Artemis III will launch four astronauts from NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida on the SLS (Space Launch System) rocket.

The Artemis II moon mission by NASA was a success and the space agency has now announced its plans for the Artemis III mission as well. According to the latest post by NASA, the Artemis III mission astronauts will be revealed in an even on June 9, 2026, at 11:00 AM as per EDT at the Johnson Space Center in Houston. The event will be streamed on NASA+ and on the official YouTube channel. For those unaware, Artemis III will launch four astronauts from NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida aboard the Orion spacecraft on the SLS (Space Launch System) rocket. The mission will test critical rendezvous and docking capabilities between Orion and commercial human landing systems required to deliver astronauts to the lunar surface. Building on the successful Artemis II crewed test flight in April, Artemis III will pave the way for future surface missions. As part of the Golden Age of innovation and exploration, NASA will send Artemis astronauts on increasingly complex missions to explore more of the Moon for scientific discovery, economic benefits, establish an enduring human presence on the lunar surface, and build on our foundation for the first crewed mission to Mars. In the past, Artemis II was the first crewed mission of the Artemis program by NASA where the astronauts were sent around the Moon. It was a ten day flyby test mission and was designed to test deep-space life support, navigation systems, communications, Orion spacecraft performance, and crew operations in lunar space. The Artemis II crew also consisted of four astronauts, including two mission specialists, a pilot, and a commander. According to NASA says SLS is the only rocket currently capable of sending Orion and astronauts directly toward the Moon in a single launch.

Future spacecraft could use a single propellant to perform both rapid movements and slow, highly controlled adjustments.

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