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During a teleconference for media representatives on January 9, NASA management announced that the launch of the Artemis II lunar expedition has been postponed from November 2024 to September 2025. And the "Artemis III" moon landing mission, originally planned for the end of 2025, may now take place no earlier than September 2026.
"Safety is our top priority, and in order to give the Artemis teams more time to solve problems related to the development, operation and integration of systems, we are going to spend more time on the Artemis II expeditions (the lunar flyby. - Approx. ed.) and "Artemis III" (landing of astronauts on the surface of the Moon. - Note ed.)," said NASA administrator Bill Nelson at a briefing.
He added that the launch of "Artemis IV" is planned for September 2028.
Earlier, a report by the US Office of Accountability (GAO) showed that the timing of lunar expeditions was unrealistic. SpaceX is still trying to finalize and test the Starship system, which is expected to be a vehicle for delivering astronauts to the surface of Earth's natural satellite. Initially, orbital flight tests of the lunar version of Starship were delayed for seven months.
The developers of Axiom Space lunar suits, which meet the requirements of NASA, also encountered delays. New equipment and gear must also be thoroughly tested before a mission.
