NASA names crew for Artemis III lunar lander rehearsal

Whether any of the spacecraft will be ready in time for H2 2027 remains unanswered

NASA has named the four astronauts set to fly the Artemis III mission in an announcement that raised as many questions as it answered.The quartet is comprised of a Space Shuttle veteran, Randy Bresnik, as commander, and the European Space Agency's Luca Parmitano, whose helmet filled with water during an International Space Station (ISS) spacewalk. NASA astronauts Frank Rubio and Andre Douglas will serve as mission specialists. In addition, NASA astronaut Bob Hines will serve as a backup crew member.

The Artemis III crew from left: Andre Douglas, Luca Parmitano, Randy Bresnik, Frank Rubio

NASA/Bill Stafford

Originally slated to land astronauts on the Moon, Artemis III was repurposed to test human lander technology from Blue Origin and SpaceX in low Earth orbit, similar to Apollo 9's check of the lunar module.