NASA details Artemis III low‑Earth‑orbit test with Orion, Starship and Blue Moon

NASA has unveiled the plan for Artemis III, a crewed test mission that will remain in low‑Earth orbit rather than land on the Moon. Four astronauts will launch aboard Orion on a Space Launch System (SLS) rocket, rendezvous and dock with one or two commercial lunar‑lander modules – SpaceX’s Starship and/or Blue Origin’s Blue Moon – to validate docking, refueling and life‑support systems. The Orion service module, built in Europe, will provide propulsion, and the spacecraft will carry a new upgraded thermal shield. The mission will keep the crew aboard Orion longer than Artemis II, allowing extensive testing of environmental control, water, oxygen and nitrogen supplies, and may deploy CubeSats.

Artemis II, which flew in April 2026, completed a lunar flyby, set a record distance of about 252,760 miles from Earth, and returned over 12,000 photographs of Earth, the Moon and deep space. Those images and the mission’s success provide the operational backdrop for Artemis III’s upcoming tests.

In parallel, SpaceX is preparing a Starship version‑3 launch from Pad 2 on May 19, aimed at validating changes needed to support Artemis III in 2027.