On June 9, NASA revealed the four-person crew that will undertake Artemis III, a complex orbital demonstration planned for 2027 with no firm launch date yet set. The mission will involve three spacecraft operating together in Earth orbit and will, for the first time in space, evaluate moon landers developed by SpaceX and Blue Origin as part of a staged, one-by-one docking sequence.
The crew comprises U.S. astronauts Randy Bresnik, Frank Rubio and Andre Douglas, together with Italy's Luca Parmitano of the European Space Agency. NASA characterized the operation as a delicate demonstration intended to exercise docking procedures and interactions between multiple vehicles ahead of future lunar operations.
Crew highlights
- Mission commander - Randy Bresnik: Bresnik, 58, has been part of NASA's astronaut corps since 2004 and brings extensive spaceflight experience to Artemis III. He has made three trips into space, totaling roughly 150 days, and has accumulated about 32 hours of spacewalking time. A retired U.S. Marine Corps colonel and test pilot, Bresnik logged more than 7,000 flight hours across 95 different aircraft.
- Pilot - Luca Parmitano: Parmitano, 49, joined the European Space Agency's astronaut cadre in 2009 and has flown twice. He is the first ESA astronaut assigned to an Artemis mission and is the second non-U.S. citizen on an Artemis flight, following Canadian Space Agency astronaut Jeremy Hansen's inclusion on Artemis II. Parmitano's selection underscores Italy's growing role in NASA's Artemis program and reflects ongoing international participation.
- Mission specialist - Frank Rubio: Rubio, 50, holds the record for the longest continuous spaceflight by a U.S. astronaut, spending 371 days straight in orbit during his first and only spaceflight. He established that record in 2023 when his originally planned six-month mission on the International Space Station extended after the Russian spacecraft he used to arrive developed a leak while docked. After months of waiting for a replacement vehicle from Russia, he returned to Earth in early 2023. Rubio is also a board-certified family physician and flight surgeon.
- Mission specialist - Andre Douglas: Douglas, 40, will make his first trip to space on Artemis III. He was selected to NASA's astronaut corps in 2021. Born in Miami, Douglas holds multiple engineering degrees, including three master's degrees and a doctorate in systems engineering from George Washington University. Before joining NASA he served in the U.S. Coast Guard as a naval architect and worked on NASA-related programs while a professional staff member at the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory.
The mission's dual focus - to conduct a precise docking demonstration among three spacecraft and to test commercially developed lunar landers in the space environment - positions Artemis III as an important operational test ahead of future lunar surface missions. The involvement of two different commercial providers for landers is a notable element of the plan, as is the participation of an ESA astronaut among the four-person crew.
While NASA has announced the crew and the 2027 target year, it has not provided a specific launch date for Artemis III. The schedule remains subject to program decisions and mission readiness assessments.
Summary of mission essentials
- Mission: Artemis III - orbital docking demonstration involving three spacecraft and tests of SpaceX and Blue Origin lunar landers in space.
- Crew: Randy Bresnik (mission commander), Luca Parmitano (pilot), Frank Rubio (mission specialist), Andre Douglas (mission specialist).
- Target launch year: 2027; specific date not announced.