NASA targets mid-2027 Artemis III rendezvous and docking test as lunar mission sequence shifts
NASA says Artemis III remains on track for a 2027 launch, with the mission intended to test rendezvous and docking between Orion and commercial lunar landers. The agency has revised the program sequence, making Artemis III a low-Earth-orbit systems demonstration and moving the first crewed lunar landing to Artemis IV, targeted for 2028, amid concerns about hardware readiness.