Artemis II splashdown complete: When will NASA launch Artemis III and humans land on the Moon?

NASA's Artemis II mission crew safely returned home after breaking the record for the farthest distance humans have flown from Earth by traveling around the far side of the moon. It is simply a refresher of NASA's long-term lunar ambitions, with the ultimate goal of returning humans to the moon.

The success of the Artemis 2 mission proved deep-space capabilities and left many wondering: When will NASA launch the next moon mission, dubbed Artemis III, and when will humans finally land on the moon?

Artemis II Triumph: A new generation inspired

The artemis 2 crew, Commander Reid Wiseman, Pilot Victor Glover, Mission Specialist Christina Hammock Koch, and Mission Specialist Jeremy Hansen, completed a sweeping journey around the far side of the Moon before a dramatic splashdown back on Earth.

Their return answered one of the most searched questions, where did Artemis 2 land? The landing of Artemis 2 occurred in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of San Diego, California, following a controlled descent, marking a successful end to the mission broadcast widely on nasa live streams and artemis live feeds watched around the world.

The Orion spacecraft performed admirably, while images captured by the astronauts on Artemis 2 captivated audiences and revived interest in whether children inspired today might someday live and work on the Moon. Still, despite the excitement, the answer to whether Artemis 2 landed on the moon remains no; the mission was designed as a lunar flyby, not a landing.

When Will NASA Launch Artemis III?

The next step in the broader Artemis program will not immediately place astronauts on the Moon. Instead, Artemis III will serve as a crucial technical rehearsal.

"The Artemis III mission will launch crew in the Orion spacecraft on top of the SLS (Space Launch System) rocket to test rendezvous and docking capabilities between Orion and commercial spacecraft needed to land astronauts on the Moon," NASA explained.

The mission will test integration with commercial lunar landers from SpaceX and Blue Origin. Artemis III is currently scheduled for 2027, with speculation pointing to a mid-year launch, though a crew has yet to be announced. The mission is similar to Apollo 9, which launched on March 3, 1969, and demonstrated the equipment capabilities that would later carry humans to the Moon's surface.

When will humans land on the moon again? Answer is Artemis IV

The long-awaited lunar landing is expected with Artemis IV, currently targeted for 2028. NASA describes it as “one of the most complex undertakings of engineering and human ingenuity in the history of deep space exploration,” focusing on the Moon’s South Pole.

"Artemis IV astronauts will travel to lunar orbit, where two crew members will descend to the surface and spend approximately a week near the South Pole of the Moon conducting new science before returning to lunar orbit to join their crew for the journey back to Earth," NASA explained.

For comparison, during Apollo 11, Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin spent just 21 hours and 36 minutes on the Moon's surface, including roughly 2.5 hours outside the spacecraft.

Moon’s South Pole science and future lunar base

Nine candidate landing sites have already been identified near the Moon’s South Pole, selected for their geological diversity and potential water ice. The Artemis IV mission is expected to lay the groundwork for a sustained human presence, including a future lunar base, a major step beyond the achievements of the Artemis II astronauts.

With astronauts on Artemis 2 safely home and momentum building, the roadmap is becoming clearer: Artemis II proved the journey, Artemis III will test the systems, and Artemis IV may finally return humans to the Moon, this time to stay.