NASA Names Four Astronauts for Artemis III Moon Mission NASA announced the four astronauts selected for the Artemis III mission on Tuesday, marking the start of a year-long training phase for the crew. The mission, set to launch next year, will focus on testing rendezvous and docking procedures with moon landers being developed by SpaceX and Blue Origin. These tests are critical milestones before the U.S. can attempt a lunar landing in 2028. The crew members, announced by NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman at the Johnson Space Center in Houston, include commander Randy Bresnik, pilot Luca Parmitano, and mission specialists Frank Rubio and Andre Douglas. Bob Hines was named the backup crew member. The Artemis III mission is designed to replicate the operations of NASA’s Apollo 9 flight in 1969, where astronauts tested the lunar module in Earth orbit. This mission will follow the Artemis II flight, which completed a lunar orbit mission in April 2026. The Artemis III crew will launch in an Orion capsule atop NASA’s Space Launch System rocket, carrying out procedures similar to Apollo 9. This includes testing the lunar lander’s systems in orbit, a step that precedes the first moon landing in nearly five decades. The mission’s success will depend on the readiness of the landers from SpaceX and Blue Origin, which are critical for the 2028 landing attempt. NASA’s plans for a moon landing hinge on the completion of test flights by both SpaceX and Blue Origin. The Artemis III mission is currently the only planned test flight before the 2028 landing, though delays in the development of lunar landers could push the timeline further. Blue Origin faces significant challenges after a catastrophic explosion on May 28 destroyed a New Glenn rocket, which is essential for launching its Blue Moon Mark II lander.#nasa #jared_isaacman #randy_bresnik #luca_parmitano #frank_rubio
