The four astronauts of Artemis 2, the first crewed mission to the moon since Apollo 17 in 1972, splashed down safely off the coast of San Diego Friday (April 10).

It was a big moment for NASA, but the agency doesn't plan to rest on its laurels. The agency has even more ambitious plans in the years ahead — including putting boots down on the moon just a couple of years from now.

The next mission, Artemis 3, was originally supposed to be a crewed trip to the lunar surface. But in late February, NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman announced a big change to the Artemis architecture. Artemis 3 will now stay in Earth orbit, testing Orion's ability to dock with one or both of the program's crewed lunar landers — SpaceX's Starship and Blue Origin's Blue Moon.

NASA wants to launch that mission in mid-2027. If all goes well, Artemis 4 will then put astronauts down near the moon's south pole, using Orion and one of the privately developed Human Landing System (HLS) vehicles, in late 2028.

Story Date: April 13, 2026