NASA has confirmed that it is on schedule to send astronauts to the moon in early 2026 on a mission that will pave the way for Americans to return to its surface.
A series of setbacks have led to the postponement of this manned mission, called Artemis 2, several times in recent years, with the new target date being April 2026.
Senior NASA official Lakeisha Hawkins confirmed that the agency intends to "fulfill this commitment," even hinting at the possibility of bringing the mission forward to February.
The three-person crew, two Americans and one Canadian, will be the first to orbit the moon in more than 50 years, but they will not land on its surface.
This announcement comes as pressure on NASA has increased in recent months with the return of Donald Trump to power.
The US president, who announced the Artemis lunar program during his first term, hopes to return NASA to the moon as soon as possible and send missions to Mars as well.
The significance of this plan lies in the fact that China, a rival power to the United States, also aims to send human crews to the moon in the coming years and establish a base on its surface.
The Trump administration has explicitly described a "second space race" after the one between the United States and the Soviet Union during the Cold War.
"The government wants us to return to the moon and be the first, but NASA's goal is to do it safely," LaKisha Hawkins said Tuesday.
"Mid-2027" has been set as the launch date for the Artemis 3 mission, which is supposed to return Americans to the lunar surface.
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