Overview
- NASA said in a July 13 update that it is “full steam ahead” on Artemis III and is targeting a mid-to-late 2027 launch to place four astronauts into low Earth orbit.
- Key Space Launch System components are at Kennedy Space Center: the SLS core stage is in the Vehicle Assembly Building and the first RS-25 engines and solid rocket booster segments have been delivered and mounted for integration.
- The Artemis III Orion spacecraft has its upgraded heat shield installed and its service module has passed acoustic testing as engineers prepare the capsule for stacking.
- Launch teams at KSC have started recurring monthly simulations of propellant loading, terminal count procedures, and launch-day operations to rehearse the final minutes before liftoff.
- NASA is running Artemis III preparations in parallel with Artemis IV work, moving the Artemis IV LOX tank at Michoud and using the orbital docking demo with SpaceX’s Starship and Blue Origin’s Blue Moon to inform the planned late-2028 lunar landing.