WASHINGTON, June 9, 2026 — NASA has named the four astronauts who will fly on its Artemis III mission, a key test flight scheduled for 2027 that will help determine how quickly the U.S. can return humans to the lunar surface.
The crew includes NASA astronaut Randy Bresnik as commander, European Space Agency astronaut Luca Parmitano as pilot, and NASA astronauts Andre Douglas and Frank Rubio as mission specialists. Bob Hines was named as the backup crew member.
The announcement comes as NASA and its contractors work to maintain momentum in the Artemis program following the successful Artemis II mission earlier this year. The agency has said Artemis III remains on track for a 2027 launch despite technical challenges with some commercial partners.
“We will not slow down,” NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman said during remarks at Kennedy Space Center in Florida.
What Artemis III Will Test
Artemis III is now planned as a crewed test flight in low Earth orbit rather than a lunar landing. Its primary objective is to demonstrate rendezvous and docking between NASA’s Orion spacecraft and commercial lunar landers being developed by SpaceX and Blue Origin.
The mission will also test integrated systems, propulsion, communications, and operational procedures ahead of Artemis IV, the first crewed lunar landing currently targeted for 2028. NASA views the flight as a critical risk-reduction step before attempting to land astronauts on the Moon.
Blue Origin Setback and NASA’s Response
Blue Origin has faced delays with its New Glenn rocket, which is expected to play a role in supporting future Artemis missions. Last month, Blue Origin's New Glenn rocket exploded raising questions about its readiness timeline.
Jeremy Parsons, a senior NASA official, acknowledged the issue during remarks in Florida but emphasized the agency’s commitment to its commercial partners.
“While we recognize there are questions about how Blue Origin’s recent anomaly impacts our plans, setbacks are a learning opportunity,” Parsons said.
“We are confident that New Glenn will be ready for Artemis 3 together with Blue Origin. But NASA is stepping in and bringing all of our expertise and capabilities to bear. We are working hand in hand with them to meet our commitments to return our nation to the moon. Let me assure you, NASA is taking an active role with all of our partners, contractors, and vendors to help solve the problems that are here today and ensure the right outcomes are achieved."
Parsons said that these companies have unparalleled access "not only to our agency experts, but also to our test facilities, launch support, technology development at all of the NASA centers across the country."
"We will use this mission to reduce risk for our future crewed moon missions with lander test articles from both Blue Origin and SpaceX to ensure we will beat China back to the moon," Parsons added.
Isaacman Touts Broader Momentum
Isaacman used the Artemis III announcement to highlight progress across NASA’s broader technology development efforts. He pointed to the successful first supersonic flight of NASA’s X-59 quiet supersonic aircraft last week as another sign of forward movement.
“To realize this space-bearing future — we will work tirelessly to ignite an orbital and someday perhaps even a lunar economy working alongside industry to usher in the first commercial space stations,” Isaacman said at Kennedy Space Center.
The comments come as NASA continues to rely heavily on commercial partners to advance its exploration goals. Major contractors including Northrop Grumman, Boeing, Lockheed Martin, SpaceX, and Blue Origin are all playing significant roles in the Artemis program, with contracts collectively worth billions of dollars.
Northrop Grumman, which builds the solid rocket boosters for the Space Launch System, recently shipped the final booster segments for Artemis III. The company holds a $3.19 billion contract to produce boosters for multiple Artemis missions.
Sources
-- Kevin Cirilli is a journalist who has appeared on Bloomberg, Yahoo Finance, CBS, CNN, Fox News, MSNOW (MSNBC), C-SPAN and more.
