NASA has announced the names of the astronauts selected for the next Artemis mission, following the space agency's historic flyby of the Moon.
The Artemis III mission is planned to launch a crew on an Orion spacecraft aboard a Space Launch System rocket in 2027 on a "complex" mission, according to NASA.
The crew includes three American and one Italian astronaut from the European Space Agency's European Astronaut Corps: NASA astronaut and commander Randy Bresnik, ESA astronaut and pilot Luca Parmitano of Italy, and NASA astronauts and mission specialists Frank Rubio and Andre Douglas, NASA officials said.
Ronaldo Schemidt/AFP via Getty Images — PHOTO: The Artemis III crew speaks during the Artemis III crew announcement press conference at NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas, June 9, 2026.
Another NASA astronaut, Bob Hines, has been designated as a backup crew member and will also train with the four astronauts.
«"This mission will capture the world's attention and bring joy to us on Earth," said Vanessa Wyche, director of NASA's Johnson Space Center, during the crew announcement event.
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During the event, Artemis II Commander Reed Wiseman symbolically passed the baton to Bresnik in the presence of other Artemis II crew members.
«"The whole world watched your mission, and over these 10 days, we saw how you inspired people all over the world. You saw something ignite in people, something ignite in each of us, as we watched your mission," Bresnik told them, calling the baton "the Olympic torch" lit by the Artemis II crew. "It's a great honor for us, the Artemis III crew, to carry that torch forward, to fulfill our mission, to fan that flame, and to pass it on.".
Bresnik, along with the other crew members, thanked their families, NASA, and the European Space Agency for "the opportunity to represent all of humanity" on this mission.
«"My brain is going crazy right now, but my heart, my heart, is so warm. It's so full," Douglas said.
Bill Stafford/NASA — PHOTO: The Artemis III crew poses for their official portrait. From left: Andre Douglas, Luca Parmitano, Randy Bresnik, Frank Rubio.
Wyche said the "extraordinary crew" would "lead humanity's next steps to the Moon.".
«"The incredible crew of the Artemis II mission was just the beginning, and they did an absolutely remarkable job," NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman said during an event Tuesday, adding that the crew "showed us the Moon again and showed us Earth again.".
The Artemis II crew was the first to test the Orion spacecraft using the Space Launch System rocket. The Artemis III mission will do the same, but with rockets and lunar landers from Blue Origin and SpaceX.
«"This mission will be one of the most challenging NASA has ever undertaken," NASA's director of flight operations, Norm Knight, said Tuesday.
The Artemis III mission is expected to last about two weeks and is "deliberately designed with calculated risk in mind so that future crews will be safer and ultimately successful when we land on the lunar surface," Jeremy Parsons, acting associate deputy administrator of NASA's Moon to Mars program, said during an event Tuesday.
Over the next year, the four astronauts will prepare for their mission and "ensure the implementation of lessons learned from the previous crew's experience and assist in the development of landers and operational procedures that will be needed by their colleagues on future Artemis missions," Isaacman said.
According to NASA, the crew will orbit the Earth in low Earth orbit, testing the Orion spacecraft's rendezvous and docking capabilities with commercial landers from Blue Origin and SpaceX, which is essential for landing astronauts on the Moon. The astronauts will spend several days docked, controlling the lander and "conducting critical life support system tests that can only be performed in space.".
Parsons said upgrades planned for the upcoming mission include a new docking system, an improved heat shield, and updated communications technology to "improve data exchange between Orion and Earth.".
The announcement comes nearly two weeks after one of Blue Origin's New Glenn rockets exploded on its launch tower during a static fire test, destroying the rocket and damaging the launch pad.
Parsons stated that despite this "anomaly," they are "confident" that the rocket needed to launch the lander into orbit will be ready for the Artemis III mission. Blue Origin's John Coulouris also stated on Tuesday that they expect the lander to be ready for launch in 2027.
A Blue Origin rocket exploded during a test at Cape Canaveral.
Artemis III was originally planned as a manned mission to the lunar surface, but Isaacman said in February that the schedule had changed.
This occurred shortly after the publication of a report by the Aerospace Safety Advisory Board, which evaluates NASA's safety record and makes recommendations for improvement. The board's report deemed the previous Artemis III mission schedule "high risk.".
The Artemis test flights are a preparatory stage for a mission to the lunar surface by 2028.
The Artemis III mission is a follow-up to the successful Artemis II mission, which completed a 10-day journey around the Moon in April of this year.
The four-person crew traveled nearly 700,000 miles and orbited the far side of the Moon for the first time in more than 50 years.
After splashdown, Isaacman told ABC News that Artemis II is just the first step toward the goal of establishing a permanent base on the moon and eventually sending astronauts to Mars.
The Artemis II crew included Wiseman, Victor Glover, and Christina Hammock Koch of NASA, and Jeremy Hansen of the Canadian Space Agency. Koch was the first woman, and Glover the first person of color, to orbit the Moon.
This is a developing story. Please stay tuned for updates.