Artemis III
The European Service Module (ESM) for Artemis III being prepared for launch in February 2026 | |
| Names | Exploration Mission-3 (EM-3) |
|---|---|
| Mission type | Crewed Earth orbital Orion/HLS flight |
| Operator | NASA |
| Spacecraft properties | |
| Spacecraft |
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| Manufacturer |
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| Start of mission | |
| Launch date | Mid-2027 (planned) |
| Rocket | Space Launch System |
| Launch site | Kennedy, LC-39B |
| End of mission | |
| Landing site | Pacific Ocean (planned) |
Artemis III is planned to be the second crewed mission of the NASA-led Artemis lunar exploration program. The mission's objectives are to conduct tests in low Earth orbit with one or both commercially developed lunar landers—SpaceX's Starship HLS and Blue Origin's Blue Moon—and the Axiom Extravehicular Mobility Unit (AxEMU) space suit. In this respect, the mission is comparable to Apollo 9 in the Apollo program. As of February 2026, NASA expects Artemis III to launch in mid-2027.
Artemis III was originally intended to be the first crewed lunar landing since Apollo 17 in 1972. In 2023, NASA officials expressed an openness to flying Artemis III without a crewed landing due to heat shield issues on Orion and delays in Starship's development. The mission was proposed by some to become a crewed visit to the Lunar Gateway. In 2024, NASA evaluated alternative mission options, including a test of docking between Orion and Starship HLS in low Earth orbit.
During a news conference on February 27, 2026, NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman confirmed a revised mission plan of testing one or both lunar landers for low Earth orbit rendezvous, as well as potentially testing EVA equipment, while preliminarily assigning Artemis IV, planned for 2028, as the first potential lunar landing mission.