NASA lays out a packed 14-day schedule for 2027’s Artemis III moon mission

NASA plans to test critical systems for future lunar landings in 2027 through a complex mission called Artemis III. Astronauts Randy Bresnik, Frank Rubio, Andre Douglas, and ESA astronaut Luca Parmitano will crew the Orion spacecraft, which will launch atop NASA's SLS rocket from Florida. This mission will see three spacecraft launched on three different heavy-lift rockets within a short timeframe.

Blue Origin's lunar lander test article, the Blue Moon Mark 2, will be launched into low Earth orbit approximately 273 miles above Earth. The lander can stay in orbit for up to 30 days, providing schedule flexibility for the mission. Once confirmed healthy and ready, Orion will launch on top of SLS and enter an elliptical Earth orbit of 18 x 1122 miles.

After stabilizing to a circular orbit at about 345 miles, Orion will perform a series of maneuvers to rendezvous with the Blue Moon lander. The crew will check out Orion’s systems, prepare for proximity operations, and dock with the Blue Moon test vehicle. This first docking operation will allow engineers to evaluate how Orion and a commercial lunar lander work together in space, assessing software, guidance systems, communications systems, and operational procedures.

Following the successful docking, astronauts will spend two days inside the Blue Moon test article, examining the cabin environment, controls, and life-support systems. This evaluation of a commercial lunar lander with crew will provide valuable data on spacecraft systems, crew operations, and spacecraft interoperability not possible on the ground. Next, Orion will undock and reposition to support a second rendezvous with a SpaceX Starship Version 3 test article, launching from Florida later in the mission.