Artemis III

The goal of Artemis III is to land a crew at the Moon's south polar region.{{cite web|last=Chang|first=Kenneth|title=For Artemis Mission to Moon, NASA Seeks to Add Billions to Budget |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2019/05/13/science/trump-nasa-moon-mars.html|newspaper=The New York Times|access-date=25 May 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190525034839/https://www.nytimes.com/2019/05/13/science/trump-nasa-moon-mars.html|archive-date=25 May 2019|date=25 May 2019|quote=Under the NASA plan, a mission to land on the Moon would take place during the third launch of the Space Launch System. Astronauts, including the first woman to walk on the Moon, Jim Bridenstine said, would first stop at the orbiting lunar outpost. They would then take a lander to the surface near its south pole, where frozen water exists within the craters.|url-status=live|url-access=limited}} The mission would see two astronauts land on the surface of the Moon for a stay of about one week.{{cite news|last=Foust|first=Jeff|url=https://spacenews.com/nasa-outlines-plans-for-lunar-lander-development-through-commercial-partnerships/|title=NASA outlines plans for lunar lander development through commercial partnerships|publisher=SpaceNews|date=21 July 2019|access-date=17 July 2020|archive-date=1 October 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211001033446/https://spacenews.com/nasa-outlines-plans-for-lunar-lander-development-through-commercial-partnerships/|url-status=live}} It is also intended to be the first mission to land a woman and a person of color on the Moon.{{cite web | last=Howell | first=Elizabeth | title=NASA's Artemis 3 mission: Landing humans on the moon | website=Space.com | date=August 18, 2022 | url=https://www.space.com/artemis-3-moon-landing-mission | access-date=December 11, 2022}}{{cite web|url=https://www.france24.com/en/20190523-nasa-unveils-schedule-artemis-2024-moon-mission|title=NASA unveils schedule for 'Artemis' 2024 Moon mission

|publisher=France24|date=23 May 2019|access-date=21 July 2019|archive-date=1 December 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201201013615/https://www.france24.com/en/20190523-nasa-unveils-schedule-artemis-2024-moon-mission|url-status=live}} While up to four astronauts would launch aboard Orion, only two would land on the surface aboard Starship HLS, with the others remaining aboard Orion. The two astronauts will conduct up to four spacewalks on the Moon's surface, performing a variety of scientific observations, including sampling water ice. Before the Artemis III landing, some additional equipment will be pre-positioned on the surface, including an unpressurized rover for astronauts to use during their lunar excursions. This rover will have the capability to be controlled remotely. Several permanently shadowed regions could be reached by short forays of {{cvt|5|to|15|km}}, well within the range of the rover.{{cite web|last=Berger|first=Eric|url=https://arstechnica.com/science/2019/10/nasa-shares-details-of-lunar-surface-missions-and-theyre-pretty-cool/|title=NASA shares details of lunar surface missions—and they're pretty cool|publisher=Ars Technica|date=29 October 2019|access-date=17 July 2020 |archive-date=30 March 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210330114640/https://arstechnica.com/science/2019/10/nasa-shares-details-of-lunar-surface-missions-and-theyre-pretty-cool/|url-status=live}}

File:Space Launch System evelution.png

{{main|Space Launch System}}

The Space Launch System is a super-heavy-lift launcher used to launch the Orion spacecraft from Earth to a trans-lunar orbit. This will be the final mission using the booster SLS Block 1, the design used for the first three missions. Afterward, from Artemis IV until Artemis VIII, missions will use SLS Block 1B, with a more capable Exploration Upper Stage, and a cargo hold to transport other payloads.

File:Orion Crew Capsule 1.jpg

{{main|Orion (spacecraft)}}

Orion is the crew transport vehicle used by all Artemis missions. It will transport the crew from Earth to lunar orbit, dock with Starship HLS, and return the crew to Earth.

{{main|Starship HLS}}

File:Artemis III CONOPS.svg]]

After a multi-phase design effort, on 16 April 2021, NASA selected SpaceX to develop Starship HLS and deliver it to near-rectilinear halo orbit (NRHO) prior to arrival of the crew for use on the Artemis III mission. The delivery requires that Starship HLS be refueled in Earth orbit before boosting to the NRHO, and this refueling requires a pre-positioned propellant depot in Earth orbit that is filled by multiple (at least 14{{Cite web |title=At Least 15 Starship Launches Needed to Execute Artemis III Lunar Landing |url=https://spacepolicyonline.com/news/at-least-15-starship-launches-to-execute-artemis-iii-lunar-landing/ |access-date=2023-12-03 |language=en-US}}) tanker flights.{{cite web |title=Human Landing System |first=Kent |last=Chojnacki |publisher=NASA |url=https://ntrs.nasa.gov/api/citations/20220003725/downloads/22%203%207%20Kent%20IEEE%20paper.pdf }} Two astronauts will transfer from Orion to Starship HLS, which will descend to the lunar surface and sustain them for several days before returning them to Orion. Following the return of the astronauts, Starship HLS will be disposed of by sending it into heliocentric orbit.{{cite tweet |last=Foust |first=Jeff |user=jeff_foust |number=1587098687716597762 |title=Kirasich: no plans to reuse the Starship for the Artemis 3 landing. Will dispose of it by putting it on heliocentric orbit. |date=31 October 2022 |access-date=31 October 2022}}

{{further|Artemis program#History}}

Upon the December 2017 ratification of the Trump administration's Space Policy Directive 1, a crewed lunar campaign – later known as the Artemis program – using the Orion Multi-Purpose Crew Vehicle (MPCV) and a space station in lunar orbit was established. Originally billed as Exploration Mission-3 (EM-3), the goal of the mission was to send four astronauts into a near-rectilinear halo orbit around the Moon and deliver the ESPRIT and U.S. Utilization Module to the lunar space station, known as the Gateway.{{cite web|last1=Sloss|first1=Philip|url=https://www.nasaspaceflight.com/2017/12/nasa-evaluates-em-2-launch-of-space-gateways-ppe/|title=NASA evaluates EM-2 launch options for Deep Space Gateway PPE|publisher=NASASpaceFlight.com|date=4 December 2017|access-date=2 March 2018|archive-date=9 August 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190809154609/https://www.nasaspaceflight.com/2017/12/nasa-evaluates-em-2-launch-of-space-gateways-ppe/|url-status=live}}

By May 2019 however, ESPRIT and the U.S. Utilization Module – now called HALO – were re-manifested to fly separately on a commercial launch vehicle. Artemis III, as it was now billed, was repurposed to accelerate the first crewed lunar landing of the Artemis program by the end of 2024, with a profile that would have seen the Orion MPCV rendezvous with a minimal Gateway space station made up of only the Power and Propulsion Element and a small habitat/docking node with an attached commercially-procured lunar lander known as the Human Landing System (HLS).{{cite web|last=Grush |first=Loren|url=https://www.theverge.com/2019/5/17/18627839/nasa-administrator-jim-bridenstine-artemis-moon-program-budget-amendment|title=NASA administrator on new Moon plan: "We're doing this in a way that's never been done before"|publisher=The Verge|date=17 May 2019|access-date=17 July 2020|archive-date=4 July 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200704091616/https://www.theverge.com/2019/5/17/18627839/nasa-administrator-jim-bridenstine-artemis-moon-program-budget-amendment|url-status=live}}

By early 2020, plans for Orion and the HLS to rendezvous with the Gateway were abandoned in favour of direct docking of Orion and HLS, and delivery of the Gateway after Artemis III.{{cite web|last=Gohd|first=Chelsea|title=NASA's "critical path" to the Moon no longer requires a lunar Gateway: Report|url=https://www.space.com/nasa-remove-lunar-gateway-artemis-critical-path.html|publisher=Space.com|access-date=16 May 2020|archive-url=https://archive.today/20200516065327/https://www.space.com/nasa-remove-lunar-gateway-artemis-critical-path.html|archive-date=16 May 2020|date=16 March 2020|quote=NASA has removed the Lunar Gateway from its "critical path" to return humans to the Moon by 2024, according to a SpaceNews report.|url-status=live}}{{cite web |last=Foust |first=Jeff |date=14 May 2020 |title=NASA refines plans for launching Gateway and other Artemis elements |url=https://spacenews.com/nasa-refines-plans-for-launching-gateway-and-other-artemis-elements/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://archive.today/20200516065402/https://spacenews.com/nasa-refines-plans-for-launching-gateway-and-other-artemis-elements/ |archive-date=16 May 2020 |access-date=16 May 2020 |publisher=SpaceNews |quote=... Loverro reiterated previous statements that the Gateway will not be used for the Artemis 3 mission that will attempt to land humans on the Moon to "make that mission have a higher probability of success".}}

On 10 August 2021, an Office of Inspector General audit reported a conclusion that the spacesuits would not be ready until April 2025 at the earliest, likely delaying the mission from the planned late 2024 launch date.{{cite web|url=https://oig.nasa.gov/docs/IG-21-025.pdf|title=NASA's development of next-generation spacesuits|date=10 August 2021|quote=... the suits would not be ready for flight until April 2025 at the earliest ... a lunar landing in late 2024 as NASA currently plans is not feasible.|access-date=10 August 2021|archive-date=10 August 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210810150000/https://oig.nasa.gov/docs/IG-21-025.pdf|url-status=live}} Axiom Space will design the space suits, with collaboration from fashion house Prada.{{Cite news |date=2023-10-05 |title=Prada to design Nasa's new Moon suit |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-67022619 |access-date=2023-10-08 |work=BBC News}}

On 9 November 2021, the Administrator of NASA, Bill Nelson, confirmed that Artemis III will launch no earlier than 2025.{{cite web |last=Foust |first=Jeff |date=9 November 2021 |title=NASA delays human lunar landing to at least 2025 |url=https://spacenews.com/nasa-delays-human-lunar-landing-to-at-least-2025/ |work=SpaceNews |access-date=9 November 2021}}

In June 2023, Jim Free, NASA's associate administrator for exploration systems development, said that launch would "probably" be no earlier than 2026.{{cite web | url=https://spacenews.com/nasa-concerned-starship-problems-will-delay-artemis-3/#:~:text=WASHINGTON%20—%20NASA%20has%20growing%20concerns,to%20get%20the%20vehicle%20ready | title=NASA concerned Starship problems will delay Artemis 3 | date=8 June 2023 }}{{cite web | url=https://www.space.com/spacex-starship-problems-delay-artemis-3-2026# | title=SpaceX Starship problems likely to delay Artemis 3 moon mission to 2026, NASA says | website=Space.com | date=9 June 2023 }} Later in December 2023, the GAO reported the mission was unlikely to occur before 2027.{{Cite web |last=Foust |first=Jeff |date=2023-12-01 |title=GAO report warns Artemis 3 landing may be delayed to 2027 |url=https://spacenews.com/gao-report-warns-artemis-3-landing-may-be-delayed-to-2027/ |access-date=2024-01-08 |website=SpaceNews |language=en-US}}

In January 2024, NASA officially delayed Artemis III to no earlier than September 2026.{{cite web |last=Foust |first=Jeff |url=https://spacenews.com/nasa-delays-artemis-2-and-3-missions/ |title=NASA delays Artemis 2 and 3 missions |work=SpaceNews |date=9 January 2024 |access-date=10 January 2024}}

On its third test flight Starship reached its desired orbital trajectory for the first time on 14 March 2024.

In March 2024, NASA announced the scientific instruments to be included on the mission were a compact, autonomous seismometer suite called the Lunar Environment Monitoring Station, or LEMS. LEMS will characterize the regional structure of the Moon's crust and mantle to inform the development of lunar formation and evolution models. Another instrument is Lunar Effects on Agricultural Flora, a.k.a. LEAF, which will investigate the impact of the lunar surface environment on space crops. The third instrument is the Lunar Dielectric Analyzer, or LDA, an internationally contributed payload that will measure the regolith's ability to propagate an electric field.{{Cite web |last=Cooper |first=Naomi |date=2024-03-27 |title=NASA Unveils 3 Lunar Instruments to Fly on Artemis III Mission |url=https://executivegov.com/2024/03/nasa-unveils-3-lunar-instruments-to-fly-on-artemis-iii-mission/ |access-date=2024-04-01 |language=en-US}}

The European Service Module for the mission was completed and delivered to NASA in September 2024.{{Cite web |date=2024-08-21 |title=Orion's European Service Module 3, the backbone of return to the Moon |url=https://www.airbus.com/en/newsroom/stories/2024-08-orions-european-service-module-3-the-backbone-of-return-to-the-moon |access-date=2024-09-07 |website=Airbus}}

In December 2024, NASA officially delayed Artemis III to no earlier than 2027.{{Cite web |date=2024-12-05 |title=Artemis III |url=https://www.nasa.gov/mission/artemis-iii |access-date=2025-03-04 |website=NASA}}

On 2 May 2025, the second Trump administration released its fiscal year 2026 budget proposal, which proposed canceling the SLS and Orion spacecraft after Artemis III due to the former's cost of $4 billion per launch.{{Cite web |date=2 May 2025 |title=Fiscal Year 2026 Discretionary Budget Request |url=https://www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Fiscal-Year-2026-Discretionary-Budget-Request.pdf |access-date=2 May 2025 |website=United States Office of Management and Budget |page=37}}

{{Portal|Spaceflight}}

• List of Artemis missions
• List of missions to the Moon

{{Reflist|30em}}

{{Commons category}}

• [https://www.nasa.gov/orion Orion website] at nasa.gov
• [https://www.nasa.gov/sls Space Launch System website] at nasa.gov
• [https://www.nasa.gov/mission/artemis-iii Artemis iii] at nasa.gov

{{Artemis program}}

{{Orion program}}

{{Moon spacecraft}}

{{Future spaceflights}}

Category:2027 in spaceflight

Category:Artemis program

Category:Crewed missions to the Moon

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