Four astronauts have been chosen for NASA's next major Moon mission, but they won't be walking on the lunar surface or even going anywhere near it. Instead, the Artemis III crew will stay in low Earth orbit, testing the procedures and equipment needed for the first crewed lunar landing in more than 50 years.
Artemis III is scheduled to launch in 2027 aboard NASA's Space Launch System (SLS) rocket from the Kennedy Space Centre in Florida. The four crew members are commander Randy Bresnik, pilot Luca Parmitano (of the European Space Agency), and mission specialists Andre Douglas and Frank Rubio — all American except for Parmitano, an Italian astronaut. They will travel inside the Orion capsule, the same vehicle used during the Artemis II mission in April 2026, but instead of looping around the Moon, Orion will remain about 290 miles above Earth — roughly the distance from Manchester to Edinburgh, and 40 miles higher than the International Space Station. There, the capsule will rendezvous and dock with prototype lunar landers, called pathfinders, built by private companies Blue Origin and SpaceX. At least one crew member is expected to climb inside a lander to test the hatches, life-support connections, and new Axiom spacesuits, which were engineered by Axiom Space and designed in partnership with Italian fashion house Prada.
“Why Artemis III is a test flight in Earth orbit, not a Moon landing, and what it means for UK readers.”
The mission was originally conceived as the first crewed lunar landing since Apollo 17 in 1972, with two astronauts due to set down near the Moon's south pole and spend a week on the surface. But in February 2026, NASA changed those plans. The reason: the SpaceX Starship lander contracted to carry astronauts to the Moon is not ready, and the in-orbit refuelling it depends on has never been demonstrated. Starship is so heavy that it cannot reach the Moon without being refuelled in Earth orbit first — a complex process involving a fleet of tanker vehicles transferring cryogenic propellants. A March 2026 report from the US Government Accountability Office found that SpaceX had made "limited progress" maturing the technology, with the first refuelling demonstration optimistically scheduled for late 2026. NASA also faced a setback when Blue Origin's New Glenn rocket exploded during a routine engine test in May 2026, damaging the launch pad. Rather than slipping the schedule further, NASA repurposed Artemis III as a crewed docking rehearsal so that when the landers do fly, the techniques to dock with them and the suits to enter them will already be tested with people on board.
For UK readers, Artemis III matters because it includes a European astronaut — Luca Parmitano — and because Europe is a key partner in the Artemis programme. The mission tests systems that will eventually support a permanent Moon base and future exploration of Mars. The Axiom spacesuits, with their Italian-designed inner garment that distributes chilled water during spacewalks, showcase how space technology can blend engineering with design. More practically, the mission will also test an upgraded heat shield during Orion's fiery re-entry into Earth's atmosphere, which has implications for all future crewed spacecraft.
Q: What is Artemis III? Artemis III is a NASA mission originally planned as the first crewed Moon landing since 1972, but repurposed into a test flight in low Earth orbit. The four astronauts will dock with prototype lunar landers and test spacesuits and life-support systems ahead of the planned Artemis IV landing in 2028.
Q: Why isn't Artemis III landing on the Moon? The main reason is delays with SpaceX's Starship lander, which relies on in-orbit refuelling that has never been demonstrated. NASA decided it was too risky to jump from a lunar flyby (Artemis II) straight to a landing without first testing the docking procedures in Earth orbit.
Q: Who is the Italian astronaut on Artemis III? Luca Parmitano of the European Space Agency will serve as the pilot. He has spent more than 300 days in space and is the first European to be named to an Artemis crew.
What happens next depends on technical milestones. SpaceX must demonstrate in-orbit refuelling, and Blue Origin must rebuild its launch pad after the May 2026 explosion. NASA hopes Artemis IV will launch in 2028 and put astronauts on the Moon for the first time since 1972. The Artemis III crew will spend about two weeks in orbit testing the pathfinder landers, and their return will validate the upgraded heat shield for future missions.