Artemis II completed in April 2026, the first crewed lunar flight since 1972. NASA's revised plan puts a 14-day, three-launch orbital docking test in 2027 and targets the first landing in 2028.
Artemis II returned four astronauts from a trip around the Moon in April 2026, the first crewed lunar flight since Apollo 17 in 1972. On October 23, NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman outlined a faster path to the surface: a 14-day Artemis III test in 2027, then a crewed landing in 2028.
Artemis III will use three launches. Blue Origin's Blue Moon test lander goes first and must be in orbit before NASA commits the Space Launch System rocket and its four astronauts. Isaacman said on October 31 that the lander is the main schedule risk and that Blue Origin has not yet assembled a full test article.
Why it matters
NASA's 2027 test and 2028 landing target will show whether the U.S. can return astronauts to the Moon before China's planned 2030 mission.
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Kennedy Space Center (NASA): SATURN-V - 1st stage of the 'moon rocket'
Artemis I Moon Rocket Arrives at Launch Pad Ahead of Historic Mission
NASA’s Artemis I Moon Rocket Arrives at Launch Pad Ahead of Tanking Test
Why the US is going back to the moon after 50 years | BBC ...
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Artemis II to the Moon: Launch to Splashdown (NASA Mission ...
NASA
NASA's Artemis program plans on returning humans to the moon
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Curated perspectives — historical figures and your fellow readers.
Fictional AI pastiche — not real quote.
"A nation that permits fifty-three years to pass between ventures has lost the habit of enterprise. China grasps what we once knew: dominance belongs to those who act, not those who deliberate."
The U.S. space agency managing the Artemis program, including the Space Launch System rocket and Orion spacecraft.
SpaceX holds a NASA contract to build the Starship human landing system and will fly a test article in the 2027 Artemis III orbital demonstration.
Canada's space agency, a partner in the Artemis program providing components for the Lunar Gateway station.
Blue Origin is developing the Blue Moon Mark 2 human landing system under a NASA contract and will fly a test article in the 2027 Artemis III orbital demonstration.
The European Space Agency supplies astronauts and hardware for international missions, including the International Space Station and Artemis.
September 2011 October 2026
NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman said Artemis III will require three launches and that NASA will hold the Space Launch System on the ground until Blue Origin's Blue Moon test lander is in orbit. He said the lander is the main schedule risk and that Blue Origin has not yet assembled a full test article.
Detectors on the uncrewed Artemis I mission found cosmic radiation near the Moon higher than in low Earth orbit but lower than some scientists expected. Tiny sensors also showed how radiation passes through the human body.
NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman and agency leaders outlined a path to the lunar surface: a 14-day Artemis III docking test in 2027, then a crewed landing in 2028. NASA said it will choose the first lander based on readiness.
Randy Bresnik, Frank Rubio, Andre Douglas and European Space Agency astronaut Luca Parmitano will fly a 14-day mission in low Earth orbit in 2027. They will practice rendezvous and docking with test versions of Blue Origin's Blue Moon and SpaceX's Starship landers.
Blue Origin will use three transfer stages instead of orbital propellant transfer to send Blue Moon toward the Moon. SpaceX will refuel Starship in low Earth orbit and then send the lander and Orion to low lunar orbit.
Teams completed the first phase of stacking the twin solid rocket boosters for a 'stubby' SLS configuration without an upper stage or Orion. The stack will roll to Launch Complex 39B for tanking tests.
At the 2026 Space Symposium, Isaacman said the successful mission is the 'opening act in America's return to the moon' and described a 'relay race' toward a crewed landing and moon base. He also noted a $10 billion supplemental request in the fiscal 2027 budget proposal.
Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, Christina Koch and Jeremy Hansen returned to Earth after a 10-day flight around the Moon.
The Space Launch System rocket and Orion spacecraft lifted off from Kennedy Space Center, beginning a 10-day mission around the Moon.
During a speech in Houston, Administrator Jared Isaacman stated 'America will never again give up the moon' and announced a $20 billion investment to accelerate lunar infrastructure.
Administrator Jared Isaacman announced Artemis III will test Orion docking with commercial lander in Earth orbit instead of lunar landing, deferred to Artemis IV in early 2028 due to 'too big of a gap' from flyby and SLS launch limitations.
NASA concluded the February 2 wet dress rehearsal, successfully loading cryogenic propellants into SLS tanks despite cold weather delays, hydrogen leak at T-5 minutes, Orion valve retorquing, and communication dropouts. Launch now targets March; crew released from quarantine to re-enter later.
NASA postpones the wet dress rehearsal from January 31 to February 2 due to a rare arctic outbreak bringing freezing temperatures to Florida. The decision invokes lessons from the Challenger disaster 40 years earlier, when cold weather contributed to O-ring failure.
NASA announces that Artemis II will launch no earlier than February 8, eliminating the original February 6 target and February 7 backup. Only three launch opportunities remain in February: the 8th, 10th, and 11th. Missing this window would push the mission to March.
Teams successfully loaded hydrazine into the SLS booster aft skirts over the weekend and performed checkouts of the core stage's four RS-25 engines. Technicians also completed planned pyrotechnic work on the launch abort system and pressurized a tank in Orion's propulsion system.
NASA announces Saturday, January 31, as the earliest date for the wet dress rehearsal fueling test, a slight adjustment from the previous February 2 target. Technicians prepare environmental control systems for cold weather conditions.
The four astronauts begin 14-day quarantine at Johnson Space Center in Houston to prevent illness that could delay launch. NASA states the timing 'preserves flexibility as teams work toward potential opportunities in the February launch period.'
Teams connect SLS and Orion to ground support equipment including electrical lines, environmental control ducts, and cryogenic propellant feeds. Systems powered up at the pad for the first time to verify integration.
The 11-million-pound SLS/Orion stack begins its 4-mile, 12-hour journey to Launch Pad 39B for the wet dress rehearsal and launch.
After a 12-hour, 4-mile journey, the SLS/Orion stack successfully reached Launch Pad 39B at 6:42 PM EST, completing the rollout and positioning the vehicle for wet dress rehearsal operations.
The four astronauts practice launch day procedures in the Orion spacecraft at Kennedy Space Center.
The Senate confirms the billionaire astronaut 67-30 to lead NASA during the critical Artemis push.
NASA moves the target launch date from April to February 2026 after faster-than-expected progress.
After two years of analysis and 121 tests, engineers determine trapped gases caused unexpected char loss during Artemis I reentry.
NASA announces additional delays due to heat shield findings and life support system analysis requirements.
NASA pushes back the crewed mission from November 2024, citing heat shield concerns discovered after Artemis I.
Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, Christina Koch, and Jeremy Hansen are named to fly the first crewed Orion mission.
Orion returns to Earth after traveling 1.4 million miles, splashing down in the Pacific 50 years to the day after Apollo 17's lunar landing.
The uncrewed Orion spacecraft lifts off on the first Space Launch System flight, beginning a 25.5-day test mission around the Moon.
NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine announces the lunar program will be called Artemis, after Apollo's twin sister in Greek mythology.
President Trump directs NASA to return astronauts to the Moon, formalizing the shift from asteroid missions to lunar exploration.
NASA unveils plans for the heavy-lift rocket that will power Artemis missions, beginning a development effort that would stretch over a decade.
Discussed by: NASA officials, SpaceNews, Ars Technica space coverage
The wet dress rehearsal on February 2 proceeds without major issues. NASA confirms flight readiness and launches within the February 6-14 window. The 10-day mission successfully demonstrates life support systems, navigation, and the modified reentry trajectory. Artemis III planning accelerates, though SpaceX Starship readiness remains the constraint.
Discussed by: NASA safety panels, aerospace industry analysts
The wet dress rehearsal reveals problems—propellant loading issues, software glitches, or ground system failures—that require the rocket to return to the Vehicle Assembly Building for fixes. NASA pushes to the March or April launch windows. The delay compresses the schedule for Artemis III preparations but doesn't fundamentally alter program trajectory.
Discussed by: Congressional testimony, RAND Corporation, NASA Aerospace Safety Advisory Panel
SpaceX's Starship Human Landing System continues to slip—internal documents show September 2028 as the earliest crewed landing attempt. Meanwhile, China executes its Mengzhou-Lanyue program on schedule, landing two taikonauts on the lunar surface by 2030. The U.S. completes Artemis II and III orbits but loses the landing milestone to a competitor.
Discussed by: NASA Administrator Isaacman, SpaceX statements
SpaceX accelerates Starship development, completing orbital refueling demonstrations and an uncrewed lunar landing ahead of schedule. NASA selects an aggressive launch date and executes the first crewed lunar landing since 1972, with an American woman and a person of color among the first to set foot on the surface.
Discussed by: NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman, NASA Artemis planners
NASA targets a 2028 crewed landing on Artemis IV, with either SpaceX's Starship or Blue Origin's Blue Moon lander. NASA will pick the first lander based on readiness, and both companies must fly uncrewed demonstrations first.
3 moments from history that rhyme with this story — and how they unfolded.
Frank Borman, Jim Lovell, and Bill Anders became the first humans to leave Earth's gravitational influence and orbit another world. They circled the Moon 10 times on Christmas Eve 1968, broadcasting readings from Genesis to an estimated one billion viewers—the most-watched television event in history at that time.
Validated the Saturn V rocket and Apollo spacecraft for lunar operations, setting up Apollo 11's landing seven months later.
Established that humans could survive deep space transit, and produced the iconic 'Earthrise' photograph that galvanized the environmental movement.
Artemis II mirrors Apollo 8's mission profile: first crewed flight of a new vehicle around the Moon without landing, serving as the critical validation step before attempting a surface mission.
After Challenger's O-ring failure killed seven astronauts in 1986, NASA spent 32 months redesigning the solid rocket boosters and safety culture before flying again. After Columbia's foam strike destroyed the orbiter on reentry in 2003, killing seven more, NASA grounded the fleet for 29 months while developing inspection protocols and repair kits.
Both return-to-flight missions—Discovery in 1988 and 2005—succeeded, though the 2005 flight revealed foam continued to shed despite fixes.
Columbia led directly to the Shuttle's retirement in 2011, creating the capability gap that the SLS program was designed to fill.
The Artemis I heat shield anomaly—unexpected char loss during reentry—echoes the pattern of discovering problems only visible in actual flight conditions. NASA's two-year investigation and trajectory modifications for Artemis II follow the post-Columbia playbook of understanding root causes before flying crew.
American astronauts and Soviet cosmonauts docked their spacecraft in orbit, marking the first international crewed space mission. The symbolic handshake between Tom Stafford and Alexei Leonov occurred at the height of détente.
Demonstrated that Cold War rivals could cooperate in space, laying groundwork for later ISS partnership.
Established the precedent that space exploration could bridge geopolitical divides—a model the Artemis Accords attempts to extend.
Jeremy Hansen's presence on Artemis II—the first non-American on a lunar mission—represents a different model of international cooperation. Canada's contribution comes through the Artemis Accords framework, which China and Russia have rejected in favor of their competing International Lunar Research Station.