NASA Minute: June 12, 2026

The next chapter of Artemis is officially here. This week, NASA shared major updates on next year's Artemis III mission and announced the four astronauts who will fly it. Here's what to know about our next big step toward returning to the Moon, in your NASA Minute.

What is said in the film

The next chapter of Artemis is officially here. This week, NASA shared major updates on next year's Artemis III mission and announced the four astronauts who will fly it. Here's what to know about our next big step toward returning to the Moon, in your NASA Minute. Launching next year, Artemis III will put the systems, spacecraft, and operations needed for future lunar surface missions to the test. The mission will help NASA validate critical technologies and reduce risk before astronauts return to the surface of the Moon in 2028.

Flying the mission are Commander Randy Bresnik, Pilot Luca Parmitano of the European Space Agency, and Mission Specialists Frank Rubio and Andre Douglas. Together, they bring decades of experience in military aviation, spaceflight, and engineering to one of the most ambitious missions NASA has ever undertaken. The crew will launch aboard the Orion spacecraft into low-Earth orbit, where across a roughly two-week mission, they will dock with both of the lunar lander systems being developed by Blue Origin and SpaceX. By bringing these vehicles together in space for the first time, NASA will be able to evaluate how they perform as an integrated system. This will allow us to see how the spacecraft perform together and test critical capabilities— including rendezvous, docking, crew operations, and spacecraft interoperability— testing that close to Earth before committing crews to missions farther from home.

Artemis II proved that NASA could safely send astronauts around the Moon and bring them home. Artemis III is about preparing for what comes next. When astronauts return to the lunar surface in 2028, they’ll do so using systems and procedures proven by the Artemis III crew. Stay tuned for more, and we'll see you next time on the NASA Minute.

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