NASA's historic Artemis mission to land the 1st woman on the moon delayed until 2026

NASA's Artemis campaign will land the first woman and person of color on the moon. (Image credit: NASA)

NASA leaders have announced they are pushing back two of the agency's flagship Artemis missions — Artemis II and Artemis III — amid safety concerns.

Artemis II, which will send four astronauts on a round trip around the moon and was originally scheduled for November 2024, is now slated to lift off in September 2025. The timeline for Artemis III, which plans to land the crew on the moon's south pole, has shifted to make sure lessons learned from Artemis II can be incorporated into Artemis III. Originally targeted for late 2025, NASA now aims to launch Artemis III in September 2026, agency leaders announced on Tuesday (Jan. 9).