NASA seeks alternative launcher for Blue Moon to meet Artemis deadlines

NASA will decouple Blue Origin’s Blue Moon landers from the New Glenn launcher and pursue alternative launch vehicles to keep Artemis 3 on track for 2027 and achieve 2028 lunar landing goals, with Blue Moon Mk1 cargo and Mk2 crew landers potentially riding a different rocket; SpaceX’s Starship and other heavy-lift options are being considered as NASA and Blue Origin work to identify root causes and keep the program on schedule.