Artemis II astronauts deliver powerful words after splashdown | April 13, 2026

Hello everyone. Welcome back to CNN 10. I'm Allison Chinchar in for Koi Wire. If you were on spring break like we were, I hope it was fun. Hope you wore your sunscreen and hope you're feeling ready to rock a fresh new week. Now, let's get to your news for this Monday, April 13th. NASA and the rest of the world are welcoming the Artemis 2 crew back to Earth. The four astronauts received a standing ovation when they arrived at the Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas Saturday. They also reunited with their families after their 10-day journey around the moon. The Orion capsule splashdown in the Pacific Ocean on Friday capped the successful mission. Speaking publicly for the first time since their return to Earth, the crew members described the camaraderie they shared on their journey to deep space. >> We are bonded forever and no one down here is ever going to know what the four of us just went through. When this started on April 3rd, I wanted to thank God in public and I want to thank God again. >> What struck me wasn't necessarily just Earth. It was all the blackness around it. Earth was just this lifeboat hanging undisturbingly in the universe. >> When you look up here, you're not looking at us. We are a mirror reflecting you. And if you like what you see, then just look a little deeper. This is you. >> These four history makers also broke several world records. They traveled farther from Earth than any humans ever before. They witnessed the far side of the moon. They even saw a solar eclipse from behind the moon. Our Pete Montene has more on the successful return and what comes next. >> We heard from NASA officials who said that the Aremis 2 mission concluded with incredible accuracy. A successful splashdown off the coast of San Diego at 5 07 and 27 seconds Pacific time, thus concluding a 9day 1h hour mission, an orbit around the moon. Astronauts Wiseman, Glover, Hansen, and Cook were all plucked from the Orion capsule one by one by Navy divers, then hoisted by helicopters and flown to the deck of the USS John P. Murtha where we were seeing them walk unassisted on the flight deck. This concludes the most dangerous part of this mission, the re-entry was surrounded by questions about whether or not the heat shield and tweaks that NASA made to the re-entry angle would work leading up to this re-entry. There was concern that the heat shield that was seen on Artemis one would have problems again in this crude mission. Artemis one was an uncrrewed mission. Now NASA engineers will go over the heat shield of the Orion spacecraft as it's hauled on board the USS John P. Murtha. NASA says this is all about the folks behind the scenes like those at Johnson Space Flight Center in Houston, which broke out into a celebration after the six minute long communications blackout ended during re-entry. Some pretty big questions here, but NASA says now they are focused on landing on the moon. This massive test flight paves the way for the Aremis 3 missions in 2027 and then the Aremis 4 mission in 2028 with the goal of putting Americans on the moon again. >> Now to an update on US and Israel's ongoing war in Iran and the outsized impact it's having on the global energy market. The ongoing conflict has been felt around the world and is causing chaos as far away as Ireland. Roughly onethird of the country's gas stations have run out of fuel and key roadways have been blocked as part of protests over rising fuel costs. Our Ne Kennedy has more on what's driving the surreal scenes. This man appears to be walking to the airport as tractors block roads across Ireland. Farmers and hollers across Ireland have been protesting for 4 days over soaring fuel costs. Convoys of tractors have clogged major roads across the country from inner city Dublin to fuel depots that supply much of the country and it's caused chaos. At least 250 service stations had completely run out of fuel on Friday. An industry body told CNN. Now the government has even asked the army to be on standby to help clear blocked roads amid concerns that emergency services could be delayed. Protesters say rising diesel prices are pushing them to the brink, and that government measures to cut fuel costs haven't gone far enough, the price hikes are tied in part to the war in Iran, which has disrupted oil supplies. Time for 10-second trivia. What is a group of penguins called on land? Is it a herd, a flock, a colony, or a troop? Now, if you said colony, happy feet. Once they're swimming together, the penguins are often called a raft because they often float and move as a group on the water's surface. Climate change is pushing two iconic species closer to extinction. Emperor penguins, for one, and Antarctic fur seals are now both listed as endangered by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature. The animals were added to the group's red list, the world's most comprehensive census of threatened species and their causes of their decline. Factors like warming ocean waters, melting sea ice, and declining food availability are wreaking havoc on their ecosystem and leading wildlife experts to sound the alarm. >> They need that ice. Yes, they swim and they hunt in the cold waters of Antarctica, but they need that ice to nest, to raise their offspring, to breed, to sleep. And what a loss it would be to our natural heritage to lose these species. The same for these the Cape for seal. They're integral to the ecosystem in the cold waters of the south. And the krill that they depend upon, this is the food that they eat is going deeper and deeper and literally is beyond their reach for a creature that is designed to survive in the wild of a watery ecosystem. >> The IUCN report says furs seal populations have shrunk by more than 50% since just 1999, and they fear emperor penguin populations could be cut in half by the year 2080. This weekend marked a key date in Christianity. Sunday was Orthodox Easter. Now, Orthodox Christians in parts of Eastern Europe and Asia celebrate Easter Sunday later than their Western counterparts due to their use of the older Julian calendar. And in Jerusalem, a remarkable event ushered in the holy holiday. A single flame was shared by hundreds of worshippers as they celebrated at one of the faith's holiest sites. Our Orin Lieberman attended the Holy Fire ceremony at Jerusalem's Church of the Holy Supplr for an upclose look at the ancient tradition. >> This is Holy Fire Saturday here inside the Church of the Holy Supplr and it's one of the most beautiful ceremonies in the old city of Jerusalem. It comes one day before Orthodox Easter. Church leaders will enter the tomb of Jesus Christ right here behind me and they will come out with a flame fire that's supposed to be lit by the spirit of Jesus Christ. That single flame as it comes out is then spread around as you can see here behind me to worshippers who have been waiting all morning chanting saying prayers here inside the church and then they spread it throughout not only inside the church here but the hundreds if not thousands who are waiting outside. This is a religious ceremony that has happened for a thousand years here in Jerusalem and is it is one of the most remarkable to see. >> More than 300 items from Queen Elizabeth II's wardrobe are now on display in Buckingham Palace to mark 100 years since her birth. Queen Elizabeth II her life in style showcases fashion from nearly a century of her royal life, including dresses, tiaras, and even her wedding necklace. More than half of the items have never been exhibited before. The curator says the exhibition explores every decade of the Queen's life from birth until her death. Today's story getting a 10 out of 10. A six-year-old in Pittsburgh is using her love for coloring to show love for kids who are battling cancer. Here's the story. Kayn Lundel heard an ad on the radio about St. June Children's Hospital and it stuck with her. Reminder, she's only six years old. She says it isn't fair that some kids have to face so much pain and she wanted to do something about it. So Kayn and her mom launched Draw for a Dream and they've organized art auctions where kids creations are what's for sale and going to the highest biders. Bids will start at $100 with every dollar going to St. Judes, >> I just don't want their life to be hard for them. It's not fair for them. >> Kayn aims to raise $100,000 at the end of this and is hoping her campaign can make a difference in the lives of families in need. All right, superstars. I've got two shoutouts for you today. First up, Mr. Galloway and Mr. Malachi at Scott Highlands Middle School in Apple Valley, Minnesota. Thank you so much for including us in your classroom. And we also have a shout out from Miss Solomon at Sheldon High School in Eugene, Oregon. Thank you so much for subscribing to our YouTube channel and thank you for joining me today. Koi will be back tomorrow. I'm Allison Chinchar and this is CNN 10.