Evolving Tomorrow
Preparing for Artemis III
Jul
The crew of Artemis II captured the setting Earth from the far side of the moon.
Preparing for Artemis III
By Ayden Planker
Photographs by Artemis II Crew, NASA, Ben Smegelsky, and Keegan Barber
A short three months after their successful Artemis II launch, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) has begun the assembly of its next manned spacefaring vehicle. It will be used in 2027’s Artemis III mission, which is set to be one of, if not the most complex astronautic experiments the administration has ever undertaken.
Artemis III will be the latest in the ongoing Artemis program, NASA’s first lunar program since the Apollo missions. With the Apollo launch having returned to earth in 1972, it has been more than fifty years since man set foot on the moon. More than Apollo, this program is interested in the development of a more permanent contact with the moon, with yearly missions to view, study, and visit it planned indefinitely. The program was created as a consolidation of defunded and cancelled programs in 2017.
Photograph by NASA / Keegan Barber. The crew of Artemis II launches from Kennedy Space Center on board NASA’s Orion spacecraft attached to the Space Launch System rocket.
Artemis launches focus on three primary pieces of equipment: the Space Launch System (SLS), used as a propellant to carry the vessel into space; the Orion spacecraft, a partially reusable crew vessel; and the Human Landing System (HLS), a device designed for landings and departures to and from the moon’s surface.
Artemis II, which launched on April 1st, 2026, was the first crewed launch in the program. While its benefit was largely in testing infrastructure for future missions, Artemis II was extremely successful in its secondary goal of gathering pictures and information of the moon from where it entered its orbit. With their wide arc around it the astronauts of Artemis II were the first ever to see some portions of the moon’s dark side.
NASA moon photo captured by the Artemis II crew and overexposed for analysis
The ongoing preparations for Artemis III are no small thing. This mission will see the first tests for the HLS vehicles created by BlueOrigin and SpaceX. These tests will take place in Earth’s orbit, rather than in Lunar orbit, to see if transport to a landing vessel is feasible and safe for the testing crew. Should the two HLS stand up to the test, Artemis IV is drafted to be man’s first moon landing in decades. Two of the mission’s four crew members will reside at the moon’s south pole for nearly a week before returning to the HLS and making the return trip home.
NASA / Ben Smegelsky photograph: NASA, ESA, and Airbus staff prepare for acoustic testing at Kennedy Space Center in advance of Artemis III.
Of the missions after Artemis IV, only Artemis V has been officially named. In this department, NASA’s ambitions are great. It is the stated goal of the administration to engage in yearly landings thereafter, with the intention to begin developing the first lunar base. The base, which will operate on Nuclear and Solar power, has a drafted budget of some twenty to thirty million dollars.
The Artemis program is not the only one planned; across the globe, nations have put their focus into developing for a lunar base. With this international effort being put in, it can be assumed that regardless of Artemis’ individual success, mankind is looking at a full scientific expansion onto the moon.
Preparing for Artemis III
Photographs by Artemis II Crew, NASA, Ben Smegelsky, and Keegan Barber
The future is what we make of it!
