Acting NASA Administrator Sean Duffy announced on October 20, 2025, that the agency is reopening the contract for the Artemis III human landing system to foster competition and secure the United States' lead in lunar exploration, particularly against China's advancing space objectives.
The decision stems from concerns over the development cadence of SpaceX's Starship vehicle, which secured the initial Human Landing System (HLS) contract in 2021 for a reported $2.9 billion. The 120-meter rocket, undergoing testing at Starbase, Texas, has faced developmental hurdles and has not yet completed a full mission profile, raising doubts about meeting the targeted landing window. Duffy acknowledged SpaceX's achievements but emphasized the need for multiple pathways, stating NASA would not be constrained by reliance on a single provider to ensure the return of American astronauts to the Moon.
The contract reopening invites established aerospace competitors, most notably Blue Origin, to submit alternative or accelerated proposals. Blue Origin is already developing its Blue Moon lander, having secured a separate contract in 2023 for a lunar surface habitat for the later Artemis V mission, currently scheduled for 2029. Industry observers also suggest that other major players, such as Lockheed Martin, are preparing to form consortiums to respond to NASA's call for proposals, signaling a potential expansion of the industrial base supporting sustained lunar presence.
The original Artemis III landing date, previously targeted for 2027, is now being reassessed, with Duffy indicating a goal to land before the end of President Trump's term in January 2029 and ahead of China's projected 2030 lunar landing attempt. The complexity of the original single-provider model, especially the requirement for orbital refueling of the massive Starship vehicle with cryogenic propellants, is a key technical challenge being addressed by this strategic adjustment. Companies have been asked to present their acceleration approaches by October 29, as NASA seeks broad industry input to increase the overall cadence of lunar exploration missions.
In response to the announcement, SpaceX CEO Elon Musk maintained that SpaceX is advancing rapidly and predicted that Starship would ultimately fulfill the entire lunar objective. However, NASA's immediate priority is the successful execution of the Artemis program, using this competitive moment to drive parallel innovation across the American aerospace sector.