In shaking up its Artemis lunar program, NASA's new moon plan looks more like the Apollo missions of the 1960s. Instead of landing on the surface on Artemis III, NASA hopes to do so on Artemis IV.

Feb. 27, 2026 Get more news © 2026 NBCUniversal Media, LLC

NASA announced an overhaul to its Artemis moon program as safety concerns persist. CBS News space contributor Christian Davenport breaks down the key takeaways.

NASA will send Artemis III to low-Earth orbit instead of the moon, testing docking systems before a planned 2028 lunar landing.

On Friday, Administrator Jared Isaacman announced the space agency would carry out an additional flight in 2027 to test commercial lunar landers from one or both of SpaceX and Blue Origin.

NASA is revamping its Artemis moon landing program. NASA's new administrator Jared Isaacman announced the shake-up in the flight lineup Friday, days after the space agency's new moon rocket returned to its Florida hangar for more repairs.

NASA said Friday it's adding an extra moon mission by Artemis astronauts before attempting a high-risk lunar landing with a crew.

Planned for 2027, the new mission comes as the US aims to establish regular lunar missions, a long-awaited follow-up to its first moon missions in the Apollo program, which ended in 1972. NASA is