NASA Goes Big: 3 Moon Missions In 2026 To Start Lunar Base

NASA just made its lunar ambitions crystal clear, with a timeline that’s moving fast. Three uncrewed missions are set to launch before the end of 2026, backed by nearly $1 billion in funding, with the goal of building humanity’s first permanent base at the Moon’s South Police.

NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman laid out the roadmap during a news conference this week where the space agency also announced the private companies awarded contracts to deliver and create the infrastructure needed for this moon base.

Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin will provide a pair of landers to deliver moon buggies to the lunar surface. These so-called lunar terrain vehicles will be built by Astrolab and Lunar Outpost. Firefly Aerospace, which landed successfully on the moon last year, will deliver the first drones to the moon.

All this hardware is supposed to arrive before the first Artemis astronauts land on the moon, planned for as early as 2028.

But will Thursday night’s massive explosion during Blue Origin’s testing for its New Glenn rocket, throw a wrench in NASA’s timeline?

The rocket exploded during a routine test of its engines. It was supposed to launch dozens of internet satellites next week. The explosion rocked homes across Cape Canaveral, Florida.

(MORE: See The Blue Origin Rocket Explosion)

“It’s too early to know the root cause but we’re already working to find it," Bezos said via X. "Very rough day, but we’ll rebuild whatever needs rebuilding and get back to flying. It’s worth it.”

THE PLANS FOR THIS YEAR

Moon Base I launches fall 2026, using Blue Origin's Blue Moon Mark 1 Endurance lander to deliver critical equipment. This mission will test how spacecraft thrusters interact with the lunar surface—knowledge essential for safe future landings.

Moon Base II follows later this year, delivering over 1,100 pounds of cargo via Astrobotic's Griffin lander, including Astrolab's FLIP rover to test mobility systems.

Moon Base III rounds out 2026 with a lander carrying the Lunar Vertex investigation to study lunar swirls – mysterious light spots on the Moon's surface.

BEYOND 2026 

NASA's MoonFall mission, launching in 2028, will deploy four autonomous drones to survey potential astronaut landing sites. These aerial scouts will hop across the lunar surface, gathering high-resolution imagery of terrain too dangerous for rovers to reach.

After their final flights, the drones' "survive-the-night" payloads will continue operating for months.

NASA is targeting Artemis III for mid-2027, with a landing by two astronauts following as soon as 2028. 

(MORE: To The Moon And Back: The Story of Artemis II)

The moon base's second phase, from 2029 into the early 2030s, will start building up the permanent infrastructure, including a solar power grid.

As for when the base will be ready to support astronauts for extended periods in semi-permanent modules, that's expected sometime in the 2030s, during the third phase.

“Artemis astronauts will stay longer, explore farther and conduct the kinds of science that advances exploration itself,” said Lori Glaze, NASA’s Acting Associate Administrator.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.