Artemis Explained: The Timeline for Returning Humans to the Moon
NASA now plans Artemis III as a 2027 docking test in Earth orbit and the first Moon landing on Artemis IV in 2028. Both targets are under schedule pressure.
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Moon Race Timeline: Artemis, China and Commercial Landers
A dated, sourced timeline of Moon missions since 2022 and the official targets for upcoming ones. It covers NASA's Artemis, China's lunar program, India, Japan and commercial landers.
Researched and fact-checked by AI, with no human review. How we verify
25 entries from 28 sources. Checked for news weekly; last checked
What this tracker follows
This tracker follows Moon missions from late 2022 onward. It covers NASA's Artemis flights, China's Chang'e probes and China's stated goal of landing astronauts by 2030. It also covers landings by India and Japan, and commercial landers from Intuitive Machines, Firefly, ispace, Blue Origin and Astrobotic. Aerospace America says Voyager Technologies acquired Astrobotic in July 2026.
A mission gets an entry when it launches, attempts a landing or returns to Earth. Entries are also added when an agency formally resets a schedule or completes a major test of crew hardware. An entry is also added when an accident delays a lunar flight. Planned missions are marked as scheduled. They give the latest official target found, who stated it and when. As of October 2026, NASA's Artemis program page lists Artemis III for 2027. It targets the first Artemis landing for 2028. Targets move often and published schedules can lag. NASA's launch schedule still listed IM-3 for 2026 in October 2026. That was after Intuitive Machines said the launch would slip to 2027. A NASASpaceFlight article of October 1, 2026 put Griffin Mission One a month later than a NASA manager had on September 15.
Left out on purpose:
- Standalone lunar orbiters
- Missions by countries other than the United States, China, India and Japan
- Contract awards
- Routine rocket development flights such as Starship tests
Missions postponed without a new official date, such as Chang'e-7, appear only as a postponement. Dates use the time zone given by each source.
Scheduled next
Targets set by the organizations named. Dates like these often move.
Scheduled
China's target for a first crewed lunar landing
The China Manned Space Agency said in February 2026 that China is targeting a crewed lunar landing by 2030, Xinhua reported. The agency also said work on the Long March-10 rocket, Mengzhou spacecraft and Lanyue lander was on course. The agency publicly announced the 2030 goal in May 2023.
Source: China Focus: China's manned space program releases major tasks ahead, Xinhua News Agency
Scheduled
Artemis IV: NASA's target for the first Artemis crewed Moon landing
NASA's launch schedule page for Artemis IV, as of October 2026, says the agency is targeting early 2028 for the first Artemis lunar landing. The crew is to launch on Orion and transfer to a commercial lander. NASA says lander readiness will decide which provider carries them to the surface.
Source: Artemis IV, NASA
Scheduled
Blue Origin Blue Moon Mark 1 lander launch
NASA's launch schedule, as of October 2026, lists January 2027 for Blue Origin's Blue Moon Mark 1. NASA says the lander will deliver science and technology to the Shackleton Connecting Ridge near the lunar south pole. NASA says the lander will also demonstrate capabilities that lower risk for crewed landings planned for 2028.
Scheduled
Artemis III: crewed docking test with lunar landers in Earth orbit
NASA's Artemis III mission page, as of October 2026, lists a 2027 launch. Four crew members are to fly on Orion to low Earth orbit. NASA says it will test rendezvous and docking there with one or both of the commercial human landing systems in development. NASA set out this plan in February 2026.
Source: Artemis III, NASA
Scheduled
Intuitive Machines IM-3 (Nova-C Trinity) lander launch to Reiner Gamma
Intuitive Machines' chief executive, Steve Altemus, said on an August 2026 earnings call that the Nova-C launch would slip to the first quarter of 2027, Aerospace America reported. NASA's Moon Base program manager said on September 15, 2026 that the lander was in final assembly.
Scheduled
Firefly Blue Ghost Mission 2 to the far side of the Moon
Firefly Aerospace's mission page, as of October 2026, says the mission is set to launch no earlier than 2027. Firefly says a Blue Ghost lander stacked on an Elytra orbiter will deliver six payloads, including NASA's LuSEE-Night radio telescope. It says the lander will touch down on the lunar far side.
Source: Blue Ghost + Elytra: Lunar Far Side, Firefly Aerospace
Scheduled
Astrobotic Griffin-1 lander launch with Astrolab's FLIP rover
NASA's Moon Base program manager, Carlos García-Galán, said on September 15, 2026 that Griffin was on track to launch no earlier than November. He said Griffin would carry Astrolab's FLIP rover to the lunar south pole region. NASASpaceFlight reported on October 1 that launch was scheduled no earlier than December.
Timeline
China postpones the Chang'e-7 lunar south pole mission
The China Manned Space Agency said the Chang'e-7 probe did not meet launch conditions and could not launch in its planned 2026 window, Xinhua reported. The report gave no new launch date. Xinhua had described the mission days earlier as a survey of the lunar south pole's environment and resources.
Source: China's Chang'e-7 launch will not proceed in planned window this year, Xinhua News Agency
Blue Origin New Glenn rocket explodes on its Florida launch pad
A New Glenn rocket exploded during a static-fire test at Blue Origin's Florida launch site on the evening of May 28, 2026. Ars Technica reported no injuries and, citing sources, extensive damage to the site. It said the first Blue Moon Mark 1 lander had been due to launch on New Glenn that fall.
Source: The most spectacular rocket explosion since N1 just happened in Florida, Ars Technica
Artemis II launches on a crewed flight around the Moon
Artemis II launched on April 1, 2026 and splashed down on April 10. It carried NASA's Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover and Christina Koch and the Canadian Space Agency's Jeremy Hansen. NASA's mission page describes a crewed lunar flyby and gives the duration as 9 days, 1 hour and 32 minutes.
Source: Artemis II: NASA’s First Crewed Lunar Flyby in 50 Years, NASA
NASA makes Artemis III an Earth-orbit test ahead of an Artemis IV landing
NASA said Artemis III, moved to 2027, would test systems in low Earth orbit ahead of an Artemis IV landing in 2028. It said the mission would aim to include a rendezvous and docking with one or both commercial landers from SpaceX and Blue Origin. The agency also said it would standardize its vehicle configuration.
Source: NASA Adds Mission to Artemis Lunar Program, Updates Architecture, NASA
China tests the Long March-10 rocket and Mengzhou crew capsule abort
China flew a Long March-10 rocket in prototype form on a low-altitude test from Wenchang, Xinhua reported, citing the China Manned Space Agency. Xinhua said China triggered an abort of the Mengzhou crew spacecraft at maximum dynamic pressure. The rocket's first stage and the capsule splashed down as planned.
China completes first landing and takeoff test of its Lanyue crew lander
The China Manned Space Agency said a comprehensive landing and takeoff test of the Lanyue lander was completed on August 6, 2025. It said the test took place at a site in Huailai County, Hebei Province. The lander is designed to carry two astronauts between lunar orbit and the surface.
ispace loses its Resilience lander during a second landing attempt
ispace ended its Mission 2 after telemetry from the Resilience lander was lost during descent on June 6, 2025, Japan time. The company said its laser rangefinder was slow to return valid distance readings. It said the lander could not slow down enough and a hard landing was likely.
Source: Status Update on ispace Mission 2 SMBC x HAKUTO-R Venture Moon, ispace
Intuitive Machines' IM-2 lander Athena ends up on its side
The Nova-C lander Athena touched down inside a crater, away from its planned Mons Mouton site, NASA said. Intuitive Machines said later images confirmed it was on its side, and the mission ended at 12:15 a.m. CST on March 7. NASA said it landed closer to the lunar south pole than any earlier lander.
Source: NASA Receives Some Data Before Intuitive Machines Ends Lunar Mission, NASA
Firefly's Blue Ghost Mission 1 lands upright in Mare Crisium
Firefly Aerospace's Blue Ghost landed at 3:34 a.m. EST near Mons Latreille, upright and stable, NASA said. Launched on January 15, 2025, it carried 10 NASA instruments under Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS). CLPS is the program through which NASA buys Moon deliveries from companies.
Source: Touchdown! Carrying NASA Science, Firefly’s Blue Ghost Lands on Moon, NASA
NASA resets Artemis II to April 2026 and Artemis III to mid-2027
NASA said it was targeting April 2026 for Artemis II and mid-2027 for Artemis III. The dates followed its investigation of why Orion's heat shield shed charred material unexpectedly during the Artemis I re-entry. The agency said the new dates also allowed time to work on Orion's life support systems.
Source: NASA Shares Orion Heat Shield Findings, Updates Artemis Moon Missions, NASA
Chang'e-6 returns the first samples from the Moon's far side
The Chang'e-6 return capsule landed in Siziwang Banner, Inner Mongolia, on June 25, 2024, after a May 3 launch. The China National Space Administration said the mission collected 1,935.3 grams of material. It called this the first time samples had been collected from the far side of the Moon.
Intuitive Machines' Odysseus makes the first commercial Moon landing
The Nova-C lander Odysseus landed near Malapert A in the Moon's south polar region at 5:24 p.m. CST, carrying six NASA payloads. NASA called it the first commercial uncrewed landing on the Moon and the first successful delivery under its CLPS program.
Source: NASA Tech Contributes to Soft Moon Landing, Agency Science Underway, NASA
Japan's SLIM lander makes a pinpoint Moon landing
The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency's SLIM lander touched down at about 00:20 Japan time. It landed 55 meters from its target, inside its 100-meter goal. This was Japan's first lunar soft landing. The lander settled in an unexpected orientation and its solar cells were not generating power after landing.
Astrobotic's Peregrine launches but cannot attempt a Moon landing
Peregrine Mission One, the first Moon mission to launch under NASA's CLPS program, lifted off on January 8, 2024. A propulsion problem after separation from the rocket ruled out a soft landing, NASA said. The spacecraft made a controlled re-entry over the South Pacific on January 18, the agency said.
Source: NASA Science, Astrobotic Peregrine Mission One Concludes, NASA
India's Chandrayaan-3 soft-lands on the Moon
The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) reported that Chandrayaan-3, launched on an LVM3 rocket on July 14, 2023, soft-landed on the Moon on August 23. ISRO said the mission's rover rolled down from the lander the following day.
Source: Chandrayaan-3, Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO)
China announces a goal of landing astronauts on the Moon by 2030
Lin Xiqiang, deputy director of the China Manned Space Agency, told a press conference in Jiuquan that China had begun the lunar landing phase of its crewed program. He said the goal was a first crewed landing by 2030. He said a Long March-10 rocket, new crew spacecraft and lunar lander were in development.
ispace's HAKUTO-R Mission 1 lander is lost during its landing attempt
ispace said it lost contact with its HAKUTO-R Mission 1 lander around a touchdown scheduled for about 1:40 a.m. Japan time. The company said the estimated remaining propellant reached its lower threshold, descent speed then rose rapidly, and the lander most likely made a hard landing.
Source: Status Update on ispace HAKUTO-R Mission 1 Lunar Lander, ispace
Artemis I launches an uncrewed Orion spacecraft around the Moon
NASA's Space Launch System rocket launched Orion from Kennedy Space Center on an uncrewed lunar flight test. Orion splashed down on December 11, 2022 after 25 days, 10 hours and 53 minutes, according to NASA's mission page.
Source: Artemis I, NASA
Additional sources
- Moon to Mars | NASA's Artemis Program, NASA
- Moon Base: Intuitive Machines IM-3, NASA
- Falcon Heavy launches classified NROL-97 to high-energy orbit, NASASpaceFlight.com
- China prepares to launch Chang'e-7 lunar probe, Xinhua News Agency
Update history
- Rewritten in shorter, plainer sentences. No facts were changed.
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