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Artemis II Commander Reid Wiseman admitted to stealing one very important item from the capsule as he and his teammates disembarked the Orion capsule after Friday\u2019s splashdown in the Pacific Ocean: the crew\u2019s zero-gravity indicator.<\/p>\n
The little plush ball, nicknamed \u201cRise\u201d and made to look like the iconic \u201cearth-rise\u201d over the moon that can only be seen from space, was featured alongside the human crew members throughout the Artemis II lunar mission and had, in effect, become part of the team.<\/p>\n
Rise could be seen in a photo of Wiseman after he left the capsule, prompting a comment on X that read, \u201cIt\u2019s very moving to me that Commander Reid Wiseman, the last of the #ArtemisII astronauts to exit Integrity, made sure to bring the plushie Rise \u2014 and the 5 million names it carries \u2014 back with him immediately upon landing. Every one of those names completed the mission with him.\u201d<\/p>\n
Wiseman responded, saying, \u201cI was supposed to leave Rise in Integrity \u2026 but that was not something I was going to do. I stuffed that little guy in a dry bag we had in our survival kit and hooked the bag onto my pressure suit.\u201d<\/p>\n
\nI was supposed to leave Rise in Integrity\u2026.but that was not something I was going to do. I stuffed that little guy in a dry bag we had in our survival kit and hooked the bag onto my pressure suit.<\/p>\n
\u2014 Reid Wiseman (@astro_reid) April 11, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n
Wiseman followed that with another photo later on, reassuring fans that Rise was still safe and in his custody.<\/p>\n
\u201cPS- it\u2019s hard not to love this little guy. I cant let Rise out of my sight\u2026currently tethered to my water bottle,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\n8-year-old Lucas Ye designed Rise, the mascot for the Artemis II mission.pic.twitter.com\/7hZOJLuz0i<\/a><\/p>\n
\u2014 Cinema Hub (@_CinemaHub_) April 11, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n
In addition to functioning as the team\u2019s zero-gravity indicator throughout the mission, Rise also carried the names of millions of people on earth as the team traveled farther from earth than anyone in history.<\/p>\n
\nHi Rise! \ud83e\uddf5<\/p>\n
The Artemis II zero gravity indicator was designed by 3rd grader Lucas Ye. Our blanket technician at Goddard brought it to life, fabricated in the same lab where blankets are created to keep spacecraft like @NASARoman<\/a> the right temperature for science. pic.twitter.com\/1lALREmkUs<\/a><\/p>\n