NASA has announced a major revision of its Artemis III mission, which had originally planned to put the first astronauts on the moon since 1972.
The space agency has now confirmed that it needs more time to prepare for the endeavor, and so Artemis III will instead test out systems and operational capabilities in low-Earth orbit to prepare for a crewed Artemis IV landing in 2028.
In a statement shared on its website, NASA said the newly designed Artemis III mission will likely include “a rendezvous and docking with one or both commercial landers from SpaceX and Blue Origin, in-space tests of the docked vehicles, integrated checkout of life support, communications, and propulsion systems, as well as tests of the new Extravehicular Activity (xEVA) suits.”
While SpaceX currently has the contract for the first crewed Artemis lunar landing, Blue Origin also has a NASA contract to deploy its Blue Moon lander for later lunar touchdowns.
The Artemis IV crewed landing will involve two astronauts transferring from NASA’s Orion spacecraft to a modified version of SpaceX’s Ship lander in lunar orbit before descending to the surface of the moon.
The space agency also plans to increase the frequency of lunar missions, performing at least one landing every year after 2027.
“With credible competition from our greatest geopolitical adversary increasing by the day, we need to move faster, eliminate delays, and achieve our objectives,” NASA chief Jared Isaacman said in a release that referenced China, which is also working to put humans on the moon. “Standardizing vehicle configuration, increasing flight rate, and progressing through objectives in a logical, phased approach, is how we achieved the near-impossible in 1969 and it is how we will do it again.”
NASA’s announcement came amid final preparations for the second launch of the massive Space Launch System (SLS) rocket, which will send four astronauts on a voyage around the moon aboard the Orion spacecraft in the Artemis II mission.
Technical issues have forced the mission to be delayed twice in recent weeks, with NASA now targeting April for the launch of the much-anticipated 10-day flight.