The Artemis mission attempted to return humans to the surface of the moon to make it the first human colony in space. So far Artemis I has successfully traveled to the moon before returning to earth without a crew. Artemis II will perform the same mission with four astronauts next year. But now Artemis III which was supposed to land on the moon in 2025 may be delayed to 2026.
A NASA representative said the delay may be due to SpaceX's delay in testing the Starship spacecraft. Starship's first test ended after it exploded during launch last April.
Before the Artemis III mission can be launched, SpaceX needs to test refueling the fuel tanks in Earth orbit and land the Starship on the lunar surface without a crew. This delay will probably give time to China which also wants to send their taikonaut to the surface of the moon by 2030.
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