NASA’s eagerly anticipated manned moon missions will be delayed further.

The U.S. space agency announced on Thursday that both the Artemis II and Artemis III missions will not proceed until at least a year later, primarily due to complications with the Orion capsule that astronauts will use during these lunar missions.

This delay shifts the Artemis III mission, which aims to return astronauts to the moon for the first time in over 50 years, to no sooner than 2027, according to NASA.

The preceding mission, Artemis II, has also been pushed back and will now take place no earlier than 2026. The crew for Artemis II will undertake a 10-day journey around the moon, without landing.

Nasa’s ambitious Artemis initiative – the country’s first lunar program since the Apollo era – has faced numerous delays and controversies as lawmakers and aerospace experts have raised concerns about the project’s scope and expenses.

The most recent delay coincides with the impending departure of NASA Administrator Bill Nelson, who is set to leave his role when President-elect Donald Trump takes office in January.

Reasons for the Artemis delay involve Orion capsule’s heat shield

The delay is primarily linked to problems with the Orion spacecraft’s heat shield experienced during the Artemis I mission, an uncrewed voyage that launched from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center on November 16, 2022, and returned to Earth on December 11, 2022.

During its re-entry phase, the heat shield “suffered an unexpected loss of charred material,” NASA detailed in a press release.

In the aftermath, NASA and an independent review team dedicated several months to assessing the technical problems that led to unexpected wear on the heat shield.

“The Artemis initiative is one of the most daring, technically demanding, and collaboratively international efforts humanity has ever undertaken,” stated Nelson. He noted that while considerable advancements have occurred since Artemis I, NASA remains focused on understanding more about Orion’s life support systems before Artemis II.

“Getting the upcoming test flight right is crucial for the success of the Artemis initiative,” Nelson emphasized.

What lies ahead for the Artemis program?

After Artemis I, NASA thoroughly analyzed the heat shield problem and confirmed that adjustments could allow the Artemis II heat shield to protect the crew adequately during the mission. These adjustments involve “modifications to Orion’s flight path as it enters Earth’s atmosphere and decelerates from nearly 25,000 mph to about 325 mph before parachutes deploy for a safe landing in the Pacific Ocean,” according to the announcement.

Furthermore, it was identified that a “charred material” on the heat shield—crucial for safeguarding the astronauts during re-entry—depleted at an unexpected rate during Artemis I. Data indicated that the internal temperature remained safe and comfortable throughout the flight, even though it was uncrewed.

“Throughout the investigation into the heat shield incident and the planning of next steps, we have adhered to NASA’s fundamental principles; putting safety and data-driven assessments at the forefront,” said Catherine Koerner, an associate administrator at NASA Headquarters. She added, “The revisions to our mission plans illustrate positive progress toward ensuring we meet our objectives on the Moon and develop the necessary technologies for future crewed missions to Mars.”

NASA plans to continue assembling its Space Launch System rocket components, a process that began in November, and preparing for integration with the Orion for Artemis II.

The Artemis program: previous delays and ongoing plans

This isn’t the first time NASA has encountered delays; Artemis II was initially postponed from November 2024 to September 2025, while Artemis III was moved from 2025 to September 2026.

NASA attributed these initial setbacks to a battery malfunction and technical “challenges” related to the airflow and temperature regulation within the Orion spacecraft.

Nasa’s ambitious lunar initiative is only part of a larger plan projected to cost $93 billion by 2025, as reported by Reuters. In the coming years, the Artemis program is set to create a lunar base at the moon’s south pole, an area believed to be rich in water ice. This ice could be harvested for drinking water, air, and as a source of hydrogen and oxygen for rocket fuel.

This lunar outpost will act as a hub for crewed deep space missions, making journeys to Mars feasible—some of which Elon Musk, CEO of SpaceX, is planning to commence as soon as 2028. SpaceX has been rigorously testing its enormous Starship spacecraft, which has been contracted by NASA to transport Artemis III astronauts from the Orion spacecraft to the moon’s surface during its orbit.

For the United States, it’s been a long time since astronauts last walked on the moon; the last Apollo mission took place in 1972.

Despite the lengthy wait, Reid Wiseman, one of the four astronauts selected for the Artemis II crew, expressed gratitude for NASA’s willingness to explore all possibilities in the interest of human spaceflight.

“We are thrilled to undertake Artemis II and help lay the groundwork for ongoing human exploration of both the Moon and Mars,” Wiseman shared in a statement.

China aims to send astronauts to the moon by 2030

Nasa isn’t the only organization with lunar ambitions; in April, China announced its intention to send astronauts to the moon by 2030.

Earlier this year, China launched the Chang’e-6 lunar probe, aiming to become the first country to collect samples from the far side of the moon.