NASA Plans Three Heavy Rocket Launches in Two Weeks for Artemis 3
NASA has detailed its Artemis 3 plan: three spacecraft will launch from Florida on three heavy-lift rockets within two weeks. The mission will test how the Orion capsule works with two commercial lunar landers.
NASA, the US space agency, has published a detailed plan for its Artemis 3 mission, which will see three spacecraft launched on three heavy-lift rockets from Florida within a span of two weeks. The mission is part of the Artemis program to return humans to the Moon. Earlier this year the program was overhauled, pushing the next crewed lunar landing to 2028; Artemis 3 will now test at least one lunar lander instead. It was originally meant to be the first crewed Moon landing since Apollo 17 in 1972.
Three launches
The mission begins when Blue Origin launches its New Glenn rocket carrying a test version of the Blue Moon Mark 2 lander into low Earth orbit, about 273 miles above the surface. NASA will then launch its Space Launch System (SLS) rocket with the Orion crew capsule, carrying NASA astronauts Randy Bresnik, Frank Rubio and Andre Douglas, plus European Space Agency astronaut Luca Parmitano. Orion will settle into an orbit of about 345 miles before rendezvousing with Blue Moon Mark 2.
The crew will spend a couple of days checking systems, then open the hatch and enter the Blue Origin lander. They will verify that it maintains proper atmosphere and pressure, and test its software, flight-control systems and life-support functions. The astronauts will then return to Orion, which will undock from the lander.
In the final phase, SpaceX will launch Starship version 3, which made its first flight in May. It will carry a docking system at its forward end. This rendezvous will last only two hours; the crew will not enter Starship and will only verify how Orion links up with it, docks and undocks. Afterward, the crew will have about five more days in orbit before heading home.
NASA says the two docking approaches will "demonstrate how Orion interfaces with two very different commercial lander architectures during a single mission." The flight will also evaluate the new Orion Crew Survival System suits, custom-made for deep-space missions.
Timing remains unclear
The launch date has not been set. NASA Watch reported that NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman sent an agency-wide memo admitting Artemis 3 is three months behind schedule. In the best case, the mission launches in summer 2027, leaving two landing opportunities for Artemis 4 in 2028. The New Glenn launchpad exploded during a hotfire test in May, and Blue Origin aims to make it usable again by the end of this year.
