an immersive celebration tied to NASA’s Artemis II mission’s return to Earth. Timed around the return of the Orion capsule Integrity to Earth just off the coast of San Diego, this special event brings families together to experience space exploration in real time.

The Museum will be open during its normal hours from 10 am to 5 pm on Friday April 10. Depending on NASA’s updated splashdown schedule, guests will gather in the Museum’s Pavilion of Flight at least one hour prior of the time of splashdown to follow the live-stream of the dramatic final moments of Integrity's and its four groundbreaking astronauts’ return to Earth. The Artemis II Splashdown Watch Party will last through the historic splashdown and the initiation of recovery operations off the coast of San Diego (Times subject to change depending on the actual splashdown time).

The Artemis II Splashdown Watch Party blends real mission moments with hands-on exploration designed for learners of all ages. Education-led activity stations will explore how astronauts launch, travel, and safely return to Earth through experiences such as chocolate heat shield experiments, parachute and safe-landing challenges, stomp rockets, robotics, 3D pen design, blackout poetry inspired by space communications, and creative engineering builds.

The Museum’s Flight Path Grill featuring its full menu of family-friend food and beverages will remain open throughout the Splashdown party, giving guests the opportunity to enjoy fun snacks and meals while watching the live stream on a huge LED screen in the open-air Pavilion of Flight.

The Artemis II splashdown party also offers guest to the opportunity to explore a striking new exhibit—an 8.5-foot-tall Space Launch System (SLS) rocket model, the powerful vehicle designed to send the Orion capsule Integrity and its crew on their journey around the Moon. This display offers a tangible connection to the mission and highlights the engineering and innovation behind NASA’s Artemis program.

Presented in partnership with NASA and the Fleet Science Center, the Artemis II Splashdown Watch Party reflects San Diego’s deep connections to aerospace, exploration, and scientific discovery.

By combining live mission coverage, hands-on learning, and collaborative partnerships, the San Diego Air & Space Museum invites families to experience the excitement of human spaceflight together—right here at home, as Integrity makes its splashdown back on Earth.

Visit here to learn more!