Artemis Program Timeline

The Pad Abort-1 test on May 6, 2010, demonstrated Orion's launch abort system, proving it could pull a crew module away from a rocket during a pad emergency.

In between abort tests, a prototype Orion crew module flew on Exploration Flight Test-1 on December 5, 2014 atop a Delta IV Heavy rocket. Following the cancellation of the Constellation program in 2010, Orion had been heavily redesigned for use in NASA's Journey to Mars initiative, later named Moon to Mars.

In May 2019, the plan was for components of a crewed lunar lander to be deployed to the Gateway on commercial launchers before the arrival of the first crewed mission, Artemis III. As late as mid-2019, NASA also considered use of Delta IV Heavy and Falcon Heavy to launch a crewed Orion mission given SLS delays.

The European Ariane 6 has been proposed to be part of the program in July 2019.

The Ascent Abort-2 test on July 2, 2019, proved that the system could pull a crew module away during launch at the point of maximum aerodynamic pressure (max q).

In April 2020, NASA awarded funding to Blue Origin, Dynetics, and SpaceX for 10-month-long preliminary design studies for the HLS. In addition, NASA awarded two rounds of separate contracts in May 2019 and September 2021, on aspects of the HLS to encourage alternative designs, separately from the initial HLS development effort.

On April 16, 2021, NASA contracted SpaceX to develop, manufacture, and fly two lunar landing flights with the Starship HLS lunar lander. The SpaceX Starship is also qualified to be bid for Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) launches, and in 2021 was the winning NASA bid for a crewed lunar landing.

NASA announced in March 2022 that it was developing new sustainability rules and pursuing both a Starship HLS upgrade (an option under the initial SpaceX contract) and new competing alternative designs.

In 2024, SpaceX's Jennifer Jensen stated on a call that Starship HLS will require ten launches.

The Power and Propulsion Element (PPE) module and the Habitation and Logistics Outpost (HALO) of the Gateway, which were previously planned for the SLS Block 1B, were then planned to fly together on a Falcon Heavy in 2027. Previously, according to early mission concepts outlined by NASA in May 2020 and refined by the HLS contract award in July 2021, primary Earth-launch vehicles planned include the NASA Space Launch System for the Orion vehicle, the Falcon Heavy for various components of the Lunar Gateway, and the Starship HLS configuration for delivery of the HLS vehicle.

The Artemis program uses two types of space suit first unveiled in October 2019: the Orion Crew Survival System (OCSS) for launch and entry, and a next-generation extravehicular mobility unit (EMU) for lunar surface operations.

In February 2020, NASA released two requests for information regarding both a crewed and uncrewed unpressurized surface rover. In July 2020, NASA established a program office for the rover at the Johnson Space Center in Houston.

Development of NASA's Exploration Extravehicular Mobility Unit (xEMU) encountered delays; a 2021 audit by the NASA Office of Inspector General found it would not be ready before 2025. In response, NASA shifted to a commercial services model and selected Axiom Space and Collins Aerospace in 2022 to develop lunar spacesuits. Collins later withdrew from the contract in 2024.

In 2022, NASA identified 13 candidate regions near the lunar South Pole for initial landing and inspection missions.

The Italian Space Agency signed a contract with Thales Alenia Space in late 2023 for the Multi Purpose Habitation module, which may become the second module for the Artemis Base Camp.

Development has since focused on the Axiom Extravehicular Mobility Unit (AxEMU), which entered critical design review and testing in 2024. By February 2026, the suit had passed internal reviews and was undergoing further evaluation by NASA, with assembly of the first flight unit underway following pressurized and underwater mobility testing at the Neutral Buoyancy Laboratory. NASA plans an in-space demonstration aboard the International Space Station in 2027.

On April 3, 2024, NASA announced that Intuitive Machines, Lunar Outpost and Venturi Astrolab are the three companies developing the LTV in a 12-month feasibility and demo phase. A source selection statement by NASA provided further details on cost and overall feasibility on April 9, 2024.

On April 9, 2024, it was announced that JAXA and NASA had signed an agreement stipulating that Japan would join the pressurized rover collaboration venture and would design, develop, and operate a rover for crewed and uncrewed exploration of the Moon.

Artemis I (November 16, 2022) was the first uncrewed test flight of the SLS, Orion, and ESM. The uncrewed Artemis I mission sent an Orion spacecraft to lunar orbit in 2022, carrying mannequins and robotic payloads. Originally scheduled for late 2016, it was delayed repeatedly, eventually for late 2021, then pushed back to August 29, 2022; in October 2022, NASA launch managers decided on a November date, which was again slightly delayed due to preparation and weather.

Artemis II sent four astronauts on a lunar flyby in 2026, becoming the only crewed flight beyond low Earth orbit not part of the Apollo program. The crewed Artemis II (lunar fly-by) mission flew on April 1, 2026, and was the first crewed test flight of SLS and Orion.

Artemis III, scheduled for late 2027, is planned to test an HLS lunar lander in Earth orbit. It is planned to be the second crewed Artemis mission. As of February 2020, a lunar stay during a Phase 1 Artemis mission will be about seven days and will have five extravehicular activities (EVA). In the 2020 flight manifest it was later referred to as the 'Mobile Habitat'.

Artemis IV, targeted for 2028, is planned to be the first crewed lunar landing since Apollo, and the first American crewed lunar landing since Apollo 17 in December 1972. Other designs from 2019 envisioned its lander being launched from an SLS Block 1B as a single unit and landing directly on the surface; launch plans as of February 2020 showed that landing it on the surface would be similar to the HLS.

Artemis V (late 2028) is planned to be the second crewed lunar landing. Beginning with Artemis V, scheduled for no earlier than late 2028, NASA intends yearly lunar landings to develop a permanent lunar base, as a step toward human missions to deeper space.