NASA unveils schedule for return to the Moon

NASA on Thursday unveiled the calendar for the Artemis program that will return astronauts to the Moon for the first time in half a century, including eight scheduled launches and a mini-station in lunar orbit by 2024.

The original lunar missions were named for Apollo – Artemis was his twin sister in Greek mythology, and the goddess of hunting, wilderness and the Moon.

Administrator Jim Bridenstine confirmed that Artemis 1 would be an un-crewed mission around the Moon in 2020.

Next will come Artemis 2, which will orbit Earth’s satellite with a crew around 2022; followed by Artemis 3 that will put astronauts on lunar soil in 2024, including the first woman.

As well, there will be five launches carrying the building blocks of the lunar mini-station Gateway which will serve as a staging point for the Moon landing.

These will be carried out between 2022 and 2024 by private space companies, which NASA will pay for their services.