On Friday evening, when the crew of Artemis II—Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, Christina Koch, and Jeremy Hansen—splashed down in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of San Diego, it felt as though the entire world was watching.

Crowds lined the beaches of California. Children on the East Coast stayed up late to watch the broadcast. Millions around the globe anticipated the safe return of four human beings—three Americans and one Canadian—who had ventured farther into space than anyone before them.

It felt magical. It felt like a miracle.

But it was neither.