Artemis II: Astronaut Christina Koch reunites with dog Sadie in heartwarming video after moon mission

Artemis II astronaut Christina Koch has melted hearts after she shared a heartwarming video of her and her dog, Sadie, reuniting after her historical journey into space.

Specialist Koch and her crew, consisting of commander Reid Wiseman, pilot Victor Glover and specialist Jeremy Hensen, returned from their successful 10-day mission to the moon and back on Saturday.

After their spacecraft, the Orion, splashed down in the Pacific Ocean at 8.07am Perth time and was medically assessed on a US Navy ship, Koch was finally allowed to return home — and boy was there someone special waiting for her.

In-home CCTV footage captured the moment Koch’s dog, Sadie, could not contain her excitement for being reunited with her beloved owner.

As soon as Sadie had Koch in sight, the dog leapt up to the front door window and frantically started scratching at the glass.

Koch opened the door and was immediately greeted by her best friend, who wagged her tail excitedly and picked up a toy to show her happiness.

Koch shared the video on Instagram saying: “I’m still pretty sure I was the happier side of this reunion”.

“Sadie taught me everything I needed to know about being an emotional support animal. Didn’t expect that would come in handy.”

In the same post, Koch shared another video showing her and Sadie running and jumping together on a beach and playing in the waves.

It comes after the Artemis II crew received a thunderous welcome home from hundreds who played a part in NASA’s lunar comeback.

After a quick reunion with their spouses and children, the astronauts took the hangar stage at Ellington Field near NASA’s Johnson Space Centre and Mission Control, surrounded by space centre workers and other guests.

Koch, the only female crew member, said she was struck by her view of Earth from space.

“Honestly, what struck me wasn’t just earth, it was all of the blackness around it. Earth was just this lifeboat hanging undisturbably in the universe. Planet earth you are a crew,” she said.

The crew’s lunar flyby is the farthest humans have ever travelled from Earth.

The previous distance record was set by the Apollo 13 mission in 1970.

The Artemis II mission’s data will most likely help plan future moon landings.