Out of This World

Video by Petty Officer 2nd Class Devin Kates

USS Portland (LPD 27) Artemis I Small Boat Recovery

Expeditionary Strike Group 3

Dec. 11, 2022 | 0:24

221211-N-VQ947-1006 PACIFIC OCEAN (Dec. 11, 2022) Navy Divers assigned to Navy Expeditionary Combat Command's Explosive Ordnance Disposal Expeditionary Support Unit One (EODESU-1) use combat rubber raiding craft and rigid-hull inflatable boats to recover the NASA Artemis I Orion spacecraft, Dec. 11, 2022. Amphibious transport dock USS Portland (LPD 27), along with Independence-variant littoral combat ship USS Montgomery (LCS 8), is underway in U.S. 3rd Fleet in support of the recovery. The retrieval operation is part of a Department of Defense effort that integrates combatant command service capabilities to determine best practices for safely retrieving spacecraft capable of carrying humans into space. The U.S. Navy has many unique capabilities that make it an ideal partner for supporting NASA, including its amphibious and expeditionary capabilities with the ability to embark helicopters, launch and recover small boats, three-dimensional air search radar and advanced medical facilities. (U.S. Navy video by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Devin Kates)