NASA announced that Artemis III, the first crewed lunar landing since 1972, will be delayed to 2027 and will use SpaceX’s Starship as the Human Landing System.

The Artemis program began under Space Policy Directive 1 in 2017, and a 2024 landing target was set in 2019 by Vice President Mike Pence.

NASA issued a request for proposals in 2019 and selected Starship as the sole lander in April 2021 after Congress allocated $850 million of the $3.3 billion requested for the program.

Starship HLS is a 50‑meter‑tall vehicle that relies on a 16‑launch refueling campaign to reach the Moon, and it has completed 13 integrated test flights as of 2026.

NASA’s decision coincides with China’s announced goal to land astronauts on the Moon by 2030, prompting increased emphasis on beating the Chinese program.

The revised schedule places Artemis III as an Earth‑orbit checkout mission followed by a Starship‑Orion docking, with the goal of achieving a lunar landing before China’s target.