NASA has announced the crew for its Artemis III mission, a 2027 test flight that will mark another major step toward returning astronauts to the Moon.
The crew will include NASA astronaut Randy Bresnik as commander, ESA astronaut Luca Parmitano as pilot, and NASA astronauts Andre Douglas and Frank Rubio as mission specialists. NASA astronaut Bob Hines has been named backup crew member.
Artemis III will launch aboard NASA’s Space Launch System rocket from Kennedy Space Center in Florida, sending the Orion spacecraft into low Earth orbit. During the mission, Orion will test rendezvous and docking operations with commercial human landing system test vehicles being developed by Blue Origin and SpaceX.
NASA says the mission will be essential preparation for Artemis IV, currently planned as the first crewed mission to the lunar South Pole in 2028. The Artemis III crew is expected to spend about two weeks in space before returning to Earth with a Pacific Ocean splashdown.
The mission also marks a historic first, with Parmitano becoming the first ESA astronaut assigned to an Artemis mission. NASA said the crew will begin training immediately as work continues on Orion, SLS, and commercial lunar lander systems.
