NASA Announces Crewed Moon Flight as Part of Artemis 4 in 2028

NASA announced that the Artemis 4 mission will include a crewed flight to the Moon in 2028, as part of the agency’s efforts to resume a human presence on the lunar surface.

NASA administrator Jared Isaacman said the agency is working to accelerate the pace of work and to review technical requirements with the aim of meeting the scheduled timeline.

Isaacman added that these measures aim to give Artemis 4 “the greatest possible chance of returning Americans safely and successfully to the lunar surface in 2028,” noting that a rover and the first elements of a sustained human presence will be waiting for the astronauts when they land.

Separately, Jeremy Parsons, director of NASA’s Artemis program, explained that development of lunar landers is proceeding in parallel at two contracted private companies: SpaceX, owned by Elon Musk, and Blue Origin, owned by Jeff Bezos.

Parsons stressed that the Artemis team is strongly focused on making tangible progress toward reaching the lunar surface within the 2028 schedule, noting that NASA will wait as long as possible before deciding which company will carry the crew to the surface and confirming that both companies are working to reach the landing phase that year.