Isaacman “Extremely Confident” Artemis III Will Launch in 2027

NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman said today he’s “extremely confident” Artemis III will launch next year to test rendezvous and docking operations between Orion and test versions of the two human lunar landing systems. A Wet Dress Rehearsal for Artemis III is planned for November, around the same time as a Max Power event at Kennedy Space Center that will highlight American aeronautics and space innovation.

Isaacman was joined by Sen. Ashley Moody (R-FL) and several local Members of Congress at KSC today to unveil Max Power, taking place at KSC’s Shuttle Landing Facility from November 7-8.

The two-day event will feature air shows, science experiments, interactive mission simulators, Apollo and Artemis astronauts and “maybe a rocket launch or two.”

Asked where the money is coming from, Isaacman said NASA would not be footing the bill, noting that similar events around the world are sponsor-driven. In an interview on CNBC earlier in the day, he likened this event to the Farnborough International Airshow and the Paris Air Show that are held on alternating years in the U.K. and France. KSC Director Brian Hughes added that NASA’s partnership with Space Florida would be on display as well as commercial partnerships “to make sure that NASA and the federal taxpayer are not the payers of this bill.”

Following the success of Artemis II in April, NASA is gearing up for Artemis III in 2027. Originally designated as the first mission to return astronauts to the lunar surface, in February Isaacman made a course correction to remake Artemis III as an earth-orbital test flight instead. Now Artemis III will conduct rendezvous and docking procedures with test versions of the two human lunar landing systems (HLSs): Blue Origin’s Blue Moon MK2 and SpaceX’s Starship HLS.

Artemis III’s four-man crew will launch on NASA’s Space Launch System (SLS) rocket and Orion spacecraft and conduct operations with the Blue Moon MK2 and Starship HLS test articles launched separately by Blue Origin and SpaceX. NASA is already stacking SLS/Orion and Isaacman said today he expects they will be rolling out to Launch Complex 39B for a Wet Dress Rehearsal at about the same time as the Max Power event.

Blue Moon MK2 is designed to launch on Blue Origin’s New Glenn rocket. The explosion of a New Glenn during a pre-launch test in May is a setback, but did not directly affect development of Blue Moon MK2. Company officials express confidence they will be able to return to launching New Glenn by the end of the year. Separately, SpaceX has had two largely successful flights of the new Starship Version 3 this year although it has yet to reach orbit.

Isaacman said he’s “extremely confident that we are going to be able to launch Artemis III next year,” noting they manage “every single component” of the Artemis program “down to the day, down to the hour.”  NASA’s goal is to land astronauts back on the Moon on the next mission, Artemis IV, in 2028.

Senator Moody and three Republican members of the House — Rep. Mike Haridopolos, Rep. Darren Soto, and Rep. Byron Donalds — were enthusiastic about Artemis and Max Power. Haridopolos represents KSC and chairs the Space and Aeronautics subcommittee of the House Science, Space, and Technology Committee. He joked that “it’s exciting to see this place explode in a positive way” after the post-shuttle years made some wonder if Florida would “still be the place where we launch dreams.” Florida will be the “epicenter” of that effort and Congress already demonstrated its support for NASA through the $10 billion added in last year’s reconciliation bill. “We’re bringing the best and the brightest right here to win the new space race, and we’re thrilled about it.”