Space

NASA Names Artemis III Crew for 2027 Orbit Mission

Is this an ambitious lunar leap or more of a stepping stone?

Published JUN 9

NASA Names Artemis III Crew for 2027 Orbit Mission

Story

Above: Randy Bresnik, Luca Parmitano, Frank Rubio, and Andre Douglas at the Artemis III crew announcement in Houston, Texas, on June 9. Image credit: Ronaldo Schemidt/AFP/Getty Images

The Facts

NASA announced on Tuesday that Randy Bresnik, Luca Parmitano, Frank Rubio and Andre Douglas will form the Artemis III crew, with Bresnik as commander, Parmitano as pilot and Douglas and Rubio as mission specialists. NASA astronaut Bob Hines will serve as a backup crew member.
NASA
The Launch Pad on X
BBC News
Bresnik is a veteran test pilot who joined NASA in 2004. Parmitano, a European Space Agency (ESA) astronaut from Italy, began his career as a test pilot with the Italian Air Force and has logged 366 days in space across multiple International Space Station (ISS) expeditions.
The Planetary Society
European Space Agency
Frank Rubio holds a doctorate in medicine and broke the U.S. record for longest spaceflight with 371 days aboard the ISS in 2022. Andre Douglas previously served as a backup crew member for the Artemis II lunar flyby mission completed in April.
The Planetary Society
CNN
The Artemis III mission, targeted for late 2027, will not attempt a lunar landing. Instead, the four-person crew will launch into low-Earth orbit aboard an Orion spacecraft to test rendezvous and docking with commercial lunar landers built by SpaceX and Blue Origin.
Live Science
FOX 35 Orlando
CNN
NASA restructured Artemis III in February, shifting the first crewed Moon landing to Artemis IV, targeted for early 2028. The change mirrors Apollo 9, which tested the Lunar Module in Earth orbit before Apollo 11 landed on the Moon four months later.
Starlust
Tech Times
Blue Origin's New Glenn rocket exploded during a static-fire test at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station on May 28, destroying the company's only operational launchpad for the vehicle. Blue Origin vice president John Couluris said the company has "redoubled" its efforts and expects its lander to be ready for a 2027 launch.
FOX 35 Orlando
The New York Times
NBC

Sources Split

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CENTER

RIGHT

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ESTAB

The Spin

Narrative A

Artemis III is set to be the most complex and ambitious human spaceflight mission in modern history, with three of the world's most powerful rockets launching in rapid succession to test docking with Blue Origin and SpaceX lunar landers in Earth orbit. This mission isn't just a stepping stone — it's a full-scale demonstration of American innovation and international partnership that will enable crewed lunar landings at the Moon's South Pole. The crew of Bresnik, Parmitano, Douglas and Rubio represents the best of NASA and its global partners.

NASA on X

NASA

NASA on X

Narrative B

Beyond the hardware demonstration, Artemis III's primary significance is the "Earth Joy" science that will make future lunar exploration possible. By studying Earth's atmosphere, space weather, radiation exposure and the Orion capsule itself, the crew will gather data needed to protect astronauts, refine mission procedures and prepare for sustained lunar operations. Artemis III is less about reaching the Moon than building the methodical knowledge base that will allow humanity to stay there.

NASA on X

KHOU on Youtube