In the cradle
The team placed Orion onto a securing assembly known as the “cradle.” The capsule recovered, the USS Portland then set sail for a U.S. Naval base in San Diego, California. From there, the spacecraft will be loaded onto a truck and shipped to Kennedy Space Center in Florida for inspections.
“This has been an extraordinarily successful mission,” Nelson told reporters at a press briefing held several hours after splashdown. “It is the beginning of the new beginning—and that is to explore the heavens.”
