When is NASA’s Artemis III mission? What to know about the next launch in the program

WASHINGTON — NASA is set to introduce the four astronauts who will fly on its Artemis III mission, offering the public its first look at the crew expected to help pave the way for future lunar landings.

Artemis III marks the next major step in NASA’s Artemis program, which aims to return humans to the moon for the first time since the Apollo era and prepare for future missions to Mars.

NASA currently plans to launch Artemis III in 2027.

Artemis III will test rendezvous and docking capabilities between NASA’s Orion spacecraft and commercial spacecraft systems that could eventually be used to land astronauts on the moon.

The crew will launch aboard the Orion spacecraft atop NASA’s Space Launch System (SLS) rocket. During the mission, astronauts will help demonstrate technologies needed to connect Orion with commercial lunar landing systems safely.

NASA has said additional details about the mission design and crew assignments will be released closer to launch.

Artemis III is the third mission in NASA’s Artemis program, which is intended to return astronauts to the moon and eventually support human exploration of Mars.

The program began with Artemis I, an uncrewed test flight of the Orion spacecraft around the moon in 2022.

Artemis II, which took place earlier this year, sent four astronauts around the moon without landing. The crew included NASA astronauts Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover and Christina Koch, along with Canadian astronaut Jeremy Hansen.

NASA officials have said Artemis missions are designed not only to return humans to the moon, but also to help scientists and engineers learn how to live and work on another world before sending astronauts to Mars.

The crew announcement for Artemis III will take place on June 9, 2026 at 11 a.m. EDT. It will stream live on NASA+ and NASA’s YouTube channel.