NASA to update Artemis plans on Friday

On Friday, Oct. 23, NASA will hold a press conference at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida to give an update on its Artemis program. The session, which starts at 2 p.m. EDT (1800 GMT), will be streamed live through Space.com. Administrator Jared Isaacman, Associate Administrator Amit Kshatriya and Artemis program manager Jeremy Parsons will speak, and the briefing will cover the next steps for sending astronauts to the moon.

Artemis III Mission and Lander Tests

A key focus of the briefing will be Artemis III, which is slated to launch in the third quarter of 2027. Four astronauts will travel aboard Orion to low‑Earth orbit, where they will rendezvous and dock with test versions of both SpaceX’s Starship and Blue Origin’s Blue Moon landers. Those interoperability demonstrations will help NASA decide which vehicle will carry astronauts on the next crewed lunar landing, Artemis IV, targeted for early 2028.

SpaceX’s Starship schedule calls for a return‑and‑catch of its V3 booster and a Starship upper‑stage at the launch pad, as well as a launch from a Florida pad. The company will fit a docking system and nose‑cone cover to the lander for Artemis III, but it will not include a crew cabin for that mission. In contrast, Blue Origin plans to fly a complete Blue Moon Mk 2 lander, complete with a crew cabin and life‑support systems, during Artemis III so astronauts can test the vehicle in orbit. Both companies have set milestones through early 2028, including orbital refueling, uncrewed lunar landings and final integration with Orion.

The Artemis program’s overall timeline remains unchanged: Artemis III in mid‑2027, a crewed lunar landing on Artemis IV in 2028, and possibly a second landing on Artemis V that year. NASA stresses the urgency of the effort because rival nations, notably China, have similar moon‑base ambitions, and the agency wants to set norms for responsible activity on the moon. Whether SpaceX or Blue Origin will receive the green light for the first crewed landing will depend on their progress in the coming months.