NASA Moves Closer To Artemis III, Unveils 2027 Crew For Earth-Orbit Test Flight

NASA on Tuesday (June 9) named the four astronauts who will fly Artemis III, the next major test in the Artemis programme, targeting a 2027 launch. Unlike earlier plans for a lunar landing, Artemis III has been reshaped into a complex low-Earth orbit demonstration. The crew will launch aboard the Orion spacecraft on the Space Launch System rocket from NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. They will practice rendezvous and docking with test versions of the next-gen lunar landers being built by SpaceX and Blue Origin. It's essentially a high-stakes dress rehearsal for the systems needed to get astronauts to the Moon's surface on Artemis IV in 2028.

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The crew announced June 9, 2026

Randy Bresnik (Commander): A NASA veteran and retired U.S. Marine Corps colonel, Bresnik has flown to space three times, logged around 150 days in orbit, and spent 32 hours spacewalking.

Luca Parmitano (Pilot): An Italian astronaut with the European Space Agency. He's flown twice before and will be the first ESA astronaut on an Artemis mission.

Frank Rubio (Mission Specialist): Holds the U.S. record for the longest single spaceflight at 371 days during his 2022-2023 stay on the ISS.

Andre Douglas (Mission Specialist): A first-time flier selected in NASA's 2021 astronaut class. Before NASA, he worked as a test engineer and U.S. Coast Guard Reserve commander.

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The two-week mission will test docking with one or both commercial landers in orbit around Earth, check Orion's systems, and evaluate new spacesuits. NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman called it “an incredibly exciting, complicated and highly coordinated multi-launch campaign”. 

"Today we take another bold step in humanity's return to the Moon, building on the extraordinary foundation laid by the Artemis II astronauts," said NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman.

"Their achievements reignited global excitement for exploration, and now they pass the torch to the Artemis III team, Randy, Luca, Frank, and Andre. Artemis III will demonstrate the power of American innovation and international partnership as we test complex rendezvous and docking operations and advance the technologies that will one day carry us deeper into the solar system."

"This mission will require the most awe-inspiring coordination of heavy-lift rocket launches in history, drawing on the talent and capability of teams across government and the spaceflight community. The Artemis III astronauts, alongside ESA and our international partners, and the tens of thousands of the best and brightest across the agency and industry, are ushering in a new Golden Age of exploration carrying forward the hopes and dreams of the next generation just as the Apollo astronauts did for so many of us."