SpaceX is exploring a simplified mission design for NASA’s Artemis III lunar landing, which aims to take astronauts near the moon’s south pole. The goal is to get a crew back to the Moon faster and more safely. This came after Acting NASA Administrator Sean Duffy reopened the Artemis III lander contract due to schedule delays.

In a recent update, SpaceX said it is “formally assessing a simplified mission architecture” for an early return to the Moon. SpaceX’s Simplified Mission Architecture According to its October 30 blog update “To the Moon and Beyond”, SpaceX reviewed Starship development and indicated changes to the mission. It did not detail the changes, but emphasized Starship’s advantages for lunar trips – its larger size and the ability to refuel in orbit.

Elon Musk also suggested that Starship could handle “an entire Moon mission” by itself. Under the current plan, four astronauts would launch with Orion on NASA’s SLS rocket, rendezvous with Starship in lunar orbit, and then transfer to Starship for the trip to the surface.

Artemis III Mission Background Artemis III is NASA’s next planned crewed moon landing, expected to occur around 2027. In 2021, NASA awarded SpaceX approximately $2. 9 billion to adapt Starship as the mission’s lunar lander.

The mission will send four astronauts aboard the SLS/Orion stack, rendezvous with the Starship Human Landing System in lunar orbit, and transfer two crew to the surface. Starship has flown 11 test flights but has not yet reached orbit or completed in-orbit refueling.

NASA’s Sean Duffy warned that delays could set Artemis III back, so he opened up the contract to competition – “and anything that can get us to the Moon first, we’ll take it”.