The uncrewed capsule, which is designed to carry astronauts, is set to splash down in the Pacific Ocean near Guadalupe Island at 5.40pm GMT on December 11th.
If successful, the craft will take humans around the moon for its next mission, slated for 2024.
The splashdown is the final hurdle Orion faces in what has so far been a successful demonstration mission.
As part of the Artemis-1 mission, the capsule launched from Earth on November 16th using NASA's Space Launch System (SLS) rocket, ushering in a new era of lunar exploration that may see people go back to the moon.
It travelled 270,000 miles beyond the Earth nine days later, setting a record for the distance covered by a spaceship intended to carry people.
Orion will have travelled more than 1.4 million kilometres when it crashes down.
Although there are no actual humans on board, Snoopy, Shaun the Sheep, and three astronaut mannequins known as Commander Moonikin Campos, Helga, and Zohar have returned from the lengthy space voyage.
Shaun's voyage was "a little stride for a person, but a great leap for lambkind," said David Parker, director of human and robotic exploration at the European Space Agency (ESA), in reference to the well-known Aardman character.
Shaun’s mission to the Moon begins today as the Orion spacecraft launched into space from Kennedy Space Center in Florida, taking @esa's newest astronaut farther than any human (or sheep!) has ever been before! #Artemis1 #ForwardToTheMoon 🌚 pic.twitter.com/ZIuSNoIGGI
— Shaun the Sheep (@shaunthesheep) November 16, 2022
The return trip for Orion and its toy passengers will be a turbulent one as the spaceship hurtles towards Earth at a speed of nearly 25,000 mph and temperatures outside are getting close to 3,000C.
Orion will drop down to about 325 mph when it hits the Earth's atmosphere before deploying its 11 parachute to slow down even more to a splashdown speed of 20 mph or less.
Once a ship with recovery crews is ready off the coast of California, the capsule and its passengers will be brought on board.
While the Artemis-1 mission was primarily focused on system testing, NASA's first mission with astronauts who will fly around the moon will be the Artemis II flight test.
.@NASA_Orion is heading home. What can we expect when the spacecraft splashes down off the coast of California on Dec. 11?
— NASA Artemis (@NASAArtemis) December 9, 2022
Check out "The Adventures of Moonikin Campos and Friends" webcomic to learn more: https://t.co/4CVinY0joW pic.twitter.com/dCnUwSFk2n
Apollo 17 was the final manned lunar mission, which took place in December 1972.
Nasa's long-term goals include developing Lunar Gateway, a space station where astronauts would be able to live and work. The Artemis missions are a part of those goals.
