NASA Announces Artemis III Crew for Lunar Training Mission
3 verified4 unconfirmed
NASA announced the four-person crew for the Artemis III mission on June 9, 2026, in Houston, Texas. The mission will take place in low Earth orbit and test the Orion spacecraft’s ability to rendezvous and dock with commercial lunar landers. The crew includes NASA astronauts Randy Bresnik, Frank Rubio, and Andre Douglas, along with European Space Agency astronaut Luca Parmitano. The announcement came two months after the record-breaking Artemis II mission around the Moon. Artemis III is considered a critical test flight ahead of a planned human landing on the lunar surface, which NASA targets as early as 2028.
What’s verified
The Artemis III crew consists of NASA astronauts Randy Bresnik, Frank Rubio, and Andre Douglas, and ESA astronaut Luca Parmitano.
The mission will take place in low Earth orbit and will test the Orion crew capsule’s rendezvous and docking capabilities with lunar landers developed by commercial companies.
The crew announcement was made on June 9, 2026, at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston.
Not yet confirmed
NPR reports that the mission will begin with the uncrewed launch of Blue Origin’s Blue Moon lander, followed by the crew launching on NASA’s SLS rocket, docking with the lander for about two days, and then testing a second docking with SpaceX’s Starship before returning to Earth with a Pacific Ocean splashdown.
NPR reports that NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman wants to launch the mission by the end of 2026, but an accident at Blue Origin’s launch facility last month may affect that timeline.
NPR reports that Randy Bresnik will serve as commander, Luca Parmitano as pilot, and Frank Rubio and Andre Douglas as mission specialists, and that this will be Douglas’s first spaceflight.
NPR reports that during the crew announcement, the Artemis II crew handed over a baton to symbolize the transition.
Key figures
Randy Bresnik (NASA astronaut, Artemis III commander)
Frank Rubio (NASA astronaut, Artemis III mission specialist)
Andre Douglas (NASA astronaut, Artemis III mission specialist)
Luca Parmitano (ESA astronaut, Artemis III pilot)
Jared Isaacman (NASA administrator)
Jeremy Parsons (NASA official)
Reid Wiseman (Artemis II commander)
Sources: The Guardian, NASA, NPR
