Navy doctor who led the recovery at Artemis II splashdown recounts experience welcoming home astronauts

As he pried open the Integrity capsule’s hatch, the first thing Navy Lt. Cmdr. Jesse Wang heard were the screams of the Artemis II crew. Joy at the end of a successful mission. “They were so excited to have the hatch open and breathe real air again and see people outside,” Wang, 36, an undersea medical officer and a board-certified emergency medicine specialist, said of the crew at the end of their historic 10-day mission around the moon. “They were so relieved to be back. The mood was ecstatic.” Wang, a native of Laguna Beach, and his team of three…