The NASA announced this Tuesday the crew of four astronauts who will participate in the Artemis III mission, scheduled for 2027: commander Randy Bresnik, pilot Luca Parmitano from the European Space Agency (ESA), and mission specialists Frank Rubio and Andre Douglas, as confirmed by the U.S. space agency from Johnson Space Center in Houston.
The announcement marks a historic milestone: it is the first time that an ESA astronaut has been assigned to an Artemis mission, with Parmitano—an Italian astronaut and veteran of two missions to the International Space Station—serving as the pilot.
As an alternate, NASA astronaut Bob Hines has been appointed, who will train alongside the main crew and could replace any of its members if necessary.
Artemis III will not be a lunar landing, but rather a test mission in low Earth orbit.
The SLS rocket will launch the Orion spacecraft from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida to demonstrate, for the first time, the capabilities of rendezvous and docking with test versions of the commercial landing modules from Blue Origin (Blue Moon) and SpaceX (Starship).
The operational sequence stipulates that the Blue Origin module will launch first and wait in orbit for several weeks; then Orion will arrive, which will spend approximately two days docked conducting tests.
Afterward, the spacecraft will detach and wait for SpaceX's Starship, with which it will remain connected for about a day before returning to Earth, landing in the Pacific Ocean. The estimated total duration of the mission is approximately two weeks.
Among the crew members, Frank Rubio stands out, a Cuban-American astronaut born in Los Angeles to Cuban parents, who will be making his second space flight.
On his first mission, aboard the Soyuz MS-22 from September 2022 to September 2023, he set the record for continuous time in space for an American astronaut with 371 days in orbit.
For Andre Douglas, it will be his first space flight; he previously served as a backup and a member of the closeout team for Artemis II. Bresnik, a retired colonel of the Marines with over 7,000 flight hours in 95 types of aircraft, will undertake his third trip to space.
The NASA administrator, Jared Isaacman, emphasized the significance of the moment: “Today we take another bold step in humanity's return to the Moon, building on the extraordinary foundation laid by the Artemis II astronauts. Their achievements have reignited global enthusiasm for exploration, and now they pass the torch to the Artemis III team.”
The mission is built on the success of Artemis II, completed in April 2026, which was the first crewed flight beyond low Earth orbit in over 53 years and reached a record distance of 406,773 kilometers from Earth.
From the International Space Station, astronaut Jessica Meir, a member of Expedition 74, sent a message to the newly appointed team: "Congratulations, Artemis III, and best wishes for the journey ahead!"
Artemis III is essential for preparing Artemis IV, the first planned crewed lunar landing at the lunar south pole, scheduled for 2028, where the presence of water ice opens the possibility of establishing permanent bases on the Moon.
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