NASA has announced additional delays in sending astronauts back to the moon, with the next mission in the Artemis program now targeted for April 2026 instead of the initially planned September 2025.
The big picture: The delay was attributed to the investigation into heat shield damage from the capsule’s initial test flight two years ago and the need for additional spacecraft improvements.
- The third Artemis mission, a moon landing by two other astronauts, has been pushed to at least 2027, with NASA originally aiming for 2026.
Driving the news: The Artemis program, a follow-up to the Apollo moonshots, has completed only one mission, with an empty Orion capsule circling the moon in 2022.
- The capsule returned with damaged heat shields, and engineers took time to pinpoint the cause and come up with a plan.
- The revised schedule aims to have astronauts back on the lunar surface before China, which has indicated 2030 for a crew moon landing.
- NASA has put all the Artemis contractors on notice to meet the schedule deadlines, including Elon Musk’s SpaceX, whose mega rocket Starship will be used for the first two Artemis moon landings.
