Overview
- Ground tests uncovered leaks and anomalies in the Space Launch System and Orion stack, prompting extra checks and a revised March launch target for the lunar flyby.
- Artemis 2 is set to carry four astronauts around the Moon as the program’s crewed shakedown before any landing attempt.
- NASA is aiming no earlier than 2027 for Artemis 3 to attempt a lunar landing that would include the first woman and a non‑white astronaut.
- ESA astronauts Alexander Gerst and Matthias Maurer are candidates for later missions, potentially including the planned Artemis 4, with final crews to be decided after Artemis 2 data and the Artemis 3 plan are in hand.
- Gerst and Maurer describe Artemis as an international, long‑term effort focused on new targets such as the lunar south pole, and they frame added testing as prudent for safety.