"It was a perfect landing." Families cheer while gathered at UT Arlington Planetarium as Artemis II splashes down

At UT Arlington, the splashdown played out live inside the university's planetarium. The watch party drew people from across the metroplex, including plenty of students.  

Mansfield ISD 7th Grader Elyse Pinkston has been following the Artemis II mission in school.

"They had told us that they were going to circle the moon and come back, and that's what made me interested," she said. "I was waiting to see." 

She didn't want to miss the chance to watch Friday's splashdown live inside the UT Arlington Planetarium.

Before witnessing the astronauts make it through a six-minute blackout period, there were some heart-pounding moments. 

Elyse's mom said the precision of it all stood out the most. 

"They were like it will last six minutes and, on the dot, and it did, it's just wild that we know that much information," Charmaine Pinkston said. 

Then came the splashdown, and the room broke out into applause.

"It was amazing," Arlington Resident Tim Sneed said. "It was a perfect landing. I think Gen X kids growing up and watching - it was really good to see a successful mission."

"It was just really inspiring, you know," Charmaine Pinkston said. "It almost makes you want to cry, and I don't even know these people, but it feels like we did something big." 

"I was really hoping that they came down safely, and I was thinking that it's wild how we've made it to the moon before and how they're going to do it again," Elyse Pinkston said. 

For Elyse Pinkston, this moment is just the beginning.

She's looking forward to what comes next, the chance to see astronauts return to the moon.